This consolidation is unofficial and is for reference only. For the official version of the regulations, consult the original documents on file with the Office of the Registrar of Regulations, or refer to the Royal Gazette Part II. Regulations are amended frequently. Please check the list of Regulations by Act to see if there are any recent amendments to these regulations filed with our office that are not yet included in this consolidation. Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this electronic version, the Office of the Registrar of Regulations assumes no responsibility for any discrepancies that may have resulted from reformatting. This electronic version is copyright © , Province of Nova Scotia, all rights reserved. It is for your personal use and may not be copied for the purposes of resale in this or any other form.
Collection and Debt Management Agencies Regulations
made under Section 28 of the
Collection and Debt Management Agencies Act
R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 77
O.I.C. 2021-7 (effective May 1, 2021), N.S. Reg. 5/2021
amended to O.I.C. 2022-129 (effective May 10, 2022), N.S. Reg. 96/2022
Table of Contents
Please note: this table of contents is provided for convenience of reference and does not form part of the regulations.
Click here to go to the text of the regulations.
Application for licence—terms and conditions
Change of collection agency or debt management agency name
Collection agency licence terms and conditions—consumer reporting
Collection agency and debt management agency premises
Collector or debt management agent working remotely
Withdrawals from trust account
Remittance of funds to creditors
Inability to locate missing creditors
Receipts for payments made by or on behalf of debtors
Debt management agreement receipts
Assignment of bond or payment of money recovered under forfeited bond
Payment of proceeds of bond 2 years after forfeiture
Content of debt management agreement
Fees charged to debtor by debt management agency
Debtor may cancel debt management agreement
Information required to be provided by collection agency or collector
Days when collection agency or collector must not contact person
Debt management agreement—prohibited representations
1 These regulations may be cited as the Collection and Debt Management Agencies Regulations.
2 In these regulations,
“Act” means the Collection and Debt Management Agencies Act;
“debt management agreement” means a written agreement between a debtor and a debt management agency referred to in subsection 20A(4) of the Act.
3 In clause 20(1)(f) of the Act, “written notice” includes a notice sent by e-mail.
4 In addition to the exemption set out in Section 3 of the Act, all of the following persons are exempted from the application of the Act:
(a) a licensed insolvency trustee within the meaning of Part I of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada);
(b) an administrator as defined in Division II of Part III of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada).
Application for licence—terms and conditions
5 (1) An applicant for a collector’s licence or a debt management agent’s licence must be 19 years of age or over.
(2) An applicant for a collection agency licence must have had at least 2 years’ experience in all phases of collection agency business, or related experience that, in the opinion of the Registrar, is equivalent.
(3) An applicant for a debt management agency licence must have had at least 2 years’ experience in all phases of debt management agency business, or related experience that, in the opinion of the Registrar, is equivalent.
6 The Registrar may renew a licence on receiving all of the following from the applicant:
(a) a completed application for renewal in a form provided by the Registrar;
(b) the fee prescribed in these regulations.
7 (1) The fees to be paid to the Registrar are as follows:
(a) to apply for a collection agency licence or a debt management agency licence: $464.75;
(b) to renew a collection agency licence or a debt management agency licence: $464.75;
(c) for each branch office of a collection agency or debt management agency: $165.70;
(d) to apply for a collector’s licence or a debt management agent’s licence: $66.00;
(e) to renew a collector’s licence or a debt management agent’s licence: $66.00;
(f) for each duplicate licence when the original is lost, stolen or destroyed: $37.35.
(2) A person requesting a duplicate licence must provide an affidavit stating that the original was lost, stolen or destroyed.
Change of collection agency or debt management agency name
8 (1) When the name of a collection agency or debt management agency changes, the collection agency or debt management agency must notify the Registrar in writing of the new name within 30 days of the date of the change.
(2) When the Registrar is notified of a name change by a collection agency or debt management agency, the Registrar must issue new licences for the collection agency or debt management agency and its collectors or debt management agents that show the new name.
