we have smog. i live in barrie, about 28 minutes north of you.
you need cats. but they arent too strict. they thought my v6 camaro was a 4 banger. it still passed. although i still have all my emission stuff.
some places wont test it if the check engine light is on. some places will. its a grey area.
its a sniffer test. if you fail, they allow you 450$ of repairs (not covering diagnosis) in parts an labour to get a conditional pass -if it still fails after.