2. Find a surety or contact the bail program

Your lawyer or will ask you for the names and phone numbers of family and friends that may be able to act as your . You can ask to see your cellphone to get their contact information.

A surety is someone who is willing to supervise you after you're released on . Your surety must:

be over the age of 18,
be a Canadian citizen or a landed immigrant,
be able to monitor you and make sure you follow your conditions,
be willing to report you if you do not follow your conditions, and
have some financial assets they can pledge to the court as security

Your surety must not be involved in the  you've been charged with and must not have been of an within the last 10 years.

In most cases, the person should not be acting as a surety for anyone else. And it's best if your surety does not have a criminal record.

Sureties may be asked to come to your . They can appear over video using Zoom, unless a judge says they must come in person.

Read more about what a surety has to do in What are a surety's rights and responsibilities?

The bail program

If you do not have anyone you can ask to be your surety, you may be able to use the . In the bail program, a caseworker at the courthouse supervises you.

Talk to your lawyer or duty counsel to learn more about the supports the bail program could give you.

It's usually only available to people who are not a threat to the community, and who do not have anyone they can ask to be their surety. Bail programs provide different levels of support depending on what courthouse you're in.

Your lawyer will tell the bail program that you are interested. A caseworker will interview you.

If the bail program approves you, they tell your lawyer and the Crown. The proposed plan for your supervision will be presented to the court during your bail hearing.