On May 15, 2023, PEO launched a new licence application process that it says makes applying for an engineering licence more efficient, transparent, and fair for all applicants. Changes to experience requirements and registration timelines are meant to ensure that PEO is in compliance with recent amendments that the Ontario provincial government made to the Fair Access to Regulated Professions and Compulsory Trades Act (FARPACTA).
The new process sees the Ontario engineering regulator only accept applications if they fit PEO’s new criteria for a complete application—that the applicant has successfully completed both the academic and experience requirements for licensure.
The minimum academic requirement for licensure is now a degree from an undergraduate engineering program accredited by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB), or a bachelor’s degree that meets PEO’s acceptance criteria plus successful completion of a confirmatory examination program.
The experience qualifications for licensure no longer require Canadian experience, but require that applicants demonstrate completion of 48 months of experience that meets requirements for engaging in the practice of professional engineering, as evidenced through the completion of a new competency-based assessment.
PEO will continue to administer the National Professional Practice Exam to applicants after PEO has received their applications.
Under this new application process, applicants will receive a registration decision from PEO within six months of submitting a completed application. This ensures that PEO is compliant with the registration timelines mandated under FARPACTA, which requires that as of July 1, 2023, all of Ontario’s non-healthcare professional regulators confirm receipt of an application within 10 days and make a registration decision for 90 per cent of internationally trained applicants within six months of receiving a completed application.
Read more about the new licensing application process on PEO’s website.
