Renewal

To access your renewal portal:

• Click on the Registrant Portal button on the College website.
• Enter your username and password
  • Your username is your 3-or 4-digit College registration number.
  • If you don’t remember your password, click on “Forgot my Password” to have a reset link sent to the email address on file with the College. After 3 unsuccessful login attempts, you will be locked out of the portal, so please request a reset link if you are unsure of your password.
• Once you are logged in, click on the “Renew your Registration” button located on the right side of the screen above “Personal Details”.

Registered Opticians and Inactive Opticians are required to renew their certificate of registration before January 15th on an annual basis.

Intern Opticians are no longer required to renew their certificate of registration on an annual basis.  Intern optician certificates remain valid for three years from the date of eligibility, or until successful completion of national examinations, whichever comes first. To extend your intern optician certificate of registration beyond the expiry date, you must apply to the Registration Committee to be granted an extension.

There could be a couple of reasons as to why you did not receive your updated password:

• It has either been redirected to your junk or spam folder; or,
• Your email address is not updated with the College.

If the email has been redirected to your junk or spam folder, please mark all emails from the College as “safe” to ensure you receive important notices in a timely manner in the future. Please make sure the College has your most up-to-date email address on file. If your email address has changed, please update it on your registrant portal or notify the Registration Team at registration@collegeofopticians.ca.

If your email address is updated with the College and the email does not appear in the inbox, junk, or spam folders, please contact the College at (416) 368-3616 ext. 200 for assistance.

All registrants who are eligible for renewal are sent a renewal notice at least 60 days before the renewal deadline. Renewal notices are sent via email to the email address on file with the College. All Registered Opticians and Inactive Opticians must renew their certificate of registration on an annual basis.

There could be a few reasons as to why you did not receive your renewal notice:

• The renewal notice was redirected to your junk or spam folder.
• Your email address is not updated with the College.
• You are not eligible for renewal (e.g. your certificate of registration is suspended).

If the renewal notice has been redirected into your junk or spam folder, please mark all emails from the College as “safe sender” to ensure you receive important notices in a timely manner in the future.

Please make sure the College has your most up-to-date email address on file. If your email address has changed, please update it on your registrant portal or notify the Registration Team at registration@collegeofopticians.ca.

If you are a Registered Optician or an Inactive Optician whose certificate of registration has been administratively suspended (i.e. for non-renewal/non-payment of fees), you will not receive a renewal notice. Registrants who have been administratively suspended must first reinstate their certificate of registration before being eligible to renew. For more information see the Reinstatement and Changing from Inactive to Active Practice Policy.

Opticians who wish to transfer from the Inactive Optician class to the Registered Optician class may do so during the renewal application process. 

Requests for a class change during the renewal period must be made by January 5, 2026. Any requests received between January 6 and January 15 will be processed AFTER the renewal deadline of January 15.

To submit your request for a class change during renewal from the Inactive class to the Registered Optician class, you may do so once you start you log into your registrant profile:

• Click “Renew your Registration”.
• On the renewal landing page, answer “No” to the question “I wish to renew my certificate in my current class (Current class: Inactive Optician)”.
• For the question “I wish to change my registration class”, select “Yes”.
• Click “Save & Proceed”
• You will complete the Registered Optician renewal application and be presented with the Registered Optician renewal fee. Pay the fee.
• Check your inbox for an email confirming the conditional approval of your move to the Registered Optician class. College staff will contact you within one week to confirm your class change.

Important: If you changed your status at any time in 2025 (e.g. moved to/from the Inactive class), you are still required to upload this year's portfolio to your registrant portal by the deadline. If no portfolio is showing in your portal by the deadline, the College has jurisdiction to start an investigation into your failure to meet your professional obligations, even if you're no longer practising. This could result in a referral for remedial and/or disciplinary action, both of which have the potential to end up on your public record. 

Opticians who wish to transfer from the Registered Optician class to the Inactive Optician class to the Registered Optician class may do so during the renewal application process. 

Requests for a class change during the renewal period must be made by January 5, 2026. Any requests received between January 6 and January 15 will be processed AFTER the renewal deadline of January 15.

