Manage your business transactions

Vendors to the Ontario government are paid according to the contract's terms, and after you submit the invoice and the receipt for goods or services to your ministry client.

Current suppliers

Existing vendors doing business with the government who are setup in our financial system must keep their profiles up to date to ensure timely payments and receipt of payment notifications.

Speak with your ministry client to review your vendor profile, and determine if any changes are required to your address or direct deposit information.

New vendor registrations

The Ontario Vendor Portal allows you to easily manage your transactions online.

By self-registering for the Ontario Vendor Portal, you can:

  • keep your business profile up to date
  • look up invoices, payments and purchase orders
  • receive notifications for key transaction activities

To self-register, you must:

  • provide your business number as registered with the Canada Revenue Agency if your invoice charges GST/HST
  • provide your legal name and operating name as registered with the Canada Revenue Agency, to be printed on all invoices that charge GST/HST
  • attach a void cheque with your registration that displays your legal name or attach a letter from your financial institution verifying your account details. Bank counter cheques are not acceptable.

Speak with your ministry client to find out if you qualify for self-registration using the Ontario Vendor Portal.

For assistance, Contact the OPS Service Centre:

Contractor security screening: information for vendors here

The Ontario Government is committed to protecting the safety and security of its employees, clients, public, government assets, and information. We conduct security checks on contractors and vendors in certain parts of the Ontario Public Service (OPS).

Overview

The type and extent of screening is based on an approved risk assessment related to the role the contractor will be taking on. Not all contract work requires security screening.

The Contractor Security Screening Operating Policy (CSSOP) applies to all ministries, commission public bodies (CPBs) and Infrastructure Ontario (IO) and ensures consistent screening practices are in place.

Contractor Security Screening (CSS), Supply Chain Ontario (CSO), Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement (MPBSDP) is responsible for coordinating security screening and making screening decisions for contractors, on behalf of the OPS.

Who may be screened

A contractor is defined as:

  • a company (corporation, partnership), or a sole proprietorship
  • an individual, including employees and subcontractors, engaged in a contractual relationship to supply goods or services, directly or indirectly
  • an employee/worker of Infrastructure Ontario (IO)
  • a non-OPS individual employed in a public body (pursuant to the Public Service of Ontario Act, 2006) who is engaged in a contractual relationship to supply goods or services to a ministry, CPB, or (IO)

Contractors include, but are not limited to, consultants, professionals (e.g. engineers, accountants, lawyers) and service providers (e.g. temporary help agency staff).

Types of screening

When security screening is required, the following types of checks will always be conducted:

  • verification of identity
  • Criminal Record and Judicial Matters Check (CRJMC)

A contractor may also be requested to consent to one or more of the following additional checks, based on the approved risk assessment:

  • Vulnerable Sector Check
  • Driver’s Record Check
  • Credit Check
  • Fingerprint Check
  • other checks, as required

An Out-of-Country Police Certificate will also be required for applicants who have lived outside Canada for more than six consecutive months in the last five years.

Company level screening checks, which involve screening the directors and officers of a company in addition to contractor workers, may also be conducted if the security risk assessment deems it necessary.

Screening process

If your contract work requires security screening, the process will be outlined to you by the business area representative when the contract is awarded. They will explain what is required and guide you through the process.

There is no advantage to undergoing security screening prior to the contract being awarded.

It is the contractor’s personal responsibility to pay for and obtain their own screening check.

Security clearance

If a contactor’s security clearance is issued, it will be valid for up to a maximum of five years from the date of issue. A security clearance may also be issued with a restriction and/or condition.

During this time, a contractor may enter into multiple contracts without the requirement of being re-screened, provided that:

  • there are no clearance restrictions or conditions
  • the level of screening required for the subsequent contract work is either the same or lower than the original clearance

If contractor security clearance is required, it must be in place prior to the contractor beginning work for the OPS.

What can delay the screening process

The contractor security screening process has set requirements that must be followed with respect to information submitted. Most delays in security screening decisions are a result of issues with provided documentation. Examples of issues include:

  • information provided is older than 90 days
  • documentation lacks a seal, stamp, insignia, embossment, or letterhead
  • original copies of documents are not provided, and
  • documentation cannot be verified by the record check provider

Your personal information

All personal information is collected for the purposes of conducting contractor security screening clearance in accordance with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA).

The ministry's program is guided by the Contractor Security Screening Operating Policy, issued by the Management Board of Cabinet under section 3 of the Management Board of Cabinet Act, RSO 1990, Chapter M-1. Screening checks are also conducted in accordance with Ontario’s Police Record Checks Reform Act (PRCRA) and associated regulations.

The ministry is committed to maintaining the confidentiality, privacy and security of all information obtained through the contractor security screening process.

Bulletins

To find all bulletins, visit the Supply Ontario website.