SEEKING PROPOSALS: ETHICS AND PROFESSIONAL BOUNDARIES REMEDIATION | | |
The College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) is issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the provision of ethics and professional boundaries remediation for Registered Psychotherapists. This initiative supports CRPO’s commitment to public protection and professional accountability. See the article on our website for more information.
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SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION OF EDUCATION | | |
Effective January 1, 2027, the minimum requirements for substantial completion of education and training for applying for registration with CRPO are the following:
- 100% of coursework completed
- Graduation is within three months of applying to CRPO
- Minimum 125 direct client contact hours and 30 clinical supervision hours successfully completed
For more information, please click here.
| | HEALTH INFORMATION CUSTODIANS | | |
Registrants who are health information custodians are advised to designate a successor in writing (with the successor's consent). A “successor” is someone who agrees to become the custodian of your records in the event of your inability to fulfill this role.
Registrants should review their health information custodian (HIC) successor page to ensure the information is up to date. Registrants can update their health information custodian successor information at any time in their CRPO account.
See our Practice Matters article for information about health information custodians and successors.
| | | SUPERVISOR DEFINITION UPDATE | | |
The definition of a clinical supervisor is changing. The change was approved by CRPO’s Council in 2023 and takes effect on April 1, 2026. You can read the full definition on our website. Highlights for clinical supervisors in Ontario include:
- The definition clarifies that a clinical supervisor has five years of experience practising psychotherapy, starting from the time they graduated from their psychotherapy education or training program.
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New clinical supervisors as of April 1, 2026, are expected to have completed 30 hours of coursework on providing clinical supervision. CRPO has published guidelines on course content. Those who began providing clinical supervision prior to April 1, 2026, are not expected to meet this requirement, but are encouraged to do so.
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Clinical supervisors will complete CRPO’s free, short, low-stakes online learning module on clinical supervision (available online).
We will provide additional information once the change takes effect.
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The definition of “client” for the purpose of sexual abuse allegations changed in a 2025 government-approved regulation, requiring a five-year period between treatment by an RP ceasing and the onset of sexual contact with a former client. Although the RHPA mandates a one-year period between a regulated health professional's termination of treatment and having sexual contact with a former client, CRPO's regulation expands this timeframe for RPs. Please note it may never be appropriate for an RP to have sexual contact with a former client, depending on the circumstances. Five years is the zero-tolerance period within which mandatory penalties apply.
This change reflects a written policy the College has had in place since 2018.
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The College is aware of the growing use of AI by registrants to support their practice.
At the December Council meeting, a new guideline was approved for registrants to consult before or when using AI in their practice to ensure alignment with the Standards. The guideline can be accessed here.
Similarly, the use of AI by the public to conduct therapy is on the rise. The College has put together a short public resource on the use of AI for therapy, available here.
| | PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURANCE AUDIT RESULTS SUMMARY | | |
All CRPO registrants (other than those in the Inactive category of registration) are required to have and maintain professional liability insurance (PLI) coverage at all times, regardless of whether they are practising. CRPO regularly conducts PLI audits in which randomly selected registrants are required to provide documentary proof of their PLI coverage within 30 days.
College staff launched a PLI audit on October 6, 2025. Click here to see the results.
| ANNUAL REGISTRATION RENEWAL OPENING SOON! | |
It’s almost that time of year! CRPO registrants are required to renew their registration annually. Registration renewal for the upcoming 2026-27 registration year will be open by February 14, 2026, and closes March 31, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. ET.
Beginning February 14th, registrants can go to the “Renewal” tab of their user accounts to complete the renewal form and pay their annual renewal fee.
For more information about the renewal process, transferring to the Inactive category, and deadlines and extensions, please see here.
| | ANNUAL REGISTRATION RENEWAL OPENING SOON! | | |
It’s almost that time of year! CRPO registrants are required to renew their registration annually. Registration renewal for the upcoming 2026-27 registration year will be open by February 14, 2026, and closes March 31, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. ET.
Beginning February 14th, registrants can go to the “Renewal” tab of their user accounts to complete the renewal form and pay their annual renewal fee.
| | TOWN HALL SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTIONS | | At our November Town Hall meeting, registrants gathered virtually and in-person, with the chance to connect with College Council, staff, and fellow registrants. There was also an opportunity to hear updates and insights from the College’s new President, Kathleen (Kali) Hewitt-Blackie. During the event, registrants posed a wide variety of questions. For submissions that were unable to be addressed during the live event, questions were collected and responded to by CRPO staff. To review the results of these questions, please click here. | | QUALITY ASSURANCE PROGRAM UPDATES | | |
Registrants who became registered in an odd year (excluding those registered in 2025) and those selected for the 2026 Spring CBA had a December 31, 2025, deadline. All registrants with outstanding requirements have been notified. To avoid non-compliance issues, please ensure you have completed any outstanding QA Program requirements.
2025 PD Cycle: If you were registered in 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, or 2023, and have not submitted a QA attestation form, please log in to your CRPO account as soon as possible to complete this requirement. If you require assistance, please contact qa@crpo.ca.
2026 Spring CBA questionnaire and confirmation form: Registrants who were notified on November 18 that they were selected to complete the 2026 Spring CBA must complete a confirmation questionnaire. (The link was provided in the notification and reminder emails.) If you have not yet completed the questionnaire, please do so as soon as possible, or if you require assistance, please contact QAassessments@crpo.ca. The questionnaire includes a deferral form if needed.
To speak to a QA Team member, follow this link to book a call: https://outlook.office365.com/book/QAConsultations@crpo.ca/.
Health Information Breaches: Annual Statistics Report due March 1, 2026
Health information custodians, including psychotherapists, are required to report statistics relating to health privacy breaches annually to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPC).
Please see the following resources on the IPC website for information:
Do I have to submit a health privacy breach statistics report?
- Yes, if you are both a health information custodian and a FIPPA/MFIPPA institution whether you have experienced health breaches or not.
- Yes, if you are a health information custodian and have experienced health breaches.
- No, if you are a health information custodian and have experienced 0 (zero) breaches.
(See the Health Privacy Breach Statistical Report – FAQ https://www.ipc.on.ca/access-organizations/annual-statistical-reporting/health-privacy-breach-statistical-report-faq/)
Am I a health information custodian?
Please read CRPO’s Practice Matters article on health information custodians and health information custodian successors for guidance: https://crpo.ca/resource-articles/health-information-custodian-and-health-information-custodian-successor/
| | For CRPO registrants: Please do not unsubscribe. CRPO uses email to communicate with registrants about important College updates. If you choose to unsubscribe, it is then your responsibility to regularly check our website to keep yourself informed about your College obligations. It is the responsibility of each registrant to make sure CRPO has your current contact information, updated within 30 days of a change, and ensure that the organization you work for does not block CRPO emails. CRPO may collect information about whether a recipient has read a message. CRPO may use this information for communication planning and record-keeping. |
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