CRPO's practice standards at a glance

All 29 Professional Practice Standards, each with its number and one line on what it requires.

Study aid, not legal advice.Last verified against the official sources linked below on 11 November 2026.

Professional Conduct (1)

No.	Standard	What it requires
1.1	Responsibility toward the College	Reply within 30 days; cooperate; obey orders and conditions; do Quality Assurance.
1.2	Use of terms, titles and designations	College title first; earned specialist titles only; correct errors; never "doctor".
1.3	Mandatory reporting	Make every report the law requires; no frivolous or vexatious reports.
1.4	Controlled acts	Only when authorized, excepted or delegated; never delegate psychotherapy.
1.5	General conduct	No relevant illegal acts or impaired practice; respect others; nothing unbecoming.
1.6	Conflict of interest	Assess it throughout; disclose and manage it, or end care with a referral.
1.7	Dual relationships	Avoid with current clients (small-community exception); judge and document first.
1.8	Undue influence and abuse	No abuse of clients or those close to them; no undue influence on their choices.
1.9	Referrals	Inform and get consent; disclose ties and offer options; no commissions.

No.	Standard	What it requires
3.1	Confidentiality	No collection, use or disclosure without consent unless the law allows; train staff.
3.2	Consent	Assess capacity; informed, ongoing consent; obey withdrawal; document; touch: express.
3.3	Communicating client care	Communicate with other providers unless refused, counter-therapeutic or needless.
3.4	Electronic practice	Same standards online; consent; secure tools; insurance; licensing where the client is.
3.5	Unnecessary treatment	Therapy only with a reasonable prospect of benefit; discuss ending when it stops.
3.6	Complaints process	Tell clients CRPO regulates you and hears complaints; give its details if asked.
3.7	Affirming sexual orientation and gender identity	No conversion or reparative therapy.

No.	Standard	What it requires
5.1	Clinical records	Accurate, complete, legible; access and disclosure as the law permits or requires.
5.2	Requests for reports	Reports in reasonable time; mark opinion, fact and the client's account.
5.3	Issuing accurate documents	Everything you sign or send is accurate and complete.
5.4	Appointment records	Date, time and length of each encounter; missed and cancelled ones.
5.5	Financial records	A record of every fee: service, cost, payment, reduction, third party, balance.
5.6	Record storage, security and retrieval	Reasonable steps against theft, loss, and unauthorized use, disclosure or disposal.

No.	Standard	What it requires
2.1	Seeking consultation, clinical supervision and referral	Stay within competence; consult or get supervision; refer when that is not enough.
4.1	Providing clinical supervision	Supervise only if qualified; supervise those you are obliged to.
4.2	Practising with clinical supervision	When your category, a challenging case, a new area or a CRPO order requires it.
6.1	Fees	Fee schedule in advance; reasonable fees; no prompt-pay discounts, barter or debt sales.
6.2	Advertising	Truthful and verifiable; no testimonials; marked as ads; areas only with training.
6.3	Discontinuing services	Only when appropriate, never on Human Rights Code grounds; refer; document why.
6.4	Closing, selling or relocating a practice	Notice; a contingency plan; tell CRPO who takes the records; keep them the full period.

Breaching a standard is generally professional misconduct. Read each one in full on crpo.ca.