To submit your request for a class change during renewal from Registered Optician to the Inactive class, you may do so once you start you log into your registrant profile:

• Click “Renew your Registration”.
• On the renewal landing page, answer “No” to the question “I wish to renew my certificate in my current class (Current class: Registered Optician)”.
• For the question “I wish to change my registration class”, select “Yes”.
• Click “Save & Proceed”
• You will complete the Inactive renewal application and be presented with the Inactive renewal fee. Pay the fee.
• Check your inbox for an email confirming the conditional approval of your move to the Inactive class. College staff will contact you within one week to confirm your class change.

Important: If you changed your status at any time in 2025 (e.g. moved to/from the Inactive class), you are still required to upload this year's portfolio to your registrant portal by the deadline. If no portfolio is showing in your portal by the deadline, the College has jurisdiction to start an investigation into your failure to meet your professional obligations, even if you're no longer practising. This could result in a referral for remedial and/or disciplinary action, both of which have the potential to end up on your public record. 

The Inactive registration class is now available for opticians who are not currently practising. Non-practising opticians should consider joining the Inactive class for the following reasons:

• Opticians can hold Inactive status indefinitely: Non-practising opticians may remain in the Inactive class as long as they wish. When an Inactive Optician is ready to resume practise, they can submit a Class Change request to the Registered Optician class, and follow the steps set out in the Reinstatement and Changing from Inactive to Active Practice Policy to demonstrate that they are practise-ready. This may include completing a refresher program or competency assessment.

• No need to maintain ongoing currency while inactive: Opticians’ ongoing currency requirements are paused while they are in the Inactive class. This means that when an Inactive optician returns to the Registered Optician class, they will have three years to demonstrate at least 500 practice hours. 

• Avoid automatic revocation: Inactive Opticians who renew their Inactive certificate annually will avoid automatic revocation, which occurs after an optician has been administratively suspended for a period of 3 years. For more information about the Inactive Class, visit our website here. 

For instructions on how to move to the Inactive class during renewal, please see the instructions above.

Yes, you have a professional obligation to complete a professional portfolio if you're listed as Entitled to Practice. Even if you are planning to go inactive or stop practicing, you are required to upload this year's portfolio to your registrant portal by the deadline. 

If no portfolio is showing in your portal by the deadline, the College has jurisdiction to start an investigation into your failure to meet your professional obligations, even if you're no longer practising. This could result in a referral for remedial and/or disciplinary action, both of which have the potential to end up on your public record. 

If you are taking a leave from practice, it is not mandatory for you to renew your registration. However, if you intend to resume practice in the future, you may wish to transfer to the Inactive Optician class instead of not renewing.

Opticians who do not renew their registration are administratively suspended and will be required to pay a reinstatement fee & the full annual registration fee upon reinstatement, regardless of when in the calendar year they resume practice.

By contrast, the fee for registrants who transfer from the Inactive Optician class to the Registered Optician class is pro-rated based on when in the calendar year the class change takes place. Click here to learn more.

If you are retiring from opticianry, you have several options available to you:

A) Transfer your registration to the Inactive class. If you wish to preserve the option of returning to practice at some point in the future, you may wish to apply to change your class to the Inactive Class of registration. Opticians who hold an Inactive certificate of registration pay a reduced (1/3) annual fee and must renew their inactive certificate each year. 

If you decide to return to practice, you will have to meet the requirements in place at the time, which may include completing a competency assessment and/or refresher program.

B) Resign your registration. If you are not planning to return to practice, you may consider resigning from the College and requesting that your status be displayed as “Resigned – Retired” on the public register. Importantly, once you resign, your certificate cannot be reinstated. Should you wish to return to practice you would need to re-apply to the College and meet the registration requirements in place at the time.

If you wish to resign your registration, follow these steps after you have logged into your registrant portal:

• Click “Renew your Registration”.
• On the renewal landing page, answer “No” to the question “I wish to renew my certificate in my current class (Current class: Registered Optician)”.
• For the question “I wish to change my registration class”, select “No”.
• For the statement, “I am not renewing my certificate”, check the box.
• For “Reason for not renewing”, select “Resigned”.
• Select either “Yes” or “No” for the question “Do you want the public register to display your reason for not renewing?”
• Click “Save & Proceed”.
• You will then be presented with a declaration. Review the declaration and if you agree, select “yes”.
• Click “Save & Proceed”.
• Check your inbox for an email confirming your resignation from the College of Opticians.

