Ontario plans tougher rules for career colleges, the category truck schools must join to teach Class A training
The province says legislation coming Nov. 16 would cap OSAP-funded enrolment growth, require a physical campus and add fines under the Ontario Career Colleges Act.
Ontario says it will introduce legislation to tighten oversight of private postsecondary institutions in the OSAP system, including career colleges. That matters for truck training: under provincial rules, a truck training school that wants to deliver the mandatory entry-level training (MELT) required before a Class A road test must register as a career college under the Ontario Career Colleges Act, 2005.
The Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security made the announcement on Nov. 12. The province intends to introduce the changes as part of a broader legislative package on Nov. 16, 2026.
What the proposal would do
If passed, the measures would:
- Cap OSAP-funded enrolment growth at private institutions, which the province says aligns with other jurisdictions such as Alberta
- Make predominantly online programs at private postsecondary institutions ineligible for OSAP, and require career colleges to maintain a physical campus
- Restrict relationships between career colleges and third-party organizations such as immigration and recruitment firms, including a ban on unrelated businesses on campuses
- Give the province more power to recover OSAP funding by deeming private institutions liable for their students' loans
- Strengthen requirements for institutions to verify student eligibility, class participation and completion of coursework to keep OSAP eligibility
- Set new monetary penalties for violations of the Ontario Career Colleges Act, 2005
- Make enforcement actions taken against career colleges more transparent
Why now
The government said the proposals respond to "significant and widespread concerns" about the growing volume of OSAP applications in the private postsecondary sector. Those concerns led the province to pause OSAP payments associated with private institutions and start an external audit.
KPMG, engaged in August 2026, is still leading that audit, the release said. In October the province also referred its concerns to the Ontario Provincial Police and notified the Auditor General. Separately, the government announced in February 2026 that it no longer offers OSAP grants to students at career colleges.
Nolan Quinn, Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security, said "any misuse of this system for personal, predatory gain is entirely unacceptable."
Where truck schools fit
The announcement does not single out truck driver training. Registered career colleges are one of two routes the province lists for MELT providers. The other is the Ministry of Transportation's Driver Certification Program, which includes approved Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology.
Funding for students is a separate fight. On Nov. 11 the Truck Training Schools Association of Ontario asked the province to reinstate Better Jobs Ontario and Ontario Job Grant funding, which it said has been paused since Oct. 9. The province lists both programs among the ways students and employers can get help paying for Class A training.