Out of Province Transfers

The holder of a valid out-of-province standardized power engineer’s certificate can apply to transfer their certificate to Alberta to obtain a certificate for the same scope of practice as authorized by the transferred certificate.

The applicant is required to complete application form AB-130, pay the certificate transfer fee and complete the transfer examination. See Power Engineer Certification Transfer Examination page for details.

All applicants who are transferring their certification to Alberta must challenge and pass the ABSA Out of Province Transfer examination. Exceptions may be made for applicants who have previously written and passed the Out of Province Transfer examination. Please see below:

Please note that the date range is determined from when the applicant last wrote the examination, to the date of they submit a new application.

Writing the Examination

The Out of Province Transfer examination is an online, open-book examination based on the Safety Codes Act and Pressure Equipment Regulations, policy documents established by the Administrator, and information about ABSA as the Delegated Administration Organization. Refer to the AB-269 Syllabus for details regarding these requirements.

This examination ensures power engineers transferring into Alberta understand the Alberta Safety Codes Act and Pressure Equipment Regulations as well as the various policies concerning implementation established by the Administrator, all of which promotes safe operation of pressure equipment.

The applicant will receive an account activation email once their examination has been scheduled by ABSA. They will have 30 days from the date they receive the activation email to activate their account and successfully complete the examination. If the applicant does not activate their account within 30 days, their activation email will expire and the applicant will be required to reapply for the examination. To reapply the applicant will be required to submit a new application form and pay the examination fee.

The time allowed for the examination is 3 hours within a 24 hour total time period. The 24 hour clock starts immediately once the exam’s “Start” button has been pressed. The applicant has 3 hours (within a 24 hour time period) to complete the exam. The applicant can sign out from the exam and sign back in multiple times within the 24 hour period. If they wait and re-start the examination too close to the 24 hour expiration time, the examination time will not be extended beyond the 24 hour limit. If the time expires before they have completed all the questions, the examination will be closed and the applicant will have to reapply for the examination. The applicant is required to complete the examination and they will be notified that they have been successful.

The examination consists of 50 multiple-choice questions and they are divided up into chapters. The candidate must be successful in completing the examination and the examination is designed for the applicant to repeat a chapter if they have several wrong answers. There is only one correct answer to each question.

The fee for writing the examination is included in the initial out-of-province transfer application fee.

An individual may apply to Alberta to transfer their out-of-province Certificate and/or marks to have them recognized by ABSA. They are required to complete an application form AB-130 and pay the current fee. Completed AB-130 forms can be emailed to certificates@absa.ca or faxed to (780) 437-7787.  ABSA will contact the appropriate provincial authorities to verify the Certificate and confirm the marks.

When an individual transfers examination marks from another Canadian jurisdiction, the individual must meet the requirements of the Power Engineers Regulation with respect to education and work experience in order to continue writing and obtain certification in Alberta.

An individual may apply to Alberta to transfer their out-of-province work experience for consideration in Alberta.  They are required to complete an application form AB-130, complete an experience testimonial used in the appropriate jurisdiction where the experience is earned, and pay the current fee. ABSA will contact the appropriate provincial authorities to verify the experience.

Completed AB-130 forms can be emailed to certificates@absa.ca or faxed to (780) 437-7787.

On April 1, 2009, the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA) (now called the New West Partnership Trade Agreement (NWPTA)) and the Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT) (now called the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA)) came into effect. These agreements provide that a worker certified for an occupation by a regulatory authority of one Canadian jurisdiction shall be recognized as qualified to practice that occupation by other Canadian jurisdictions.

These agreements resulted in a change in policy. Previous to April 1, 2009, “provincial” certificates were generally recognized at one class lower.

1. First Time “Provincial” Certificate Transfer

Since April 1, 2009, out-of-province certificate holders with a valid power engineer certificate have been able to apply to obtain an equivalent Alberta certificate for the same scope of practice as authorized by the out-of-province certificate.

The applicant is required to complete application form AB-130, pay the certificate transfer fee, and complete the transfer examination. See Power Engineer Certification Transfer Examination page for details.

2. Previous transferees who still hold a valid certificate from another Canadian jurisdiction

An individual that transferred their out-of-province certificate to Alberta prior to April 1, 2009 and obtained an Alberta certificate one class lower, may re-apply to obtain a certificate for the same scope of practice as authorized by the valid out-of-province certificate provided the out-of-province certificate is still valid.

The applicant is required to complete application form AB-130, pay the certificate transfer fee, and complete the transfer examination. See Power Engineer Certification Transfer Examination page for details.

The application review process will begin once ABSA has received a “complete” application from the applicant. An application is considered complete only when the application, supporting documentation and payment have all been received by ABSA. Application  fees are non-refundable once the application has been submitted to ABSA; regardless of the outcome of the review.

Incomplete applications submitted without supporting documentation, or missing information required for completing the review of this application, will be closed after 20 business days. Application fees are non-refundable once an application has been closed. Applicants are strongly encouraged to only submit an application if they are able to provide a complete application.

ABSA will provide the applicant with confirmation when the review process has been completed. Please allow 20 business days for the review to be completed.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your application regarding certification, please follow the appeal process within 30 calendar days as mentioned on the website: www.absa.ca