Ontario therapy guide
Find OHIP-Covered Therapy in Ontario
Ontario pays for therapy when a physician delivers it, and separately funds free programs that are not OHIP billings at all. Two routes, both free, and almost nothing online tells you the difference.
The short answer
Two routes are free. One is not.
Covered by OHIP
Psychiatrists, and any family doctor or other physician who provides psychotherapy. You are never billed. Ontario's fee schedule does not specify an annual per-patient maximum for these codes, though that is a billing rule rather than a guarantee of access.Not covered by OHIP
Psychologists, registered psychotherapists, registered social workers and counsellors in private practice. A referral does not change this.Free, but not OHIP
Ontario Structured Psychotherapy, BounceBack, hospital outpatient programs and community agencies. These are funded by the province rather than billed per session, which is why most accept self-referrals.
If you want free therapy and do not know where to start, read the main free therapy routes in Ontario or how to get OHIP-covered therapy, step by step.
Guides
Understand your options
Long-form guides, each sourced to government, regulator and hospital pages, and dated.
Coverage
What OHIP covers for therapyProfession by profession: psychiatrists, family doctors, psychologists, registered psychotherapists and social workers, each answered separately.
Read guideCoverage
The OHIP psychotherapy rules and fee codesThe codes, the time-unit rules, the same-day restriction, and what the Schedule does and does not limit.
Read guideInsured route
Find a physician who provides therapyThe insured route almost nobody explains — fully covered, and genuinely hard to find.
Read guideFree care
Free therapy in OntarioEvery main route that costs nothing, by who it is for, and which ones need no referral.
Read guideVirtual care
Is online therapy covered by OHIP?The video and phone rules, the patient-physician relationship requirement, and what is not covered.
Read guideAccess
Therapy without a family doctorThe routes that need no referral, and what each one says about health cards.
Read guideCoverage
Psychiatrist, psychologist or psychotherapist?The difference between the five providers in Ontario, and which ones OHIP covers.
Read guideAccess
How to see a psychiatrist in OntarioThe referral you need, the reality of waits, and free help while you wait.
Read guideCost
How much does therapy cost in Ontario?What's free, what's covered, and what you pay to see a psychologist privately.
Read guide
Ontario Structured Psychotherapy
Free therapy programs by region
The province's largest source of free structured therapy runs through regional networks. Each page gives that network's eligibility, how to refer yourself, and what it publishes about waits.
- TorontoOntario Structured Psychotherapy
- Southwestern Ontario and NiagaraOntario Structured Psychotherapy
- Central North OntarioOntario Structured Psychotherapy
- York Region and South SimcoeOntario Structured Psychotherapy
- Eastern OntarioOntario Structured Psychotherapy
- Ontario ShoresOntario Structured Psychotherapy
- Northeastern OntarioOntario Structured Psychotherapy
- Northwestern OntarioOntario Structured Psychotherapy
- Brampton, Halton, Mississauga and South EtobicokeOntario Structured Psychotherapy
Clear information. Primary sources.
What MDTherapy is
MDTherapy is an independent information resource. We are not a healthcare provider, we do not accept patients, we do not provide medical advice, and we do not bill OHIP.
We publish coverage information checked against primary sources, and every page shows what it relied on and the date a person last looked. If we cannot confirm something, we say so rather than filling the gap. Read our editorial, medical review and corrections policy and our about and privacy page.
Sources last rechecked September 4, 2026.