The goal of the Alberta Maintenance Enforcement Program (MEP) is to provide responsive and effective services to help client families and children achieve compliance with the payment terms of maintenance orders.

The Alberta Maintenance Enforcement Act (passed in 1985) authorizes MEP to collect child/spousal maintenance ordered by the court or required under certain agreements filed in court.

MEP seeks the voluntary cooperation of all people involved in orders for maintenance. Creditors and debtors are free to register with MEP or they can establish their own private arrangements for payment.

MEP can use a variety of enforcement procedures to collect payments, such as attaching money from wages and bank accounts, seizing personal assets, placing liens on property to secure payments, reporting to the credit bureau and requiring debtors to appear before the Director or in court to explain why payments have not been made.

Federal legislation also permits attaching federal sources of income such as GST rebates, income tax refunds, employment insurance benefits and Canada Pension payments. Additionally, it provides for canceling and withholding passports and federal marine and aviation licences.

MEP may withhold motor vehicle services (such as driver's licences, abstracts and vehicle registrations) for failure to comply with maintenance orders. To help locate debtors when they move, MEP can access motor vehicle records throughout Canada.

Once payment is received, MEP pays creditors through direct deposit.

For debtors with a Canadian bank account, payment on MEP accounts is made by pre-authorized withdrawal arranged with the debtor's financial institution. Arrangements can also be made to have maintenance payments deducted from the debtor's employment earnings.

For more information contact:

Maintenance Enforcement Program
Alberta Justice
7th Floor, Brownlee Building
10365 - 97 Street
Edmonton, AB T5J 3W7

Telephone: 780-422-5555*
Fax: 780-401-7575*
E-mail: albertamep@gov.ab.ca
Web site: http://www.albertamep.gov.ab.ca/

*Toll-free access anywhere in Alberta by calling 310-0000 followed by the area code and number.

Statistics - Fiscal Year 2007 - 2008*

• Average monthly number of active files
  • 48,557
• Annual amount collected
  • $199.8 million
• Average monthly collections from other jurisdictions
  • $880,018 per month collected for Alberta by other jurisdictions in Canada, the United States and other countries.
• Average monthly Crown recoveries
  • $694,991 per month collected on behalf of the Alberta Treasury for creditors receiving social assistance
• Average monthly number of children registered
  • 65,092
• Annual MEP budget
  • $16.2 million

*For further statistical information, please contact:

Communications
Alberta Justice
3rd Floor, Bowker Building
9833 - 109 Street
Edmonton, AB T5K 2E8

Telephone: 780-427-2475
Fax: 780-422-7363