Collection agency licence terms and conditions—consumer reporting
9 A holder of a collection agency licence who has reported a debt to a consumer reporting agency must inform the consumer reporting agency of any change in the status of the account within 35 days of the change in status.
Collection agency and debt management agency premises
10 (1) A holder of a collection agency licence or debt management agency licence must, for the purpose of carrying on its activities, maintain separate and adequate premises of which the licence holder is the occupant and where the licence holder
(a) may be reached personally;
(b) may receive clients in private; and
(c) keeps the records and books prescribed by the Act or these regulations.
(2) A holder of a collection agency licence or debt management agency licence who keeps a branch office must assign a responsible agent to the branch on a permanent basis.
Collector or debt management agent working remotely
10A (1) In this Section,
“remote workspace” means a place, other than the place authorized by the licence of the collection agency or debt management agency, where a collector or debt management agent works remotely.
(2) A collector or debt management agent’s remote workspace must be a secure and private workspace, located in Canada, where the personal information of debtors cannot be accessed, viewed or overheard by anyone other than the collector or debt management agent.
(3) All of the following conditions must be met for a collector or debt management agent to work from a remote workspace:
(a) all collection agency activity or debt management agency activity must be conducted at the remote workspace;
(b) the equipment used to conduct collection agency activity or debt management agency activity must be
(i) supplied by the collection agency or debt management agency, and
(ii) used only for collection agency or debt management agency purposes and not for any personal or other purposes;
(c) all collection agency activity or debt management activity must be entered directly into the systems of the collection agency or debt management agency;
(d) all information and data used or gathered for the purposes of collection agency activity or debt management agency activity must not be stored outside of the systems of the collection agency or debt management agency;
(e) the collector or debt management agent must do all of the following:
(i) ensure that debtors do not enter their remote workspace,
(ii) direct debtors to make all payments to the collection agency or debt management agency at the place authorized by the agency’s licence,
(iii) not receive payments at their remote workspace;
(f) the collection agency or debt management agency must ensure that verification of call records of the collector or debt management agent can be conducted in case of complaints.
Withdrawals from trust account
11 A collection agency or debt management agency that pays creditors from money withdrawn from its trust account must provide the creditor with a statement containing all of the following information:
(a) the date or dates on which the money was collected or received by the collection agency or debt management agency;
(b) the amount of each payment;
(c) the name of the debtor;
(d) the gross amount collected;
(e) the amount of the fees, commissions and disbursements retained by the collection agency or debt management agency;
(f) the net amount payable to the creditor;
(g) the current balance owing by the debtor.
Remittance of funds to creditors
12 (1) Subject to subsection (2) and Section 13, a collection agency or debt management agency must, on or before the 20th day of the month following the month in which money is collected or received, do all of the following:
(a) provide each creditor for which it acts with the statement referred to in Section 11;
(b) remit the money it has collected on behalf of a creditor, less its fees, commissions and disbursements, to the creditor.
(2) If the amount collected or received is less than $15.00, the collection agency or debt management agency may instead meet the requirements of clauses (1)(a) and (b) no later than 90 days after the date of collecting or receiving the money.
(3) A collection agency or debt management agency must also account for all amounts collected or received and remit them, less its fees, commissions and disbursements, to the person entitled to them within 30 days of the date of receiving a request from the person entitled to an accounting.
Inability to locate missing creditors
13 (1) If a collection agency or debt management agency is unable to comply with Section 12 and money collected by the collection agency or debt management agency remains in the trust account for 6 months after collection, the collection agency or debt management agency must remit the money to the Registrar.
(2) The Registrar must keep money remitted under subsection (1) in trust and, if a person applies to the Registrar and satisfies the Registrar that they are entitled to the money, the Registrar may remit the money to that person.
14 A person who holds a collection agency or debt management agency licence must keep a register of the trust accounts that includes all of the following information:
(a) all amounts collected or received by the collection agency or debt management agency in the carrying on of its business for the account of other persons;
(b) all the disbursements attributable to the amounts referred to in clause (a).
