New Registrant Requirements

As mentioned in the Registrant Requirements page, CRPO registrants must use the titles conferred by the College when acting in a professional capacity. While a Qualifying registrant of CRPO, it is important that you display this title correctly. The appropriate title to use is “Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying)” or “RP (Qualifying).” No other abbreviations or variations are acceptable. For example, shortening “(Qualifying)” to “(Q)” would not be correct.

A complete list of the registration categories and their corresponding titles is available in Standard 1.2: Use of Terms, Titles and Designations in CRPO’s Professional Practice Standards for Registered Psychotherapists.

If you have any questions about using your professional credentials, please contact practice@crpo.ca.

In order to fulfill the requirements for registration as a Registered Psychotherapist (RP), all Qualifying registrants are required to pass the Canadian Professional Standard for Counselling and Psychotherapy (CPSCP): Entry to Practice Competency Assessment (commonly referred to as the “Registration Examination”). The Exam assesses a practitioner’s knowledge of various key entry-to-practice competencies and their information-gathering and decision-making skills in a variety of typical scenarios and simulations. You may find it helpful to review the Entry-to-Practice Registration Examination Resource Manual.

More information can be found in the Registration Exam section of our website. If you have questions about the exam, please contact us at info@crpo.ca.

Conditions for Completing the Registration Examination

There are specific timelines associated with the Registration Examination.

• The first attempt at the Exam must be made no later than 24 months following the date that a complete application for registration as a Qualifying registrant, and fee, are received by the College. There will be at least one sitting of the Registration Exam each year (but usually there are two, one in the spring and one in the fall).
• A candidate must successfully complete the Exam in no more than three attempts.
• In the event of two failed exam attempts, the third and final attempt is permitted only after the Qualifying registrant has completed upgrading activities, if any, required by a panel of the Examination Committee. The third attempt must be made no later than five years after the date of application for registration in the Qualifying category, unless additional time is permitted by the Examination Committee, in exceptional circumstances.

Qualifying registrants are permitted a maximum of five years from the date that a Qualifying certificate of registration is issued by the College in which to satisfy ALL the requirements for registration as an RP (completing clinical experience and passing the Exam).

A registrant who fails the Exam has the right to appeal to the Examination Committee. Grounds for appeal are limited solely to the question of whether the process followed in sitting the examination was fair. Should a candidate require an extension to the stated time frames in which to write the Registration Exam, as a result of an unforeseen circumstance, they can lodge an appeal to the Examination Committee. Common exceptions may include parental leave, family emergencies and serious illness.

All Qualifying registrants will find their profile on CRPO’s Public Register indicates that they are authorized to practise as a Qualifying registrant. Every Qualifying Certificate of Registration is subject to the Term, Condition, and Limitation (TCL) that the registrant must:

• (a) practise psychotherapy with clinical supervision; and
• (b) be actively pursuing the completion of any of the requirements set out in clause 10 (a), (b) or (c) that the member has yet to complete unless the Registrar has provided the member with permission in writing to interrupt the pursuit of one or more of those requirements due to exceptional circumstances. Clause 10 (a), (b) or (c) refers to successfully completing the Registration Examination, and clinical experience in psychotherapy. That includes at least 450 hours of direct client contact and at least 100 hours of clinical supervision where that clinical supervision relates to those hours of direct client contact.

Registrants must adhere to all TCLs associated with their Certificate of Registration. A breach of TCLs could result in disciplinary action by the College.

Please visit the Supervision page for more information about supervisor qualifications and supervision requirements.

To be eligible to transfer registration categories from Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) to Registered Psychotherapist, a registrant must:

• Successfully pass the Registration Examination;
• Successfully complete 450 direct client contact (DCC) hours approved by staff; and
• Successfully complete 100 clinical supervision hours, at least half of which are in an individual/dyadic format, approved by staff.

The number of accepted clinical experience hours on file can be found in the “Practice information” page of your user account. At the bottom of the page, you will find an “Hours summary” table outlining the number of submitted hours, countable hours, and accepted hours.

For instructions on how to update your hours, please see the Updating Clinical Experience Hours page.

Transferring Categories

Once you have successfully passed the Registration Examination and completed all clinical requirements, you will be eligible to transfer registration categories from Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) to Registered Psychotherapist. Registrants who are deemed eligible to transfer registration categories will have 30 days from the date they become eligible to transfer to complete the registration category transfer process. This process involves payment of transfer and pro-rated registration fees. Requests to transfer can be submitted in the “Category transfer request” page of your user account.

If an eligible registrant does not successfully complete the category transfer process within the 30-day time-frame, the following steps will be taken:

• Registrants will receive a letter confirming they have not fulfilled their requirement to transfer registration categories and will be invoiced a late fee.
• Registrants will be given an additional 30 days from the date the letter is sent to complete the transfer process, including payment of the late penalty.
• After the 30-day extension period, registrants who have still not completed the registration category transfer process will have their registration administratively suspended for non-payment of fees. Suspension means that you have forfeited your good standing with the College, are no longer a registrant of CRPO, and are not permitted to use any restricted title, practise or supervise the provision of psychotherapy for the purposes of registration with the College, perform the controlled act of psychotherapy, nor hold yourself out as qualified to practise as a psychotherapist in Ontario. The suspension will also be published on the Public Register.
• An additional fee of $350 +HST will be invoiced to lift the suspension.

Qualifying registrants are not exempt from the professional liability insurance (PLI) requirement and must maintain professional liability insurance in the amount and in the form required under CRPO’s By-laws. Registrants must provide the College with written details within two days of becoming aware of not having PLI as required under the By-laws. The Registrar may suspend a registrant if they do not have the

coverage required.
More information can be found on the Liability Insurance page of our website. If you have questions about professional liability insurance, please contact info@crpo.ca.