Police came to your home with a search warrant in Ontario: what are your rights?

A search warrant lets police enter and search the place it names for the things it describes, so you should not physically resist; obstructing an officer is a separate offence. You can ask to see the warrant, read what it covers, stay silent and call a lawyer. Police must then report what they seized to a justice or return it, and a court supervises how long they can keep it.

A search is often the first sign that police are investigating someone in the household, sometimes before anyone is arrested or charged. For families who keep business papers, savings records or family documents in Persian at home, the questions come quickly: what can they take, will they read our phones, and when do we get things back? This guide covers the search itself and the return of property. Questions that come later, such as whether evidence can be used at a trial, belong to the criminal case that follows. Our other guides on rights before and at a charge are listed on our services page.

What does a search warrant allow?

Under section 487 of the Criminal Code, a justice may issue a warrant on sworn information showing reasonable grounds to believe that a building, receptacle or place contains things connected to an offence, evidence of an offence, or things intended to be used for certain offences. The warrant authorizes the named officers to search that place for those things, seize them, and then bring them before a justice or report on them. A warrant can be applied for and issued by telecommunication (s. 487.1), so police may arrive with a printed or electronic copy rather than an original.

The Charter sets the baseline: everyone has the right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure (s. 8). A warrant issued by a justice is the usual way police meet that standard for a home.

What should you do while police are searching, step by step?

Do not answer questions about who owns what in the home without advice. Questions asked politely in the kitchen during a search are still questions in an investigation, and the right to silence applies. Our guide on police interview requests explains why advice comes first.

Can police search your phone and computer?

Seizing a device and searching what is on it are different questions. In R. v. Vu, 2013 SCC 60, the Supreme Court of Canada held that the traditional rule letting police search cupboards and filing cabinets in a place they are authorized to search is not appropriate for computers; a computer search requires specific, prior authorization. In practice, a warrant to search a home does not by itself authorize a search of the computers found there; the warrant must authorize it. Police may still seize a device and later seek authority to examine it.

Section 489.1, which sets the duty to report seized things to a justice, now says that it does not apply to computer data (other than virtual currency or other digital assets) (s. 489.1(4)). The device itself, as a physical thing, is still subject to the return rules. Ask your lawyer which rules govern the data on a seized phone.

Phones and laptops often hold family photos, messages in Persian and records of money sent to or received from relatives abroad. If messages in Persian matter to the case, they will have to be translated, and who translated them, and how, can matter.

How do you get seized property back?

When police are satisfied that no one disputes ownership and the item is not needed for the investigation or a proceeding, they return it on a receipt and report to a justice (s. 489.1(1)(a)). Otherwise they bring it before or report it to a justice, who must order it returned to the lawful owner unless the prosecutor shows it is needed for an investigation or proceeding (s. 490(1)).

Detention under s. 490(1)(b) cannot last more than 180 days after the seizure unless a justice extends it on an application with three clear days' notice to the person it was taken from, or proceedings are started in which the item may be needed (s. 490(2)). The total cannot exceed one year unless a judge orders more because the investigation is complex, or proceedings are started (s. 490(3)). After those periods, the person from whom the thing was seized can apply for its return on three clear days' notice to the Attorney General (s. 490(7)), and can apply earlier where hardship will result (s. 490(8)). An owner can also agree in writing to longer detention (s. 490(3.1)), so read anything you are asked to sign.

What if police come without a warrant?

Officers may use the search powers of s. 487 without a warrant when the conditions for getting one exist but exigent circumstances make it impracticable to obtain one (s. 487.11). Police who are lawfully present may also seize things in plain view that they believe on reasonable grounds are connected to an offence (s. 489(2)). If police ask for permission to search without a warrant, you can say you want to speak to a lawyer first. Whether a warrantless search was lawful is decided later, in court.

What changes the answer?

• What the warrant names. The place and the things listed define the search (s. 487(1)).
• Day or night. Night execution needs the justice's specific authorization (s. 488).
• Devices. Computer searches need specific authorization (Vu); computer data is outside the s. 489.1 reporting duty (s. 489.1(4)).
• Whether charges are laid. Once proceedings start in which an item may be required, the 180-day and one-year limits stop protecting its return (s. 490(2)(b), (3)(b)).
• Ownership disputes. Police return items directly only when no one disputes who owns them (s. 489.1(1)(a)(i)).
• The kind of investigation. Searches for firearms often lead to weapon offences charges. Searches for business records are common in fraud investigations.

A worked example

For example, imagine a family in North York whose adult son runs an import business from the basement. At 9 a.m., officers arrive with a warrant naming the house and listing invoices, bank records and electronic devices relating to the business. This is a hypothetical walk-through of the rules, not a description of any real case or result.

The father, who reads English slowly, asks to see the warrant and photographs it. His daughter calls a lawyer and says the family will not answer questions. Officers take the son's laptop, two phones and several boxes of papers, some in Persian. The family asks for the occurrence number and notes what was taken. The father's own phone, which holds his personal banking app, is also taken; his lawyer later asks whether the warrant authorized searching its contents, and asks for its return because the father is not the subject of the investigation. If no charges are laid, the 180-day limit applies unless a justice extends it on notice to the family.

What mistakes do people make during a search?

1. Arguing at the door or blocking officers. Obstruction is a separate offence (s. 129).
2. Explaining whose things are whose. Ownership questions are often central; get advice first.
3. Deleting messages or moving items afterwards. It can lead to new allegations and does not help.
4. Not reading the warrant. The address, the list and the time-of-day authority matter.
5. Signing consent to keep property longer without advice. Written consent removes the time limits (s. 490(3.1)).
6. Forgetting to track the deadlines. The 180-day and one-year marks are when return applications become available.

What to do this week

1. Write down everything about the search: times, officers, rooms, items taken.
2. Keep the copy or photo of the warrant and any receipt.
3. List items you need back urgently, such as passports, work devices or medication records.
4. Do not contact others involved in the investigation about it.
5. Mark 180 days and one year from the seizure date in your calendar.
6. Book a consultation; you can discuss your matter in English, Persian (Farsi) or French.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to let police in if they have a warrant?

The warrant authorizes entry and search of the place it names. Resisting or wilfully obstructing officers executing it is an offence (s. 129), so let them in and raise any problem through a lawyer.

Can they search at night?

A s. 487 warrant must be executed by day unless the justice was satisfied there were reasonable grounds for night execution, those grounds are in the information, and the warrant authorizes it (s. 488).

Will they take my passport?

Only if it falls within the warrant or the s. 489 power to seize other evidence. Passports also come up as release conditions after a charge; see travelling outside Canada while charged. A pending charge can also affect a renewal, as our guide on Canadian passports and pending charges explains.

Can I get a copy of the warrant?

The officer must have it where feasible and produce it when asked (s. 29(1)). Your lawyer can seek the information behind it later.

Does a search mean I will be charged?

Not necessarily. A warrant is based on reasonable grounds to believe evidence is in a place, not a finding that anyone committed an offence. If someone is arrested, see our guide on rights in the first hours after an arrest.

Can I have a Persian interpreter during the search?

The court interpreter service covers court appearances; at your home, ask officers whether they can provide interpretation and call a lawyer who can explain in Persian. Our guide to Farsi interpreters in Ontario courts explains the court side.

Related questions

If police have asked a family member to come in after the search, read our guide on what to do when police ask you to come in for an interview.

Sourena Sarbazevatan is a Persian-speaking lawyer, and you can discuss a search and the return of your property with him in Farsi, English or French. Call +1 (416) 628-2041 or use the contact page.