At a glance
Collection agencies in Alberta must follow certain rules under the Consumer Protection Act and the Collection and Debt Repayment Practices Regulation.
These laws control when and how a collection agency can contact you, what it's allowed to say, and how long it has to take legal action.
Alberta also has a separate six-year rule that stops collection agencies from pursuing non-judgment debts after six years.
If a collection agency breaks these rules, you can file a complaint with Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction, the province's consumer protection regulator.
In this guide
What laws govern debt collection in Alberta?
Two pieces of provincial legislation control how collection agencies operate in Alberta.
The Consumer Protection Act requires all debt collectors and debt collection agencies to be licensed.
The Collection and Debt Repayment Practices Regulation (Alberta Regulation 194/1999) sets out the specific rules collection agencies must follow, including contact limits, prohibited practices and disclosure requirements.
Source: Government of Alberta – Creditors, Collection Agencies and Debt Repayment
The Limitations Act (RSA 2000, c L-12) sets a two-year limit on legal action for most unsecured debts.
Source: Government of Alberta – Limitations Act
Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction enforce these rules and investigate complaints. You can verify whether a collection agency is licensed by calling 1-877-427-4088.
What a collection agency must tell you
When a collection agency contacts you in Alberta, it must use the name on its licence every time.
The collection agency must also tell you the name of the creditor it represents, the details of the debt, when the account was sent to collections, and the amount you owe.
You don't have to respond right away. The first call is designed to pressure you into agreeing. Don't. Confirm the facts before you say anything about the debt or agree to pay.
If you enter a repayment agreement, the collection agency must disclose any non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees in writing before it processes a payment. If you pay in person or ask for a receipt, the collection agency must provide one.
You can also request an accounting of the debt. The collection agency must provide it, but it's only required to do so once every six months. If it can't produce the accounting within 30 days, it must stop all collection activity until it does.
Alberta debt collection contact rules
When and how often can a collection agency contact you?
Collection agencies in Alberta can contact you between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. Alberta time, any day of the week. There's no separate restriction for Saturdays or Sundays.
A collection agency can contact you no more than three times in any seven-day period. This doesn't include third-party contact, mistaken contact, or traditional mail. Anything beyond three contacts in seven days is harassment.
Who else can a collection agency contact?
A collection agency can contact your spouse, partner, relative, neighbour, friend or acquaintance, but only to get your home address, personal phone number, or work phone number.
The collection agency can't discuss your debt with any of them unless that person is a guarantor on the debt.
Work calls are allowed unless you tell the collection agency to stop. If you do, you must make other arrangements to discuss the debt and actually follow through.
Your employer gets one call. The collection agency can confirm your employment status, job title, and business address. It can't tell your employer about the debt.
What collection agencies can't do in Alberta
Alberta's Collection and Debt Repayment Practices Regulation outlines the rules for debt collection. Here's what a collection agency isn't allowed to do.
Harassment, threats, and false statements
A collection agency can't harass you, your family, or your employer with repeated contact. It can't threaten you, use profane or abusive language, or apply unreasonable pressure to make you pay.
Threats of physical harm to you, your family, or your property are criminal. If this happens, call the police and file a complaint with Service Alberta.
A collection agency also can't give you or anyone else false information about the police, courts, garnishments, liens, or your credit history. It can't imply it's a law firm or legal department. And it can't suggest your friends or family are responsible for your debt unless they're jointly liable.
Say a collection agency calls your mom, tells her you owe $4,000, and asks her to pay it. That's illegal unless your mother co-signed the loan. You can report it.
Legal action restrictions
A collection agency can't threaten legal action without the authority to pursue it. If you dispute the debt in writing and want to challenge it in court, the collection agency must stop contacting you.
If you say you're not the debtor, the collection agency must stop contact unless it can prove otherwise.
A collection agency also can't cancel a repayment arrangement you're keeping up with, seize property without a court judgment, involve the police, or threaten jail time.
How long can a collection agency pursue you in Alberta?
Alberta has two separate time limits that affect debt collection. The two-year rule gets the attention. But the six-year rule matters just as much.
The two-year and six-year rules
Under the Limitations Act, a creditor or collection agency has two years to start legal action against you.
The clock starts when the creditor knew, or should have known, about the debt, which is typically the date of your last payment.
Source: Government of Alberta – Limitations Act (RSA 2000, c L-12)
After two years, the debt is statute-barred. The collection agency loses the ability to sue you. You still owe the money, but the legal threat is gone.
Separate from the Limitations Act, Alberta's Collection and Debt Repayment Practices Regulation prohibits collection agencies from pursuing a non-judgment debt where the last payment or written acknowledgement is more than six years old.
After six years, a collection agency must stop all collection activity, not just legal action.
Source: Government of Alberta – Creditors, Collection Agencies and Debt Repayment
How the clock restarts and what happens when it runs out
The two-year statute of limitations period resets if you make a payment on the debt. Any amount. Even a dollar.
It also resets if you acknowledge the debt in writing. Under Alberta's Limitations Act, section 8(5), an acknowledgement must be in writing and signed. Emails, text messages and other electronic communications count as "in writing" under Alberta's Electronic Transactions Act.
