 Licensing & Renewals > Licence Reciprocity
Printable PDF Guide to Licence Reciprocity
Background
Qualifying Jurisdictions and Applicant Obligations
Application Process
BACKGROUND
The Real Estate Council of Alberta defines licensing reciprocity as the recognition of occupational standards from other jurisdictions that have occupational standards.
Outlined below is RECA's Occupational Standards Recognition Policy for Real Estate Brokers and Mortgage Brokers.
The federal Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT), the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA) between Alberta and British Columbia, and the New West Partnership Trade Agreement (NWPTA) are based on the federal and provincial governments’ intention to promote an open, efficient and stable domestic market for long-term job creation, economic growth and stability. This is to be done through the elimination of barriers to the free movement of persons, goods, services and investments within Canada, promotion of equal economic opportunity for Canadians, and the enhancement of competitiveness of business.
The AIT was signed by all provinces, territories and the federal government in 1994. Its objective is to reduce and eliminate, to the extent possible, barriers to the movement of persons, goods, services and investments within Canada. TILMA was signed by BC and Alberta in 2006 and focuses on removing barriers to trade, investment and labour mobility between the two provinces.
The AIT focuses on 11 specific sectors, one of which is labour mobility (Chapter 7). Chapter 7 was amended by the first ministers in December 2008 and included an expedited implementation date of April 1, 2009. The purpose of Chapter 7 is to eliminate or reduce labour mobility barriers. The AIT aims to ensure that any worker certified to perform a profession or occupation by a regulator in any Canadian province or territory will be granted a certification in respect of the same profession or occupation in any other province, without the need for additional material training, work experience, or examinations.
The NWPTA is an accord between the Governments of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan that creates Canada's largest, barrier-free, interprovincial market. Under NWPTA, British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan have committed to full mturual recognition or reconciliation of rules that hinder the free movement of goods, services, investment and people within Canada. The NWPTA builds on TILMA. The NWPTA came into effect July 1, 2010 and will be full implemented on July 1, 2013.
Since 2002, a number of Canadian real estate regulators, had provided, through a mutual recognition agreement, for labour mobility by reducing the licensing requirements for licensed individuals transferring from participating provinces. Council reviewed that agreement and determined there were not significant benefits to RECA in determining the suitability of reciprocity applicants by continuing with the required Extra-Jurisdictional Exam.
The Real Estate Council of Alberta defines licensing reciprocity as the recognition of occupational standards from other jurisdictions that have occupational standards.
Going forward, RECA will recognize applicants trading in real estate and dealing in mortgages from all Canadian jurisdictions that have occupational standards. These applicants will be eligible for licensing reciprocity without additional education requirements however, individuals are required to review information on Alberta-specific issues and to sign a declaration (included in the licence application) that acknowledges their obligations to:
- know, understand and practice in strict accordance with the Real Estate Act of Alberta including the Regulations and Rules;
- familiarize themselves with the laws of Alberta as they apply to the business of an industry member;
- only engage in work or provide services when they are competent to do so; and,
- abide by any restrictions or conditions that may be imposed upon the issuance of their licence (restrictions related to specific areas of practice or educational requirements addressing practice issues unique to Alberta).
NOTE: Additional education requirements may be necessary if the previous jurisdiction did not have occupational standards for a specific specialty area of practice, such as property management in the real estate sector. If the previous jurisdiction does not license property managers or have occupational standards for property management activities, once in Alberta, the applicant would be required to complete education requirements related to property management or have their licence restricted from conducting property management activities.
All individuals making application as a first-time applicant for licensing and registration in Alberta OR as a previous industry member who has not been registered with a brokerage any time in the past year, must provide to RECA a current certified criminal record check (CCRC) using fingerprint comparison that is satisfactory to the executive director. RECA’s policy with respect to CCRC’s may be found on its website, here.
Processing of your application may be delayed if you do not attend to the criminal record requirements in a timely manner.
Qualifying Jurisdictions and Applicant Obligations
Real Estate
Individuals who make application to become licensed in Alberta from the following jurisdictions are exempt from the real estate licensing education requirements for the comparable class of licensing in the originating jurisdiction provided they are licensed or eligible for re-licensing in that jurisdiction. There may be additional education requirements after initial licensing if there are specific occupational issues that have not been addressed in the originating jurisdiction.
- British Columbia
- Saskatchewan
- Manitoba
- Ontario
- Quebec
- New Brunswick
- Nova Scotia
- Prince Edward Island
- Yukon Territories
- Newfoundland & Labrador
In addition, individuals who make application to become licensed in Alberta from the following jurisdictions are also exempt from the real estate licensing education requirements for the comparable class of licensing in the originating jurisdiction provided they are licensed or eligible for re-licensing in that jurisdiction. There may be additional education requirements after initial licensing if there are specific occupational issues that have not been addressed in the originating jurisdiction.