C) Take no action & be suspended. If you retired from practice and do not to renew your registration this year, your status on the register will be changed to “Not Entitled to Practise”. Then, three years after the date of suspension, your certificate of registration will be automatically revoked, and your status on the register will be updated to “Revoked”.

Once a certificate is revoked, it cannot be reinstated. Should you wish to return to practice in the future, you would need to re-apply to the College and meet the registration requirements in place at the time.

If you are planning to leave Ontario or Canada, you have several options with respect to your registration:

A) Transfer your registration to the Inactive Class. If you wish to maintain your registration with the College, you may choose to transfer into the Inactive Optician class. This option will allow you to return to active practice in Ontario if/when you choose to do so. To maintain the inactive certificate of registration, you will have to renew it each year. The fee for the inactive class is set at 1/3 of the full registration fee. 

B) Allow your Ontario registration to expire. If you choose not to take any action, your certificate of registration will be administratively suspended and automatically revoked three years after the suspension date. Your status will be displayed on the public register as “Revoked”.

Once your certificate is revoked, you will no longer be eligible to reinstate your registration. If you wish to resume practice in Ontario in the future, you will need to re-apply for registration and meet the entry-to-practice requirements in place at the time. If, at the time of your application, you are an optician in good standing who is practising in another Canadian province, you may be eligible to apply for registration in Ontario as a Labour Mobility Applicant.  For more information see the Labour Mobility Policy.

C) Resign your registration. If you are not planning to practise in Ontario in the future, you may opt to resign your certificate of registration. Your status will be displayed on the public register as “Resigned”. Once resigned, you will no longer be eligible to reinstate your registration. If you wish to resume practice in Ontario in the future, you will need to re-apply for registration and meet the entry-to-practice requirements in place at the time. 

If, at the time of your application, you are an optician in good standing who is practising in another Canadian province, you may be eligible to apply for registration in Ontario as a Labour Mobility Applicant.  For more information see the Labour Mobility Policy.

If you wish to resign your registration, follow these steps after you have logged into your registrant portal:

• Click “Renew your Registration”.
• On the renewal landing page, answer “No” to the question “I wish to renew my certificate in my current class (Current class: Registered Optician)”.
• For the question “I wish to change my registration class”, select “No”.
• For the statement, “I am not renewing my certificate”, check the box.
• For “Reason for not renewing”, select “Resigned”.
• Select either “Yes” or “No” for the question “Do you want the public register to display your reason for not renewing?”
• Click “Save & Proceed”.
• You will then be presented with a declaration. Review the declaration and if you agree, select “yes”.
• Click “Save & Proceed”.
• Check your inbox for an email confirming your resignation from the College of Opticians.

D) License holders in other Canadian jurisdictions. If you are planning to transfer your registration to another Canadian province, you may be required to maintain your Registered Optician status in Ontario in good standing until the other province has approved your application for registration. To request a Letter of Standing to submit with your application, click here.

If you have decided not to renew, you may still log in to the Registrant Portal and select “I am not renewing my certificate of registration”. You will be asked to indicate your reason for not renewing.

Registrants who do not renew their certificate of registration are administratively suspended following a 30-day notice period and may not practice opticianry.

If you intend to resume practice in the future, please note that under the College’s Registration Regulation, registrants who are suspended will be automatically revoked after three years of inactivity. Suspension may also impact your ability to maintain ongoing currency once reinstated and/or result in additional fees.  

Registrants who are planning to take a break from practice may wish to consider joining the new Inactive Optician class instead. Click here to learn more before deciding on the course of action that is right for you.

Registered Opticians must demonstrate, on an ongoing basis, that their skills and knowledge are “current”, e.g. up to date, based on recent practice experience. You will be required to declare your practice hours every year at annual renewal. Those who have engaged in at least 500 practice hours within the previous three-year period will be considered current.

Everyone renewing as a Registered Optician will be asked to report their 2025 practice hours as part of renewal. A reminder that you do not have to complete 500 practice hours in one year, but over the past three years. 2025 would be the first of the three years to be counted toward the currency of practice requirement. 