Receipts for payments made by or on behalf of debtors
15 (1) A collection agency and debt management agency must provide a receipt that meets the requirements of subsection (2) for all cash transactions, payments made in person or payments made at the debtor’s request that the collection agency or debt management agency or a collector, debt management agent or employee collects or receives from a debtor for distribution to the debtor’s creditors.
(2) A receipt referred to in subsection (1) must contain all of the following information:
(a) the date the amount is collected or received;
(b) the name of the debtor;
(c) the name of the person for whom the collection agency or debt management agency acts;
(d) the amount received from the debtor.
Debt management agreement receipts
16 When the amount set out in a debt management agreement is paid in full, the debt management agency must give the debtor a receipt containing all of the following information:
(a) the amount paid;
(b) the name of the creditor or creditors;
(c) a statement that the amount received is in final settlement of the debt or debts owing.
17 All records of a collector, collection agency, debt management agent or debt management agency that relate to the collection of a debt and are to be discarded must be shredded before disposal to ensure that the identity of the debtor remains confidential.
18 (1) The amount of the bond required to be delivered by an applicant for a collection agency licence under Section 6 of the Act or a debt management agency licence under Section 6A of the Act is $20 000.00.
(2) The bond must be in the form of a surety bond.
19 (1) A bond may be terminated by any person bound by the bond by providing written notice of the intention to terminate to the Registrar and the collection agency or debt management agency named in the bond at least 60 days before the date the bond is to be terminated.
(2) Subject to Section 20, the bond is deemed to be terminated 60 days from the date the notice is received by the Registrar.
20 For the purpose of every act and omission occurring during the period of licensing or before a bond is terminated under Section 19, a bond continues in force and any collateral security remains on deposit for a period of 2 years after one of the following occurs:
(a) the licence or renewal of the licence to which the bond relates is terminated; or
(b) the bond is terminated under Section 19.
21 (1) The Registrar may declare any bond delivered under these regulations forfeited if any of the following occurs:
(a) a collection agency or debt management agency, in respect of whose conduct the bond has been conditioned, or a collector, debt management agent, or official of the collection agency or debt management agency has been convicted of 1 or more of the following:
(i) an offence under the Act or regulations,
(ii) an offence involving fraud or theft, or conspiracy to commit an offence involving fraud or theft, under the Criminal Code (Canada);
(b) proceedings by or in respect of a collection agency or debt management agency, including any member of a partnership, in respect of whose conduct the bond has been conditioned, have been taken under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada), or by way of winding up and a receiving order under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada), or a winding-up order has been made, and the order has become final;
(c) a judgment based on a finding of fraud has been given against a collection agency or debt management agency, including any member of a partnership, in respect of whose conduct the bond has been conditioned or against a collector, debt management agent, or other official of the collection agency or debt management agency for money collected for any other person, and the judgment has become final;
(d) if a judgment has been given against a collection agency or debt management agency, including any member of a partnership, in respect of whose conduct the bond has been conditioned or a collector, debt management agent, or other official of the collection agency or debt management agency on any claim involving a collection matter, and the judgment has remained unsatisfied for a period of at least 90 days;
(e) a decision has been rendered by the Registrar in writing stating in effect that after consideration of a complaint or the results of an inspection, the Registrar is satisfied that the person in respect of whose conduct the bond is conditioned, or any representative, agent or salesperson of that person,
(i) has violated any provision of the Act or these regulations, or
(ii) has failed to comply with any of the terms, conditions or restrictions of their licence.
(2) A bond that is declared forfeited under subsection (1) is due and owing by the person bound by it as a debt due the Crown in right of Nova Scotia.
