Applicants Section

Pathway 3

Nationally Registered Member of the Profession

You may be eligible to apply for registration in Ontario as a nationally registered member of the profession if, at the time of your application, you are licensed or registered to practise opticianry in another Canadian province or territory.

Intern Optician and Registered Optician Applicants

To be eligible for registration in Ontario, you must meet the following requirements at the time of your application:

1. Hold a valid license or certificate of registration issued by a Canadian opticianry regulator that is equivalent to a certificate of registration as:

an Intern Optician; or
a Registered Optician

2. Be in good standing in the Canadian province or territory where you hold a license or registration.

3. Have practised opticianry within the two years before the date of your application. If you have not practiced within the two years prior to the date of your application, you may be required to complete additional training or other requirements specified by the Registration Committee.

4. Meet the general requirements for registration set out in section 5 of the Registration Regulation.

"Eyeglass Only" Applicant

You may qualify for registration as an “eyeglass only” nationally registered member of the profession if, at the time of your application, you hold a license or certificate of registration in another Canadian jurisdiction that authorizes you to dispense eyeglasses but not contact lenses in that jurisdiction.

“Eyeglass Only” applicants must complete the following additional steps to become registered in Ontario:

1. Successfully complete the contact lens section of an accredited opticianry program. For the list of accredited programs, click here.

2. Become registered as an Intern Optician.

3. Successfully complete the national contact lens examination administered by the National Alliance of Canadian Optician Regulators (NACOR). Please note that applicants must submit a separate application directly to NACOR to sit the national contact lens examination.

4. Apply for registration as a Registered Optician.

Application Process

To apply for a certificate of registration as an Intern Optician or a Registered Optician you must complete the online Application Form, pay the applicable application and registration fees., and submit the following documents:

A passport photo taken within 6 months of the application date. The photo may be sent as a hard copy or in a high-resolution digital format.
A Certificate of Standing and letters of standing from any governing body with which you are registered in any jurisdiction.
Notarized copies of your proof of identity and employment eligibility documents.
A Vulnerable Sector Check report conducted in Canada within 6 months of the application date (Registered Optician applicants only).
Professional liability insurance certificate (Registered Optician Applicants only).
If applicable, proof of graduation from any post-secondary program you may have completed outside of opticianry.

Inactive or Non-practising Opticians

Individuals who hold a license or registration in another Canadian province or territory as an inactive or non-practising optician are not eligible to apply for registration in Ontario as a nationally registered member of the profession. To become eligible to apply as a nationally registered optician, the applicant must first be re-issued a license that permits them to practise opticianry in their home jurisdiction.

Nationally registered members of the profession who successfully become registered with the College of Opticians of Ontario as a Registered Optician will be eligible to apply to change their class of registration to Inactive.

Appeals

Registration department or Committee decisions can be appealed to the College’s Registration Appeal Panel (RAP), and further to the Health Professions Review and Appeal Board (HPARB). Applicants are provided with information about the review process when they are issued a decision letter.

Applicants choosing to appeal will not be subject to any repercussions from the College.