P.E. In USA wants to register in Canada

[Fundamental]

Hi folks,

I got my engineering degree, B.Eng, from Canada (Quebec) and had a Quebec EIT a long time ago; 20 yrs give or take[tt][/tt]. I took the US FE and PE exams to obtain my P.E. license (mechanical) I am currently registered in 5 states and have a NCEES record.

We are moving toward working in Canada and therefore I am looking into what would be required to obtain P.Eng licensure. We will likely provide services in 10 provinces and I am looking for advice on what the easiest path would be. Are there any provinces that have reciprocity with the NCEES or any US states? Is there any reciprocity between provinces, if so, should I pursue one province and then apply through reciprocity to the others?

Any advice and experiences on this would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Fundamental

 

[moltenmetal]

Getting a P.Eng. for you should be a formality at most, except for one thing: do you have at least 1 year of work experience under a Canadian signatory P.Eng.? I'm not sure, but I believe that as long as the signatory is licensed in Canada, the work itself may not need to have actually been done in Canada- the intention is to ensure that someone holding a Canadian license has to sign on the dotted line to say that you are suitable for licensure, both in terms of knowledge of the responsibilities of licensure and in character to take them seriously. If not, you may not meet the conditions for provincial licensure right away, which would be inconvenient for you for sure. You may fall under a reciprocity deal which gets you out of that experience year requirement, but I'm not sure about that- you need to check with each provincial regulator. You also have to write the ethics and law exam (called the Professional Practice Examination) in Ontario, which apparently can be written before you come. The other provinces may have additional requirements and it would be best to talk to each Association to get the details.

Most people do not register in all 10 provinces and they certainly do not do so right away.

 

[Fundamental]

Thanks for the post. I was a co-op student (in Canada) and had worked in Canada for about 1-year prior to the US. What you describe seems to be a reference requirement, similar to the reference requirements in the US. I still have contacts in Canada who would be more than ready to sign/support me as a P.Eng candidate. Is that all that would be needed regarding that requirement? Is Ontario one of the provinces that other provinces accept for reciprocity? Is the ethics and law exam individual to each province? I would assume so due to the law component. Is there a NCEES equivalent in Canada? Ultimately, I would start with Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, and BC.

Thanks again for the info!

 

[CELinOttawa]

The Ethics and Law exam (typically called the Professional Practice Exam, PPE) is mostly nationalized in content. It is a different exam set province-by-province, but the two books to study and the content are the same. Also I have yet to have seen a province that did not waive their own PPE for someone who has written the PPE in another Canadian jurisdiction.

As per other posts, you should be fine. The PPE, however, is not optional and you'll likely have to write it. The PPE is not particularly hard, but many people fail by not taking it seriously or insufficient study.

 

[TGS4]

My only suggestion would be to choose one Province that will be your first registration. Get that all sorted out, write the PPE and get everything finalized. THEN, you can get registered in the other Provinces based on provincial reciprocity. I first registered in Alberta, then Saskatchewan, then Ontario. There is, to the best of my knowledge, nation-wide reciprocity, except...

There are requirements for French language proficiency for registering in Quebec - the only hurdle that I have not been able to overcome in order to register there.

 

[Fundamental]

Thanks for the great info folks!

What would be the recommended province to start with, or said another way, what would be the easiest path to getting that first P.Eng license that would lead to reciprocity for the other provinces? I recall seeing something recently that Arizona recognizes Alberta (could have that backward). Would Alberta be the one to start with?

Am I interpreting the reference requirement correctly, a P.Eng just needs to act as a reference (saying that they have reviewed my work, assert that I am of sound character, and have had a professional relationship for more than one year), or do I have to work in Canada under a P.Eng for one year?

 

[TGS4]

I would probably choose the Province that you were or are going to be taking up residency in. Otherwise, they are all pretty good for keeping similar standards and one shouldn't be easier than any other. Alberta and Ontario probably deal with the most out-of-country applicants, and so may be better able to manage some of those aspects.

Just for curiosity, why do you want/need to be registered in multiple provinces?

 

[Fundamental]

I would not take up residency in Canada. My company does work in all the 50 states and 10 provinces but the consulting arm only works in the US but we are expanding service into Canada.

 

[moltenmetal]

OK, that clarifies matters a bit- check with the provincial bodies about reciprocity deals, which is what you're really after, rather than a license that is intended for a resident.

 

[KootK]

I did something similar in 2007. Alberta made the most sense. Some provinces required more detail in experience tracking than appealed to me. One province had a mandatory community service requirement (???). Alberta has sort of a reciprocity agreement with several states, including Nevada for certain. Those agreements allow for a limited, temporary license.

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