Assignment of bond or payment of money recovered under forfeited bond
22 (1) The Registrar may, in their discretion, assign any bond forfeited under these regulations and transfer the collateral security, if any, or pay over any money recovered under the bond to any of the following people, provided that the claim or transaction occurred during the period of licensing or before the bond was terminated under Section 19:
(a) a judgment creditor of any collection agency or debt management agency, including any member of a partnership, in respect of whose conduct the bond has been conditioned, or a collector, debt management agent or other official of the collection agency or debt management agency, if the judgment was based on a claim arising out of a transaction involving a collection matter;
(b) if the claim is for less than $100.00 against any collection agency, including any member of a partnership, in respect of whose conduct the bond has been conditioned, or a collector or other official of the collection agency, arising out of a transaction involving a collection matter, a person who satisfies the Registrar as to the validity of the claim;
(c) if the claim is for less than $100.00 against any debt management agency, including any member of a partnership, in respect of whose conduct the bond has been conditioned, or a debt management agent or other official of the debt management agency, arising out of a transaction involving a collection matter, a person who satisfies the Registrar as to the validity of the claim;
(d) a person who has proven a claim in bankruptcy against any collection agency or debt management agency, including any member of a partnership, in respect of whose conduct the bond has been conditioned, respecting any claim arising out of a transaction involving a collection matter.
(2) The Registrar may, if the Registrar considers it advisable, without any order, pay the whole or any part of any money recovered under the bond to the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board in trust for the persons who are or may become entitled to share in the proceeds of the bond under subsection (1).
Payment of proceeds of bond 2 years after forfeiture
23 If a bond has been forfeited and the Registrar has not received notice in writing of any claim against the proceeds of the bond or any part that remains with the Registrar within 2 years of the date of forfeiture, the Registrar may pay the proceeds of the bond or the collateral security, or any part remaining, to any person who made a payment under the bond or who deposited the collateral security, after first deducting the amount of any expenses that have been incurred in connection with any investigation or otherwise relating to the collection agency or debt management agency in respect of whose conduct the bond was conditioned.
Content of debt management agreement
24 A debt management agreement must be dated and signed by the debt management agency and the debtor, and must include all of the following content:
(a) the name, address and telephone number of the debtor;
(b) the name, address, telephone number and e-mail address of the debt management agency;
(c) a description of all the services that are to be provided under the agreement;
(d) a statement of all fees, commissions or disbursements, separately itemized, that are to be paid by the debtor;
(e) a list of all creditors as disclosed by the debtor to whom payments will be made under the agreement;
(f) a statement of the total amount owed, the payment amount, the schedule of payments to be made and the total number of payments for each listed creditor.
Fees charged to debtor by debt management agency
25 (1) A debt management agency must not charge a debtor a fee that exceeds any of the following:
(a) in the case of a debt management agreement that includes a schedule of payments, the sum of the following:
(i) a one-time administration fee, which must be not greater than the average monthly payment as set out in the debt management agreement, and
(ii) 15% of the scheduled payment amount received from or on behalf of the debtor by the debt management agency;
(b) in the case of a one-time payment to a creditor or creditors, or an agreement to negotiate on the debtor’s behalf with a creditor or creditors identified in the debt management agreement, 10% of the debt owing.
(2) A fee under clause (1)(b) may be charged to the debtor by the debt management agency only after a settlement acceptable to the debtor has been successfully negotiated with the creditor or creditors.
Debtor may cancel debt management agreement
26 (1) For the purposes of subsection 22B(1) of the Act, a debtor may cancel a debt management agreement in any of the following circumstances:
(a) within 10 days of the date of receiving the written copy of the debt management agreement;
(b) within 1 year of the date of entering into the debt management agreement if the debtor does not receive a copy of the debt management agreement that meets the requirements of the Act and these regulations;
(c) at any time if the debt management agency did not hold a valid debt management agency licence on the date of entering into the debt management agreement.
(2) A debtor who cancels a debt management agreement in accordance with subsection (1) may give notice of cancellation to the debt management agency
(a) expressed in any way;
(b) orally or in writing and by any means including e-mail; and
(c) sent to any address on record with the Province for the debt management agency, or to an address known by the debtor.
