New health profession legislation comes into force on April 1, 2026
The Ministry of Health has confirmed that the Health Professions Act (HPA) will be repealed on April 1, 2026 and replaced by the Health Professions and Occupations Act (HPOA). This date is confirmed by Lieutenant Governor in Council (LGIC) regulations that were approved on July 16, 2025.
In addition, on July 16, 2025, the B.C. government posted updates to the regulations for health professions to align them with the HPOA. The regulations outline the name of the college that regulates each health profession, reserved titles, scope of practice statements, activities restricted to the health profession, and limits or conditions on practice. The updated regulations are now available on the BC Laws website:
- BC College of Nurses and Midwives
- BC College of Oral Health Professionals
- College of Complementary Health Professionals of BC
- College of Health and Care Professionals of BC
- College of Pharmacists of BC
- College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC
While the updated regulations are now publicly available, they will not be in effect until April 1, 2026, when the HPOA comes into force.
As stated on the Ministry of Health Health Professions and Occupations Act webpage, the HPOA aims to improve public protection and safety in the health system by doing the following:
- “Establishing the Health Professions and Occupations Regulatory Oversight Office (HPOROO) to ensure regulatory colleges are focused on patient safety and the public interest.
- Enhancing a commitment to cultural safety and humility, through requiring Indigenous support workers for Indigenous peoples going through the discipline process.
- Creating an independent disciplinary hearing process that provides support services and support workers for people going through the process.
- Including all instances of disciplinary actions and summary protection orders against a health professional on the public registry.
- Moving to fully appointed college boards, whose board members are selected based on merit and competency.”
Colleges that regulate health professionals in B.C. will continue to operate under the existing HPA until the government puts the Health Professions and Occupations Act (HPOA) into force.
Some sections of HPOA already in force
The B.C. government has already brought into force the sections of the HPOA required to establish the Health Professions and Occupations Regulatory Oversight Office (HPOROO). This enabled hiring the Superintendent of Health, Director of Discipline, and other staff, as well as the creation of discipline tribunals in advance of the government putting the remainder of the HPOA fully into force.
How health professions are regulated in BC
The Ministry of Health establishes the framework for health professions regulation in two ways:
- Enacting the legislation that governs professional regulation (the current Health Professions Act and the incoming Health Professions and Occupations Act), and
- Establishing health profession regulations, which set the scopes of practice and the limits and conditions for practice.
Regulatory colleges are responsible for upholding the legislation and regulations, and for establishing bylaws, standards, and limits and conditions that guide and direct health professionals’ practice.
For more information about the HPOA, you can refer to the legislation online and find additional background on the Ministry of Health’s Professional Regulation webpage, as well as a webpage specific to the Health Professions and Occupations Act (HPOA).
Questions & Answers
Health professionals are called "registrants" in the current HPA, and "licensees" in the HPOA. Why the change?
Changing the term from “registrant” to “licensee” is intended to make it clearer to the public that health professionals regulated under the HPOA must have a license to practise their profession.
What are some key changes for health professionals in the HPOA?
Some changes under the HPOA are specific to all regulated health professionals.
Expanded licensees duties:
The HPOA sets out clear and comprehensive duties for licensees. Many of these are duties that health professionals are already expected to comply with, but which were previously articulated only in bylaws, or in practice and ethical standards, or which existed simply as general legal principles. Under the HPOA, these duties are clearly articulated and codified for all licensees, and include duties regarding:
- compliance
- fitness to practise,
- ethical practice,
- misconduct,
- delegation,
- cooperation,
- giving notice, and
- providing information to their regulatory college.
Additional tools for colleges:
The HPOA also gives regulatory colleges additional tools to address issues such as compliance and misconduct when licensees are not practising consistently with these duties.
What else is different in the HPOA compared to the HPA?
The HPOA establishes the Health Professions and Occupations Regulatory Oversight Office (HPOROO), a new, independent office separate from the Ministry of Health/B.C. government and regulatory health colleges. This new Office will oversee the regulatory colleges by promoting accountability, transparency, and accessibility in the public interest.
The Director of Discipline leads a Discipline Tribunal within HPOROO and is also independent of the Ministry of Health/B.C. government and the regulatory health colleges.
More information about the Health Professions and Occupations Regulatory Oversight Office and the Discipline Tribunal is available on their website: hporoo.ca
Are there any new requirements for my regulatory college in the HPOA?
Regulators must adhere to guiding principles as set out in the HPOA (Section 14), including:
- Protect the public from harm and discrimination
- Support and promote awareness of reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)
- Address racism and anti-racism issues that are specific to Indigenous Peoples
- Take and promote anti-discrimination measures
- Act in a fair manner, including by demonstrating respect for the principles of procedural fairness
- Respect privacy.
The guiding principles also require health regulatory colleges to:
- Promote collaboration between themselves and between health-care providers
- Remove unnecessary barriers to licensure for practitioners from outside BC
- Act transparently and provide opportunities for meaningful public engagement.
While the HPOA’s guiding principles apply to regulators, health professionals are bound by duties outlined in the HPOA, as well as by bylaws, practice standards and other requirements determined by their regulatory college.
How do these regulation changes impact health professionals?
Impacts of the regulation changes will vary by profession. One notable change with a broad impact is that rather than having a separate regulation for each health profession, the regulations for professions governed by the same regulatory college are now combined.
Six regulatory colleges in B.C. currently operate under the Health Professions Act:
Do all the regulation changes impact all health professions?
No. Some regulation changes only apply to specific professions. For example, updates related to the use of the title “doctor” only affect professions authorized to use that title.
How are restricted activities captured in the regulation changes?
The updated professional regulations reference the new Regulated Health Practitioners Regulation, which lists restricted activities that can be performed by specific health professionals. This listing is intended to help the public understand the restricted activities each health professional is authorized to perform.
Links to these regulations can be found on the Health Professions and Occupations Act page of the Ministry of Health website.
If the regulation specifies limits or conditions on how a restricted activity may be performed, the profession must comply with those limits or conditions. If no limits are stated, the entire restricted activity may be performed.