- Colorado
- Georgia
- Montana
- Oregon
- South Dakota
- Utah
Note: Once authorized as real estate industry members, individuals have 120 days to complete the 6-hour online course, Understanding Designated Agency and Transaction Brokerage, which is available through www.reca.ca. This course is a requirement for relicensing in Alberta and failure to complete the course will result in licence suspension and/or cancellation.
Mortgage Brokers
Individuals who make application to become licensed in Alberta from the following jurisdiction are exempt from the mortgage broker licensing education requirements for the comparable class of licensing in the originating jurisdiction provided they are licensed or eligible for re-licensing in that jurisdiction.
- British Columbia
- Manitoba
- Ontario
- Saskatchewan
Applicants who have been granted recognition of their occupational standards from the above jurisdiction must meet RECA’s other licensing requirements prior to being authorized with RECA.
Individuals who make application to become licensed in Alberta from any other jurisdiction not listed above must complete the applicable licensing education requirements.
NOTE: Recognition of an applicant’s occupational standards from another jurisdiction does not exempt the applicant from RECA’s Re-licensing Education Program for the current licensing period for the applicable class of licence. In addition, it does not exempt the applicant from any other requirements for licensing and registration with RECA.
Application Process - Associates/Associate Brokers
Step 1
If you are a potential applicant from one of the above jurisdictions the first step is to print the Personal Information Form from the RECA website, complete it and submit it to RECA by fax or mail. The form may be found, here.
Your personal contact information is collected for the purposes of accommodating the licensing and registration processes with RECA and RECA’s collection, use, and disclosure of their personal information for licensing and other regulatory purposes under the Real Estate Act and in accordance with the Personal Information Protection Act.
RECA will contact applicants to confirm receipt of the completed Personal Information Form.
Step 2
Request licensing and other information from the regulatory organization in your current and all previous jurisdiction(s), signed by an authorized individual in that jurisdiction, and have this information sent directly to RECA. The letter sent to RECA should include the following information:
- Your current class of licensing or registration;
- Your licensing or registration history;
- Any restrictions or limitations for specialty areas of practice;
- A statement indicating that you are eligible for relicensing without meeting any additional requirements, if you are not currently licensed.
- Your sanction history; and,
- Your education history, if available.
All licence histories must have been generated within the past 90 days.
NOTE: Upon receipt of your licensing and other information from the regulatory organization in your current and all previous jurisdiction(s) and your completed Personal Information Form, RECA will determine if you are eligible for licensing reciprocity. You will be notified in writing once RECA has made that determination.
Step 3
This is the latest point at which you should apply for your certified criminal record check (CCRC). Complete CCRC guidelines and procedures may be found on RECA’s website, here.
Step 4
Review the Real Estate Reciprocity Information Materials or the Mortgage Brokerage Reciprocity Information Materials here and once you are comfortable with the material and can sign a declaration that acknowledges your obligations as stated in items a) through d) above, you may complete an application through a brokerage in Alberta.
Step 5
Once the application is completed in its entirety by the applicant and the broker, it must be forwarded to RECA for processing. RECA will notify you and your broker via email upon your authorization being activated. You must not deal in mortgages or trade in real estate prior to authorization being granted by RECA. Your application will not be considered prior to receiving all required documentation as previously outlined.
Application Process - Brokers
Step 1
If you are a potential applicant from one of the above jurisdictions the first step is to print the Personal Information Form from the RECA website, complete it and submit it to RECA by fax or mail. The form may be found, here.
Your personal contact information is collected for the purposes of accommodating the licensing and registration processes with RECA and RECA’s collection, use, and disclosure of their personal information for licensing and other regulatory purposes under the Real Estate Act and in accordance with the Personal Information Protection Act.
RECA will contact applicants to confirm receipt of the completed Personal Information Form.
Step 2
Request licensing and other information from the regulatory organization in your current and all previous jurisdiction(s), signed by an authorized individual in that jurisdiction, and have this information sent directly to RECA. The letter sent to RECA should include the following information:
- Your current class of licensing or registration;
- Your licensing or registration history;
- Any restrictions or limitations for specialty areas of practice;
- A statement indicating that you are eligible for licensing without meeting any additional requirements, if you are not currently licensed;
- Your sanction history; and,
- Your education history, if available.
All licence histories must have been generated within the past 90 days.
NOTE: Upon receipt of your licensing and other information from the regulatory organization in your current and all previous jurisdiction(s) and your completed Personal Information Form, RECA will determine if you are eligible for licensing reciprocity. You will be notified in writing once RECA has made that determination.
Step 3
This is the latest point at which you should apply for your certified criminal record check (CCRC). Complete CCRC guidelines and procedures may be found on RECA’s website, here.
Step 4
Review the Real Estate Reciprocity Information Materials or the Mortgage Brokerage Reciprocity Information Materials here and once you are comfortable with the material and can sign a declaration that acknowledges your obligations as stated in items a) through d) above, you may apply for a licence and registration as a broker, and for a brokerage licence.
Step 5
If applying to open a real estate brokerage, please refer to Real Estate: Opening a Brokerage
If applying to open a mortgage brokerage, please refer to Mortgage: Opening a Brokerage
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