(3) The cancellation of a debt management agreement operates to cancel, as if they never existed, all of the following:
(a) the debt management agreement;
(b) all related agreements;
(c) all guarantees given by the debtor or a guarantor respecting money payable under the debt management agreement;
(d) all credit agreements and other payment instruments, including promissory notes,
(i) extended, arranged or facilitated by the debt management agency with whom the debtor entered into the debt management agreement, or
(ii) otherwise related to the debt management agreement.
(4) For the purposes of clause (3)(b), a related agreement does not include any agreement that the debtor has entered into with a creditor.
Information required to be provided by collection agency or collector
27 A collection agency or collector must not collect or attempt to collect a debt without providing all of the following information in all contacts or correspondence, either written or verbal, with a debtor or creditor:
(a) the collector’s name as shown on the collector’s licence;
(b) the name of the collection agency as shown on the collection agency licence.
Days when collection agency or collector must not contact person
28 For the purposes of subclause 20(1)(k)(i) of the Act, the following days are designated as additional days on which a collection agency or collector must not contact or attempt to contact a person in relation to the collection of a debt:
(a) New Year’s Day;
(b) Nova Scotia Heritage Day, being the third Monday in February;
(c) Good Friday;
(d) Victoria Day;
(e) Canada Day;
(f) Natal Day, being the first Monday in August;
(g) Labour Day;
(h) Thanksgiving Day;
(i) Remembrance Day;
(j) Christmas Day;
(k) Boxing Day;
(l) any day fixed as a holiday by proclamation of the Governor in Council.
Debt management agreement—prohibited representations
29 A debt management agency or debt management agent must not communicate or cause to be communicated any of the following representations relating to a debt management agreement:
(a) a claim that the services are provided on a non-profit or charitable basis, if they are not;
(b) a claim that the debt management agency’s operations or programs are approved by, or a part of, a program run by the government of the Province, the government of Canada, or the government of any other jurisdiction outside the Province, if they are not;
(c) a claim that misrepresents or exaggerates the services provided under the debt management agreement or the effects or benefits of those services, including, but not limited to, any of the following claims:
(i) a claim that using the services will or may deter the efforts of a creditor or agent of a creditor to collect a debt,
(ii) a claim that using the services will or may prevent legal action or garnishment of the debtor’s wages.
Legislative History
Reference Tables
Collection and Debt Management Agencies Regulations
N.S. Reg. 5/2021
Collection and Debt Management Agencies Act
Note: The information in these tables does not form part of the regulations and is compiled by the Office of the Registrar of Regulations for reference only.
Source Law
The current consolidation of the Collection and Debt Management Agencies Regulations made under the Collection and Debt Management Agencies Act includes all of the following regulations:
N.S.
RegulationIn force
date*How in force
Royal Gazette
Part II Issue5/2021
May 1, 2021
date specified
Jan 29, 2021
96/2022
May 10, 2022
date specified
May 20, 2022
The following regulations are not yet in force and are not included in the current consolidation:
N.S.
RegulationIn force
date*How in force
Royal Gazette
Part II Issue
*See subsection 3(6) of the Regulations Act for rules about in force dates of regulations.
ad. = added
am. = amendedfc. = fee change
ra. = reassignedrep. = repealed
rs. = repealed and substitutedProvision affected
How affected
10A...................................................
ad. 96/2022
Note that changes to headings are not included in the above table.
Editorial Notes and Corrections
Note
Effective
date
Repealed and Superseded
N.S.
RegulationTitle
In force
dateRepealed
date104/1975
Collection Agencies Regulations made under chapter 77 of the Revised Statutes of Nova Scotia, 1989, the Collection Agencies Act
Jul 29, 1975
May 1, 2021
Note: Only regulations that are specifically repealed and replaced appear in this table. It may not reflect the entire history of regulations on this subject matter.