A couple of weeks ago, I was asked a great question about licensing so I wanted to share it with you. My friend was leaving Canada for a while and wanted some advice about what to do with his licence.
A. That's a great question. P.Eng. licences can be transferred from one association to the other as part of the National Mobility Agreement between associations. So you are not tied to your association and can choose freely. If you're leaving Canada for less than 3 years, it is probably not worth the effort to change provinces and then change back later. If you are leaving for 4+ years, the easiest option would be for you to focus on an Association with:
1. No continuing education
2. Lowest annual dues
There are two provinces that don't currently have mandatory continuing education: BC and Ontario. The provincial fees are shown below:
Since PEO has no mandatory continuing education requirements (at time of writing) and the lowest annual dues, I would recommend staying with PEO and renew your dues annually.
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BC and Ontario look like they will be adding continuing education in the near future so don’t expect the optional continuing education to last for long.
Hi Gavin,
I have always wanted to possibilities for the P.Eng status if one would want to work overseas. As you’ve stated, maintaining the license is at the best interest of the licensed professionals. Regardless of working timeline overseas, the registration fees I believe is negligible compared to try to re-instate the status if one decides to come back to work in Canada. Beside, being able to include the professional engineer designation would provide more credential to the candidate for potential employment opportunities overseas. I’m not sure about the continuing education requirement status at this point, but I won’t hesitate abiding by new requirements anyway.
Thanks for your valuable insights in this matter.
Hello,
Do you know if the mobility agreement covers EIT candidates? That is, can I transfer my EIT status from my home Province to continue and obtain the full P.Eng license in the Host province?
I found a more suitable opportunity in a different Province outside my home Province but I’m currently on EIT status in my home province. Just wondering what I can do to help my career forward.
Lear.
Hi Lear,
I don’t think it’s transferrable. However, your new province likely has the same criteria for EIT registration. I would recommend that you keep your current EIT status until it is about to expire then register at your new association. You can confirm this strategy with your new association.