Division C, Section 3.1 — Qualifications for Chief Building Officials

(1) Except as provided in Sentence (2), this Section prescribes, for the purposes of subsections 15.11(1), (2) and (3) of the Act, (a) the qualifications that a person must satisfy to be appointed and to remain appointed as, (i) a chief building official under the Act, or (ii) an inspector who has the same powers and duties as a chief building official in relation to plumbing, (b) the qualifications that a person must satisfy to be appointed and to remain appointed as, (i) an inspector who has the same powers and duties as a chief building official in relation to sewage systems, or (ii) an inspector whose duties include plans review or inspection of sewage systems under the Act, and (c) the qualifications that a person must satisfy to be appointed and to remain appointed as an inspector under the Act, other than an inspector described in Subclause (a)(ii) or (b)(i) or (ii). (2) The qualification requirements for chief building officials and inspectors in Sentence (1) do not apply to plans review and inspection of, (a) site services including, (i) surface drainage, and (ii) plumbing located underground either outside a building or under a building, (b) construction of a factory-built house certified to CSA A277, “Procedure for Factory Certification of Buildings,” (c) construction of a mobile home conforming to CSA Z240 MH Series, “Manufactured Homes,” (d) construction of a park model trailer conforming to CAN/CSA-Z241 Series, “Park Model Trailers,” or (e) signs.

(1) In this Section, “registered” means registered under Sentence 3.1.2.2.(1), 3.1.3.2.(1) or 3.1.4.2.(1), as applicable.

(1) The following are prescribed as qualifications for a person to be appointed and to remain appointed under the Act as a chief building official or as an inspector who has the same powers and duties as a chief building official in relation to sewage systems or plumbing: (a) the person must be registered with the director. (2) A registration shall be in a form established by the director.

(1) Subject to Article 3.1.5.6., the director may register an applicant, or renew a registration, if, (a) the applicant or registered person has successfully completed the examination program administered or authorized by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs relating to the person’s knowledge of the Act and this Code and the powers and duties of chief building officials, (b) the applicant or registered person also has the qualification set out in Sentence 3.1.4.1.(1), in the case of an applicant or registered person who, under subsection 22(2) of the Act, will also exercise any of the powers or perform any of the duties of an inspector, (c) the application is complete, and (d) all fees required under Article 3.1.5.3. are paid. (2) Subject to Article 3.1.5.6., a person who, on December 31, 2024, is registered under Sentence 3.1.2.2.(1) of Division C of Ontario Regulation 332/12 (Building Code) made under the Act and complies with the conditions of registration set out in Article 3.1.5.5. of Division C of that regulation is deemed to be registered under Sentence 3.1.2.2.(1) of this Code, and for these purposes, the person’s registration is deemed to continue until its term expires. (3) For the purposes of a registration or a renewal of a registration, a person who, on December 31, 2024, has the qualifications set out in Clause 3.1.2.2.(1)(a) or (b), as applicable, of Division C of Ontario Regulation 332/12 is deemed to have the qualifications set out in Clause 3.1.2.2.(1)(a) or (b), as applicable, of this Code.

(1) The following are prescribed as qualifications for a person to be appointed and to remain appointed under the Act as an inspector whose duties are solely the supervision or management of inspectors: (a) the person must be registered with the director. (2) A registration shall be in a form established by the director.

(1) Subject to Article 3.1.5.6., the director may register an applicant, or renew a registration, if, (a) the applicant or registered person has successfully completed the examination program administered or authorized by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs relating to the person’s knowledge of the Act and this Code and the powers and duties of chief building officials, (b) the applicant or registered person has successfully completed the examination program administered or authorized by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs relating to the person’s knowledge of the Act and this Code in any one category of qualification set out in Column 2 of Table 3.5.2.1., (c) the application is complete, and (d) all fees required under Article 3.1.5.3. are paid. (2) Subject to Article 3.1.5.6., a person who, on December 31, 2024 is registered under Sentence 3.1.2.2.(1) of Division C of Ontario Regulation 332/12 (Building Code) made under the Act and complies with the conditions of registration set out in Article 3.1.5.5. of Division C of that regulation is deemed to be registered under Sentence 3.1.2.2.(1) of this Code, and for these purposes, the person’s registration is deemed to continue until its term expires. (3) For the purposes of a registration or a renewal of a registration, a person who, on December 31, 2024, has the qualifications set out in Clause 3.1.2.2.(1)(a) or (b), as applicable, of Division C of Ontario Regulation 332/12 is deemed to have the qualifications set out in Clause 3.1.2.2.(1)(a) or (b), as applicable, of this Code.

