Free tool · Canada · Limits from the courts and tribunals
Pick your province and enter the amount of your claim, and see which court or tribunal hears it, the monetary limit that applies, and the filing fee — for Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta. This checker states the limits as the courts and tribunals state them. It does not decide whether your claim belongs in that court, and the court office is the authority if anything here differs.
This checker covers Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta only. Quebec and the other provinces and territories are not covered here, because their limits were not verified on an official page at build time — check the official page for your province instead.
The amount you are claiming, in dollars, not counting interest and costs. The limit in each province applies to the amount claimed, not counting interest and costs.
Limits change, and not every kind of dispute belongs in small claims court even when the amount fits — landlord and tenant money claims, for example, often belong at a tribunal instead. Read the guide, then check the official court page for your province before you file anything.
Ontario. Small Claims Court is a branch of the Superior Court of Justice. You can sue in Small Claims Court for $50,000 or less; for anything over $50,000 you need to go to the Superior Court of Justice. If what you are owed is more than $50,000, you can still file in Small Claims Court if you are willing to waive the amount over $50,000. The limit rose from $35,000 on October 1, 2025. The fee to file a claim is $108 for an infrequent claimant (fewer than 10 claims at the same court in the calendar year) and $228 for a frequent claimant. A defendant pays $77 to file a Defence (Form 9A), per Ontario's official Small Claims Court fees page. You do not need to hire a lawyer or paralegal to sue someone, and the person or business you sue has 20 days after being served to respond.
British Columbia. Small claims in British Columbia are split in two. As of June 1, 2017, the Civil Resolution Tribunal began resolving most small claims up to $5,000, and the monetary jurisdiction for small claims cases in Provincial Court is $35,000. Claims of $5,000 or less start at the Civil Resolution Tribunal; claims from $5,001 to $35,000 go to Small Claims Court in Provincial Court; claims over $35,000 go to the Supreme Court of British Columbia. The Civil Resolution Tribunal's fee to make a small claim is $75 online or $100 by email or mail for claims of $3,000 or less, and $125 online or $150 by email or mail for claims of $3,001 or more, with a $50 final decision fee for small claims. The filing fee for Provincial Court Small Claims is set by the Small Claims Rules and rises with the claim: $100 for claims up to and including $3,000, $156 for claims from $3,001 to $10,000, $206 for claims from $10,001 to $25,000, and $336 for claims from $25,001 to $35,000. Confirm the current fee schedule on the official court page before you file.
Alberta. Civil claims in Alberta are heard by the Alberta Court of Justice, and you can sue for an amount up to $100,000 plus interest and costs. Claims above $100,000 go to the Court of King's Bench instead, unless you abandon the excess. The filing fee for a Civil Claim is $100 for claims up to and including $7,500, and $200 for claims over $7,500 up to and including $100,000.
Quebec and the other provinces and territories. Not covered by this checker. Their limits were not verified on an official page at build time, so this page states no figure for them — check the official court page for your province or territory instead.
Sources: Government of Ontario, Small claims court: suing someone (Ontario.ca); Government of Ontario, Small claims court fees (Ontario.ca); Government of British Columbia, Small claims court — procedures and fees (gov.bc.ca); BC Civil Resolution Tribunal, Fees (civilresolutionbc.ca), opened at build time; Alberta Courts, Filing Fees and Payments into Court (albertacourts.ca). No figure on this page comes from anywhere else. Where a figure could not be verified on an official page, this page says to check the official page instead of stating it.
Next step: read the full step-by-step guide: Small Claims and Contractor Dispute Process in Canada