A verbal admission over the phone doesn't meet the statutory requirement. But don't treat a phone call as safe. Collection agencies record calls, and anything you confirm in a follow-up email or text becomes a written acknowledgement.
Source: Government of Alberta – Limitations Act (RSA 2000, c L-12), s. 8
If you think the debt is close to the two-year mark, be careful. Don't reply to a collection agency's email admitting the debt. Don't text "I know I owe it." And don't send a $20 payment thinking it buys goodwill, because that resets the entire two-year clock.
Some debts are entirely exempt from the two-year limitation. Child support and alimony arrears are not time-limited. Neither are civil court damage awards.
Once two years pass without a payment or written acknowledgement, a collection agency can't sue you. But the debt doesn't disappear.
Say you owe $5,000 on a credit card and your last payment was in January 2024. By January 2026, the two-year limitation expires. The collection agency can still call, but any threat of a lawsuit is empty.
Unpaid debts remain on your credit report for up to six years from the date of your last payment.
Source: Financial Consumer Agency of Canada – How Long Information Stays on Your Credit Report
If a collection agency gets a court judgment before the two-year deadline, enforcement can extend up to 10 years.
Source: Alberta Courts – Getting and Enforcing Your Judgment in Alberta (PDF)
Here's how the two rules differ.
| After two years | After six years |
|---|---|
| Collection agency can still call you | Collection agency must stop pursuing the debt entirely |
| Collection agency can report the debt to credit bureaus | Debt falls off your credit report |
| Collection agency can sell the debt to another agency | Court judgment (if obtained earlier) may still be enforceable |
| Collection agency can't sue you | Collection agency can't sue you |
| Collection agency can't get a new court judgment | Collection agency can't get a new court judgment |
How to resolve debts in collections in Alberta
Before you agree to pay anything, get the facts in writing.
Ask for the agent's name, the collection agency's details, the creditor's name, the balance owed, and the date the account was sent to collections.
Once you've confirmed the debt is yours and the amount is correct, you have options. You can set up a payment plan, negotiate a lump-sum settlement for less than the full amount, or request written confirmation of any agreement before you pay.
Get everything in writing. That matters more than anything else in this process.
If the debt is more than you can handle, a consumer proposal or bankruptcy filed through a Licensed Insolvency Trustee stops collection agency calls by law.
How to complain about a collection agency
If a collection agency breaks Alberta's rules, report it to Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction's Consumer Investigations Unit.
As of February 2026, the contact details are:
Phone: 1-877-427-4088 or 780-427-4088
Email: service.alberta@gov.ab.ca
Hours: 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday
Source: Government of Alberta – File a Consumer Complaint
For complaints about federally regulated financial institutions (banks, federal credit unions), contact the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada.
Source: Government of Canada – Dealing with a Debt Collector
Frequently asked questions
How long can a collection agency try to collect a debt in Alberta?
A collection agency can contact you about a debt for up to six years from your last payment or acknowledgement.
After six years, Alberta's Collection and Debt Repayment Practices Regulation prohibits the collection agency from pursuing a non-judgment debt.
Legal action is limited to the first two years.
Source: Government of Alberta – Creditors, Collection Agencies and Debt Repayment
Can a collection agency garnish my wages in Alberta?
No. A collection agency needs a court judgment first. Only after a judge rules against you can a creditor apply for wage garnishment.
Source: Alberta Courts – Getting and Enforcing Your Judgment in Alberta (PDF)
What happens if I ignore a collection agency in Alberta?
The collection agency can keep contacting you within the legal limits for up to six years.
Within the first two years, it can sue you. If a judgment is obtained, the collection agency can garnish your wages or seize assets. The unpaid debt stays on your credit report for up to six years.
Source: Financial Consumer Agency of Canada – How Long Information Stays on Your Credit Report
Can talking to a collection agency restart the limitation period?
Making any payment, no matter how small, restarts the two-year limitation period. Acknowledging the debt in writing (including by email or text) also restarts it.
Verbal conversations don't reset the clock on their own, but anything you put in writing can.
If you're unsure whether the limitation period has passed, don't discuss the debt in writing until you've confirmed the dates.
Source: Government of Alberta – Limitations Act (RSA 2000, c L-12), s. 8
How do I verify a collection agency is licensed in Alberta?
Call Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction at 1-877-427-4088. All collection agencies and debt collectors must be licensed under the Consumer Protection Act.
If the collection agency contacting you isn't licensed, it's operating illegally. Report it to Service Alberta immediately.
Source: Government of Alberta – Creditors, Collection Agencies and Debt Repayment
Can a collection agency charge me fees in Alberta?
A collection agency can charge a reasonable fee for a dishonoured (bounced) cheque, but only if it told you about the fee in writing before you submitted the payment.
The collection agency can't add other fees or charges to the amount you owe the original creditor.
What's the difference between the two-year and six-year rules?
The two-year rule is found in the Limitations Act and applies only to lawsuits. After two years, a collection agency can't sue you, but it can still call.
The six-year rule, under the Collection and Debt Repayment Practices Regulation, stops all collection activity on non-judgment debts.
After six years, the collection agency must leave you alone entirely.