Inactive Class

The Inactive Class of Registration is intended for opticians who will not be practising for a period of time but still wish to maintain their registration with the College. Examples may include registrants on parental, sick, or educational leave, those practising outside of Ontario, or in a different profession.

What it means to be in the Inactive Class

Inactive Opticians may not:

• Practise opticianry, including under the supervision or delegation of a registered optician, optometrist or physician.
• Supervise student/intern opticians, or delegate to non-opticians.
• Display their certificate of registration at any location that is visible to the public.
• Use any title or designation other than what is specified for an Inactive certificate of registration (e.g., “Registered Optician (Inactive)” or “RO (inactive)”).
• Represent to the public in any way that they are entitled to practice opticianry.

Inactive Opticians are required to:

• Renew on an annual basis
• Pay a reduced annual fee (equal to 1/3 of the Registered Optician fee)
• Declare that they will not practice opticianry while their status is inactive

Inactive Opticians are not required to:

• Hold professional liability insurance
• Participate in the Quality Assurance program

Inactive Class Fees

Opticians registered in the Inactive Class pay a reduced registration fee. The fee for the Inactive Class is set at 1/3 of the Registered Optician fee. You may view the College fees here.

Eligibility for the Inactive Class

To be eligible for the Inactive Class, opticians must meet the following requirements:

• They must hold a certificate of registration as a Registered Optician that is current (i.e. not suspended)*
• They must sign a declaration not to practice opticianry
• All outstanding fees to the College must be fully paid
• They must not have any outstanding Quality Assurance program requirements

*Important: As a temporary measure until July 1, 2025, Registered Opticians who were suspended for non-renewal are eligible to transfer directly to the Inactive Class. After July 1, 2025, suspended opticians will be required to reinstate their Registered Optician certificate before applying to join the Inactive Class.

To apply to register in the Inactive Class, please complete the request form here.  

Payment of Fees

Once the screening of your class change application has been completed, the College will add the applicable fees to your online account in your profile with the College. You will receive an email notification from the College when the fees are added to your account. The fees must be paid online in the Registrant Portal. Please note that the processing of your class change request will not be finalized until the fees are received.

Step-by-step instructions on how to make a payment can be found here.

Returning to Practice

If you wish to return to active practice, you must request a class change from the Inactive Optician to the Registered Optician class and meet the requirements set out in the Reinstatement and Changing from Inactive to Active Practice Policy.

To apply to transfer to the Registered Optician class, please complete the class change request form here.

Opticians returning to active practice must demonstrate that their knowledge and skills are current. For more information see the Reinstatement and Changing from Inactive to Active Practice Policy.

If you have questions about the Inactive Class, please contact the Registration Team at registration@collegeofopticians.ca.