What reserved practice rights are currently in force and are there plans to implement further reserved practice areas?  

• The PGA enables regulated and reserved practice rights to be granted to all regulatory bodies governed by the PGA. 

• Engineers and Geoscientists BC (EGBC), Forest Professionals of BC (FPBC) and the Architectural Institute of BC (AIBC) were the only regulators with reserved practice rights established under their previous legislation and these rights were preserved under the PGA. 

• On September 13, 2021, the College of Applied Biologists (CAB) and the British Columbia Institute of Agrologists (BCIA) were granted reserved practice rights for their registrants through Order in Council 517/2021 with implementation following a year later to allow professions and practitioners to prepare. The order, which amended the Agrologists Regulation and the Applied Biologists Regulation, came into force fully on September 1, 2022. 

• OSPG is currently working with ASTTBC and EGBC to develop a reserved practice for technology professionals. 

• On May 8, 2024, a joint statement was released by ASTTBC, EGBC and the Ministry that outlines the updates on the progress on reserved practice for technology professionals. 

• Assuming a reserved practice for technology professionals is approved by the Lieutenant Governor in Council, the new reserved practice would also include a transition period focused on assisting practitioners and registrants through credentialling pathways and engaging registrants, employers and the public to raise understanding of the scope of the profession and the reserved practice. 

How do I know what services and advice count as ‘professional practice’?  

Advice and services as they relate to a regulated or reserved practice include all work done by professionals of a regulatory body in their professional capacity. 

As part of the effort to better define regulated and reserved practice under the PGA, regulatory bodies are developing descriptive material for their registrants and the public to better define what professional practice entails.