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Proposed Changes to Fees for certain Applications and Professional Corporations

The College is seeking feedback on proposed changes to By-Law 2: Fees. Changes are being proposed to the fees related to certain applications for registration and to professional corporations.

Please respond by April 8, at noon, 2016. the response links are below.

Application Fees

The proposed changes in application fees are required in preparation for the implementation of the new Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition Process (PLAR) for assessing the education and training of internationally educated applicants. 

Application and Related Fees

The proposed changes in application and related fees are required in preparation for the implementation of the new PLAR for assessing the education and training of internationally educated applicants.

The PLAR is planned as a two-step process, comprised of a multiple-choice exam (the Knowledge and Competency Assessment Tool or KCAT) followed by a Practice-Based Assessment (PBA). The KCAT is scheduled for implementation in November 2016.  The PBA is currently under development, with implementation planned for early 2017. Consult the Fall 2015 résumé for more information on the new Prior Learning Assessment schema for internationally educated dietitians.   

In preparation for the implementation of the new assessment process, changes are required to existing assessment processes for both internationally-educated applicants and Canadian-trained applicants. This document outlines the fees related to the new assessments, and the changes to the fees for the existing assessments.  

Proposed Changes 

1. Adding the fees related to the Knowledge and Competency Assessment Tool (KCAT), which is the first component of the new PLAR.  

  • Application fee of $185 to determine eligibility to write the KCAT.
  • Registration fee of $400 for eligible candidates to write the KCAT.
  • Fee of $75 for appealing decisions about either the applicant’s ability to write the KCAT or the actual results of the exam. 

2. Increase the assessment fees for assessing the equivalence of academic and practical training from $300 to $425. This new fee would apply to Canadian trained applicants who did not complete accredited education and/or practical training, as well as internationally educated applicants who choose not to complete the KCAT.  

3. Increase the fee for assessing upgrading programs for applicants who are returning to practice from $300 to $425.

Rationale for Proposed Changes

The principle considered by the College in setting the application fees is cost-recovery. The fees are set to reflect the actual cost of reviewing and processing an application.

As the primary users of the registration services, applicants are responsible for the bulk of the costs associated with processing and reviewing an application, rather than the general membership. Separate fees are charged for the various types of assessments related to application to ensure that applicants only pay for those assessments which they actually receive. 
 
Fees related to the KCAT: The fees related to the KCAT reflect the actual costs to the College and are in line with the fees related to the Canadian Dietetic Registration Examination

  • The application fee to write the KCAT ($185) is the same as the fee for application to the College. 
  • The registration fee to write the KCAT ($400) reflects the actual cost of the exam, including the administration of the exam, analysis and communication of results, and ongoing maintenance, including development and validation of new questions.
  • The appeal fees are also in line with the cost of appeals related to the CDRE. This includes the cost of investigating the appeal and communicating the results. If the investigation results in a successful appeal, the fee will be refunded to the applicant.

Increasing the fees for existing registration assessments: We anticipate that many applicants will choose to complete the KCAT instead of the existing assessment process. As a result, some of the economies of scale we experience with the existing credential-based assessments will be lost. The revised fee represents the actual cost of completing these assessments, factoring in the impact of the decreased volumes, as well as process improvements required for the transition to the new PLAR.    

Professional Corporations

Proposed Changes and Rationale

The proposed changes would also increase the fees relating to certificates of authorization for professional corporations to bring them in line with the fees for General and Provisional Members:

  • Increase the fee for annual renewal of a certificate of authorization to match the fee for annual renewal of a general certificate.   This change ensures that corporations share the costs of regulating the profession equally with members.

  • Increase the fee for late renewal of the certificate of authorization from $50 to $70. The late fee is charged so that the costs related to late renewal are transferred to the corporation that is late, rather than the entire membership.  The revised fee of $70 reflects the actual costs to the College of following up with late renewals, and is in line with the late fee paid by General and Provisional members.                

Please submit your comments no later than April 8 at noon, 2016

  1. Click here to respond to the Consultation Survey.
  2. Email a written response to Jenny.Wu@collegeofdietitians.org 

See Proposed Changes to By-law 2 - the changes are highlighted.