Fair Registration Practices

The Fair Registration Practices Act (FRPA) (PDF) applies to 47 regulating bodies in Nova Scotia, covering 84 occupations, including 20 compulsory trades.

A regulatory body sets the standards and regulates how people practise as members of a regulated occupation. Everyone who practises a regulated occupation needs to register with the regulatory body.

The Act governs the practices regulatory bodies use to register people who apply to become a member of a regulated occupation. Under the Act, registration needs to follow a fair procedure and be transparent, objective, and impartial.

Government can directly regulate the occupations or delegate that authority to another organization.

Role of the Review Officer

The Review Officer administers the Fair Registration Practices Act to make sure registration practices are transparent, objective, impartial and procedurally fair. The Review Officer:

  • provides information and advice to help regulatory bodies meet their obligations under the Act
  • establishes guidelines and helps regulatory bodies understand and meet their reporting requirements
  • reviews the registration practices of regulatory bodies for compliance with the Act
  • acts as an information resource for government departments and other stakeholders
  • prepares an annual report on the implementation and effectiveness of the Act and submits it to the Minister of Labour, Skills and Immigration

The Review Officer does not work with individual applicants to help with the registration process. This is the regulatory body’s responsibility.

Duties of regulatory bodies

All regulatory bodies need to provide information to the public in a clear and understandable way. They need to provide information on:

  • pathways to registration for both domestic and internationally qualified applicants
  • qualifications and other requirements applicants must have to register with the body
  • the criteria the regulatory body uses to assess an application
  • the process applicants need to follow to register with the regulatory body, including the internal review process
  • what documentation needs to be submitted with an application
  • how long the registration process takes
  • any support available to help applicants register
  • fees an applicant needs to pay

Regulatory bodies also need to:

  • answer applicants' questions within a reasonable time
  • let applicants know in writing, within a reasonable time, whether their registration is granted or not granted and why
  • where practical, give applicants who are not successful information about steps or programs they can take to help them successfully register in the future
  • give applicants who are not granted registration information about how their regulatory body’s internal review process works and where to find information about the process
  • make sure people who make internal review decisions receive training on how to conduct an internal review

For more information, contact the Review Officer.

Recognition of international qualifications and prior learning

Regulatory bodies need to offer registration practices that are transparent, impartial, objective and procedurally fair for all individuals, including applicants who earned their qualifications outside Canada.

To accommodate all applicants, regulatory bodies must have clear pathways to registration for three applicant types: Nova Scotia; domestic and; international.

The International Qualification Recognition and Recognition of Prior Learning Funding Programs can help regulatory bodies develop programs, resources and services that support learning recognition (like bridging programs, pre-arrival supports, competency-based assessments) and facilitate pathways to registration.

Labour mobility within Canada

Regulatory bodies need to have transparent, objective, impartial and procedurally fair registration practices that are consistent with workers’ mobility rights under the Canada Free Trade Agreement (CFTA).

Learn more: Labour Mobility