Detailed information about the currency requirements and what are considered practice hours may be found here.

If your Contact Lens Mentor status expires between October 1, 2025 and December 31, 2026, you will be prompted with an option to renew it as part of the annual renewal process. Your renewed mentor status will be valid until December 31, 2028. 

To practise as a Registered Optician, you are required to have Professional Liability Insurance coverage in the amount of no less than $1,000,000. 

To assist you in selecting the appropriate option for your circumstances when you are updating your professional liability insurance, please review the following information:

“Personal Liability Insurance” If you have purchased professional liability insurance that does not specify an employer, which covers you regardless of where you are working, please select “personal” as your insurance type.

“Business Liability Insurance” If your place of employment has provided you with professional liability insurance, please select “business” as your insurance type. Please note: If your employer provides your insurance, and you are employed by multiple employers, you are required to submit proof of insurance for each employer. If you are insured under a group plan through your employer, your certificate is no longer required to have your name on it.    

To watch an instructional video on how to upload your proof of insurance, please click here. 

Please note: you must provide proof of insurance coverage for 2026. Insurance certificates that expire on or before December 31, 2025 will not be accepted.

If you wish to renew your Certificate of Registration but do not have Professional Liability Insurance at the moment, you may sign an undertaking not to practise until proof of your Professional Liability Insurance is submitted to the College. Your status on the public register will be displayed as “Not Entitled to practise”. 

Please bear in mind that that this is a short-term option intended for opticians who are temporarily unemployed or in the process of changing jobs and do not have insurance coverage. If you do not intend to practise for an extended period of time, consider joining the Inactive Class of registration instead.

If your photo needs to be updated, you will receive a prompt during the renewal process that you will need to upload a new photo. To meet our requirements, please use a passport style photo that:

• was taken within the last 6 months
• is high quality (i.e., is clear, sharp, and in focus)  
• has no shadow, glare or flash reflections
• is taken against a plain white background
• shows your face and shoulders centred and squared to the camera, not tilted in any direction

To watch an instructional video on how to upload a photo, please click here. 

You can update your immigration status on the renewal portal. Please note you will be required to upload your new document to avoid having your renewal placed on hold. Please click here for the list of acceptable documents.

For privacy and confidentiality reasons, the College cannot accept credit card information over the phone. When you pay online, your information is processed in a secure manner and no information is stored. To ensure the safety of your information, please make the renewal payment online.

If you have legally changed your name, you are required to update your information with the College and request a new wall certificate and an identification badge. Please contact the College at registration@collegeofopticians.ca and provide the following information:

• Your registration number.
• The name you are currently registered under.
• Your new legal name.
• Documents in support of your legal name change (such as a court document or a marriage certificate).

Pay the fees for a new wall certificate & identification badge. You can do this from your registrant portal after you log-in:

• Click on “Documents & Fees” above your picture.
• Under the “Fees” section, click “Request Document or Service”.
• Add to cart: “Replacement Certificate of Registration” and “Replacement Photographic Identification Badge”.
• Click “Proceed to Checkout”.
• Pay the fee.

Please note that requesting a name change is not part of the renewal process.

The acceptable file formats are .pdf, .jpeg, .doc, .docx.

The maximum upload file size is 980 kilobytes.

If you complete your online renewal but do not submit all required documents, your renewal will be considered incomplete and will be put on hold until the information/documents are received. It is your responsibility to ensure that any outstanding information/documents are uploaded to the portal before the January 15, 2026 deadline.

Opticians whose renewal is still incomplete after the January 15, 2026 deadline will receive a notice that their registration will be administratively suspended on February 17, 2026.

If you meet all the requirements for renewal, you will receive an email approving your renewal. Your wall certificate and badge decals and/or badge will be mailed to you shortly following the approval.

Your confirmation of payment receipt is emailed to you once your credit card is charged. The confirmation of payment receipt is not an official tax receipt. Your tax receipt will be available approximately 48 hours after your renewal is approved by the College. To access your receipt, please login to the Registrant Portal, click the “Documents & Fees” tab, and select the year in which you made your payment.