OAA Provides Update on Continuing Developments with the Province

This article provides information to OAA members, as well as Intern Architects and Student Associates, on upcoming changes arising from amendments to Ontario’s fair registration practices legislation.

The OAA has been working with both the provincial government and other stakeholders to examine how our own licensure requirements can satisfy the new rules, while maintaining the standards of the profession and administering the Architects Act to serve and protect the public interest.

Background on the New Legislation

Receiving Royal Assent on December 2, 2021, Working for Workers Act, 2021, includes Schedule 3, which amended the Fair Access to Regulated Professions and Compulsory Trades Act, 2006 (FARPACTA) in important ways that will have a direct effect on the path to licensure for those who are, or will be, pursuing the Internship in Architecture Program (IAP) in Ontario.

Since December 2021, the amendments to FARPACTA have gone through several iterations. With each new proposal, the OAA meets with the Office of the Fairness Commissioner (OFC) and the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development (MLITSD), along with the other Ontario regulators to better understand, explore, and prepare for these changes.

One of the major changes coming into effect involves the conditions under which a professional regulator can require direct Canadian experience as a qualification for licence, including architecture.

As detailed in a July 24 email to the membership, discussion on changes to FARPACTA has been a regular agenda item for the OAA’s governing Council since early 2022. You can also find more information in the meeting packages on the OAA Website, and in various articles, including:

- “Policy and Government Relations Round Up;”

- “OAA Council Highlights: September 2022;” and

- “OAA Council Highlights: January 2023.”

Additionally, you can read correspondence with the provincial government on the OAA Website.

Canadian Experience Requirements

With respect to Canadian Experience Requirements (CERs), the new Section 10.2(1.1) of FARPACTA received Royal Assent on October 26, 2023:

10.2 (1) A regulated profession shall not require as a qualification for registration that a person’s experience be Canadian experience, unless an exemption from the prohibition is granted by the Minister for the purposes of public health and safety in accordance with the regulations. 2021, c. 35, Sched. 3, s. 5.

(1.1) A regulated profession may accept Canadian experience in satisfaction of a qualification for registration only if it also accepts alternatives to Canadian experience that meet the criteria prescribed by the regulations.

Almost all regulators have developed a mechanism for accepting alternatives to their CERs. To this end, the OAA has been working closely with OFC and MLITSD to establish procedures and policies that will satisfy the new FARPACTA requirements. Concurrently, MLITSD has prepared criteria for CER alternatives that are planned for the Regulation under FARPACTA—however, government approval of these criteria remains outstanding.

The OAA is obligated to administer the licensure requirements established in the Architects Act and its Regulation 27. To date, the requirement for direct Ontario work experience is set out in the Regulation. For the OAA to revise the licensure requirements, amendments to the Regulation must be proposed, accepted, and enacted by the provincial government.

The OAA’s proposed Regulation amendment is currently under review with the Ministry of the Attorney General (MAG) so that it may be submitted to the government.

This proposed amendment suggests neither a reduction in the total number of required experience hours nor revisions to the current 17 experience categories of the IAP. Rather, it proposes a method to assess the architectural competencies specific to Ontario practice and an alternative to acquire knowledge of practice in Canada prior to licensure. The path to licensure will maintain all other requirements inclusive of the academic credentials, OAA Admission Course, and the licensing examinations.

Next Steps

The critical next step will be government approval and enactment of the proposed changes to the legislated experience requirements for a licence in Ontario. Once this occurs, future communications will contain more details specific to the regulatory amendments and associated procedures.

The Association will continue to communicate with those affected by the forthcoming changes, as well as the wider membership, via both emails and updating the licensing information on the OAA Website.