(1) Except as provided in Article 3.1.4.3. or 3.1.4.4., the following are prescribed as qualifications for a person to be appointed and to remain appointed under the Act as an inspector whose duties include plans review or inspection under the Act: (a) the person must be registered with the director. (2) A registration shall be in a form established by the director.

(1) Subject to Article 3.1.5.6., the director may register an applicant, or renew a registration, in each class of registration applied for, if, (a) the applicant or registered person has successfully completed the examination program administered or authorized by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing relating to the person’s knowledge of the Act and this Code in the category of qualification set out in Column 2 of Table 3.5.2.1. that corresponds to each class of registration set out in Column 1 of Table 3.5.2.1. for which application is made, (b) the application is complete, and (c) all fees required under Article 3.1.5.3. are paid. (2) Subject to Article 3.1.5.6., a person who, on December 31, 2024, is registered under Sentence 3.1.2.2.(1) of Division C of Ontario Regulation 332/12 (Building Code) made under the Act and complies with the conditions of registration set out in Article 3.1.5.5. of Division C of that regulation is deemed to be registered under Sentence 3.1.2.2.(1) of this Code, and for these purposes, the person’s registration is deemed to continue until its term expires. (3) For the purposes of a registration or a renewal of a registration, a person who, on December 31, 2024, has the qualifications set out in Clause 3.1.2.2.(1)(a) or (b), as applicable, of Division C of Ontario Regulation 332/12 is deemed to have the qualifications set out in Clause 3.1.2.2.(1)(a) or (b), as applicable, of this Code.

(1) A person may be appointed or remain appointed under the Act as an intern inspector whose duties include supervised plans review or inspection under the Act, even if the person does not have the qualification set out in Article 3.1.4.1., if the person is enrolled in an internship program that, (a) is approved by the Minister, or (b) meets the minimum requirements described in Sentence (2). (2) For the purposes of Clause (1)(b), the following are the minimum requirements for an internship program: (a) the internship program in a municipality shall be established and administered by the chief building official of the municipality, (b) the chief building official shall notify the director in writing within 30 days of the date an internship program is established, altered or revoked, (c) the chief building official shall establish and maintain a written policy with respect to the, (i) enrolment of persons in the internship program, and (ii) the supervision of an intern inspector by an inspector or chief building official who is registered in the class of registration in respect of which the intern inspector will exercise the powers or perform the duties, (d) the chief building official shall ensure that the written policy described in Clause (c) is brought to the attention of the public, (e) every 12 months, the chief building official shall prepare and transmit to the director a report that contains information about, (i) the number of intern inspectors that entered or left the internship program in the past 12 months, (ii) the number of intern inspectors that were enrolled in the internship program that became registered with the director under Sentence 3.1.4.2.(1) in the past 12 months, (iii) the number of intern inspectors enrolled in the internship program at any point in the past 12 months who has been trained or practiced as a building official in a country other than Canada, and (iv) the number of persons who were refused enrolment in the program or whose enrolment in the program was terminated, (f) subject to Sentence (3), each intern inspector enrolled in the internship program in respect of a type of building described in Column 3 of Table 3.5.2.1. is not eligible to be enrolled in the program in respect of that type of building for longer than 18 months, and (g) the chief building official shall provide to the director such information as the director requests. (3) The director may, at the request of a chief building official, authorize an intern inspector to be enrolled in a program for more than 18 months if the director has reasonable grounds to believe there are extenuating circumstances including maternity or parental leave, illness, disability, bereavement or personal hardship. (4) The chief building official shall notify the director of any failure in construction or demolition or in the enforcement of the Act or this Code associated with the internship program or a person enrolled in the program within 10 days of the chief building official becoming aware of the failure. (5) The director may terminate a program described in Clause (1)(b) if the director has reasonable grounds to believe the program has or will result in a failure in construction or demolition or in the enforcement of the Act or this Code associated with the internship program or a person enrolled in the program. (6) An intern inspector who is exempt under Sentence (1) shall be supervised by an inspector or chief building official who is registered in the class of registration in respect of which the intern inspector will exercise the powers or perform the duties.

(1) A person may be appointed or remain appointed under the Act as an inspector whose duties include maintenance inspections of sewage systems, even if the person does not have the qualification set out in Article 3.1.4.1. in respect of these duties. (2) An inspector who is exempt under Sentence (1) is authorized to conduct maintenance inspections of sewage systems only if the following conditions are met: (a) the person is supervised by an inspector or chief building official who is registered in the class of registration described in Column 1 of Item 10 of Table 3.5.2.1., and (b) the person does not issue orders under the Act.

