Submit a whistleblower report

If you opt to report anonymously, you must be represented by a lawyer who will complete, sign and submit the whistleblower submission form and related documents on an anonymous basis on your behalf. Please refer to the three-step process outlined under the anonymous submission section of Whistleblower protections for more information.

Whistleblower reports can be submitted online or by mail.

Online submission

We encourage whistleblowers to file reports using the online whistleblower submission form as this allows us to begin our review process quickly. You may attach any supporting documents or materials up to 1 GB in total and a maximum of 20 electronic files per submission. If you have documents in excess of 1 GB or 20 files, please wait to provide these until after you have submitted your report and received your submission ID which will appear upon successful electronic submission.

Once you have your submission ID, please include it along with your remaining documents and send them by mail or courier to the Office of the Whistleblower. Please refer to the submission by mail section for our mailing address.  

Up to five whistleblowers may jointly make one online submission.

The OSC has developed a technical support document for submitting a Whistleblower report should you experience any compatibility or other issues using the forms.

Submission by mail

Please download, print and complete the mail-in whistleblower submission form and include supporting documents or materials, if any. These can include physical documents, electronic files saved on a storage device, such as a USB drive, or a combination of both.

Submissions by mail must include:

• a description of the items provided
• a description of how the items were obtained
• an indication to the OSC if there is the likelihood of the whistleblower’s identity being revealed through any of the items submitted

Please note: whistleblower reports submitted by mail will take longer to receive and process than those submitted online. If you are able to submit online, it is the preferred option because the more quickly and effectively matters are resolved, the better the outcome for investors and Ontario’s capital markets.

If you are multiple whistleblowers reporting individually, please ensure each individual in the group completes a separate form. Each form must be included as part of the overall report when submitting by mail.

Mailing address

Office of the Whistleblower - Confidential
Ontario Securities Commission
22nd Floor
20 Queen Street West
Toronto, ON M5H 3S8

Please note: couriered packages will be accepted from Monday to Friday, between 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. EST, except on statutory holidays.

If you submitted a report online, you will immediately receive a submission ID.  If you submit a report by mail, your submission ID will be emailed to you for expediency if an email address was supplied, or it will be sent by mail. Please keep your submission ID somewhere safe and secure, as you may need to reference it in the future.

Once a submission is received, it is carefully reviewed to determine whether it requires further follow-up or investigation. We may contact a whistleblower or, in the case of an anonymous submission, their lawyer to request additional information, such as:

• explanations or clarifications to better understand the information submitted
• details on any documents or other information that may support the submission
• further aspects regarding eligibility for a whistleblower award

Submitting additional information about the same misconduct or person

We may need you to submit further details or you may independently come across new information that may be of value to an investigation.

If you are submitting additional information about the same misconduct or person, please do not complete a new submission form. Rather, this additional information must be submitted through the supplemental whistleblower submission form which can be completed and sent online or by mail. In either case, you must include your original submission ID so that we can ensure the information is cross-referenced with your initial report.

Please note: Although you may be contacted by the Office of the Whistleblower, you will never be asked to obtain information, documents or other potential evidence that are not in your possession. Whistleblowers are not to act as agents for the Office of the Whistleblower.

Whistleblower hotline: 1-888-OSC-5553 (1-888-672-5553)

This hotline is only for individuals who are considering reporting and have specific questions about making a submission, as well as for people who have already submitted a whistleblower report. The line is not monitored at all times, but we return calls within two business days during regular business hours.

For inquiries unrelated to the whistleblower program, please call the main OSC Contact Center.

Please note: to protect your confidentiality, we will not leave a voicemail message unless the voicemail greeting clearly indicates that the phone number belongs to you. Also, as set out in OSC Policy 15-601, we will not provide information about the status of a matter to protect the confidentiality and integrity of the reviews and investigations that we conduct.