Ontario takes steps to remove interprovincial barriers for licensing of 16 additional healthcare professions
Ontario has moved to expand the list of regulated healthcare professionals who can expect to benefit from expedited work authorization.
The province has proposed the inclusion of 16 more regulated healthcare occupations, including dentists, psychologists, and dietitians, into its “As of Right” regulations.
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Under the proposed legislation, practitioners of regulated professions with certification in other provinces would be able to gain authorization to practice their regulated professions in Ontario in as little as 10 days following validation of their credentials.
Currently, obtaining this work authorization in Ontario can take up to six months.
The province intends to implement the new regulations on January 1, 2026.
Ontario also aims to enable physicians and nurses to become certified within just two business days.
The province announced the proposed changes in a news release on the provincial website. “By making it easier for workers from the rest of the country to get on the job faster, our government is driving economic growth and protecting our workers and communities,” said David Piccini, Ontario Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.
The complete As of Right framework is not limited to healthcare professions; it encompasses certification across 50 Ontario regulatory bodies and includes close to 300 regulated occupations.
Additional Professions
The table below lists the 16 professions proposed to be added under Ontario’s As of Right framework, as well as their likely corresponding National Occupational Classification (NOC) codes.
| Profession | NOC code |
|---|---|
| Audiologists / Speech-Language Pathologist | 31112 |
| Chiropodist | 31209 |
| Dental Hygienist | 32111 |
| Dental Technologist | 32112 |
| Dentist | 31110 |
| Denturist | 32110 |
| Dietitian | 31121 |
| Medical Radiation and Imaging Technologist | 32121 |
| Midwife | 31303 |
| Occupational Therapist | 31203 |
| Optician | 32100 |
| Optometrist | 31111 |
| Pharmacist / Pharmacy Technician | 31120 / 32124 |
| Physician Assistant | 31303 |
| Physiotherapist | 31202 |
| Psychologist | 31200 |
The original “As of Right” regulations already included the following medical occupations:
- Physicians.
- Surgeons.
- Registered nurses.
- Registered practical nurses.
- Nurse practitioners.
- Respiratory therapists.
- Medical laboratory technologists.
Expedited authorizations for physicians and nurses
Further, the government is advancing plans to implement automatic recognition for physicians and nurses who are registered “and in good standing” in other provinces and territories.
Ontario aims to facilitate this move of seamless integration into the provincial labour market by collaborating with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario and the College of Nurses of Ontario to
- Reduce application fees;
- Reduce documentation requirements; and
- Issue certificates within two business days.
“By taking a first-in-Canada approach to streamline the labour mobility process, we are making it faster and easier for both our health system partners and clinicians to provide the world-class care Ontarians need, when and where they need it,” said Ontario Deputy Premier and Minister of Health Sylvia Jones.
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