(1) An application for registration or renewal of a registration shall be made to the director in a form established by the director. (2) An application for renewal of a registration shall be made within 60 days before the expiry of the registration to be renewed. (3) An application for registration or renewal of a registration shall include an undertaking by the applicant or registered person to comply with the conditions set out in Article 3.1.5.5. (4) An application for registration or renewal of a registration shall, (a) set out the applicant’s or registered person’s name, residence address, residential mailing address, if different from the residence address, and email address, if applicable, (b) set out the name of every principal authority that has appointed the person as a chief building official or inspector under the Act, and (c) contain evidence, provided by the applicant or registered person, that the applicant or registered person has the qualifications set out in Clauses 3.1.2.2.(1)(a) and (b), 3.1.3.2.(1)(a) and (b), or 3.1.4.2.(1)(a), as applicable.

(1) A registration expires one year after it is issued but the director may, for the purposes of staggering the renewal dates of the registrations, issue the initial registration for a term of not less than 90 days and not more than 18 months.

(1) The fee payable for an application to take an examination that is part of an examination program referred to in Clause 3.1.2.2.(1)(a), 3.1.3.2.(1)(a) or (b) or 3.1.4.2.(1)(a) is $150. (2) The fee for a registration or renewal of a registration is $128, for 2025 and subsequent calendar years.

(1) A registration is not transferable.

(1) The following are the conditions of a registration: (a) the registered person shall, within 15 days after the event, notify the director in writing of any change in the information set out in Clause 3.1.5.1.(4)(a) or (b), and (b) in the case of an inspector registered under Sentence 3.1.4.2.(1), the person shall exercise his or her powers and perform his or her duties only in respect of the type of buildings described in Column 3 of Table 3.5.2.1. that correspond to the class or classes of registration held by the person.

(1) The director may, in the circumstances set out in Sentence (2), (a) refuse to register an applicant or to renew a registration, or (b) suspend or revoke a registration. (2) The circumstances referred to in Sentence (1) are, (a) the registered person is in breach of a condition of the registration, (b) the registration was issued on the basis of mistaken, false or incorrect information, (c) an order under subsection 69(2) of the Provincial Offences Act is in effect directing that the registration of the person be suspended and that no registration be issued to that person until a fine is paid, (d) the application is incomplete, or (e) any fees required under Article 3.1.5.3. remain unpaid. (3) If the director proposes to refuse to register or renew a registration or proposes to suspend or revoke a registration, the director shall serve a notice of the proposal, together with the reasons for it, on the applicant or registered person. (4) A notice under Sentence (3) shall state that the applicant or registered person is entitled to a hearing before the Tribunal if the applicant or registered person, within 15 days after service of the notice referred to in Sentence (3), serves the director and the Tribunal with notice in writing requesting a hearing. (5) If the applicant or registered person does not request a hearing by the Tribunal in accordance with Sentence (4), the director may carry out the proposal stated in the notice under Sentence (3). (6) If the applicant or registered person requests a hearing before the Tribunal in accordance with Sentence (4), the Tribunal shall appoint a time for and hold a hearing and may by order direct the director to carry out the director’s proposal or refrain from carrying it out and to take such other action as the Tribunal considers the director ought to take in accordance with the Act and this Code, and for those purposes, the Tribunal may substitute its opinion for that of the director. (7) The director, the applicant or registered person who requested the hearing, and such other persons as the Tribunal may specify, are parties to proceedings before the Tribunal. (8) Sentences (3) to (7) do not apply and the director may cancel the registration of a registered person upon receipt of a request in writing for cancellation from the registered person in a form established by the director. (9) If, within the time period set out in Sentence 3.1.5.1.(2), the registered person has applied for renewal of a registration and paid the fee required under Article 3.1.5.3., the registration is deemed to continue until the earlier of, (a) the day the registration is renewed, and (b) if the registered person is served with notice that the director proposes to refuse to renew the registration, the day the time for giving notice requesting a hearing expires or, if a hearing is held, the day the Tribunal makes its order.

(1) The director shall establish and maintain a register available to the public that lists every person who has the qualifications required by subsections 15.11(1), (2) and (3) of the Act and has been appointed as a chief building official or inspector by a principal authority. (2) The register referred to in Sentence (1) shall contain the following information with respect to each registered person: (a) the name of the registered person, (b) any identifying number assigned by the director to the registered person, (c) the name and address of each principal authority that has appointed the registered person as a chief building official or inspector, and (d) the classes of registration of the registered person.

(1) Table 3.5.2.1. contains the classes of registration and categories of qualifications for the purposes of this Section.