Registrant Services

The College is pleased to offer registrants the ability to securely update their personal information at any time and pay their annual fees to the College online.

In order to use the Online Registrant Services, registrants must have a valid email address on file with the College. You will need your College registration number and your password to access the online system.

If you have any questions about the online services, you may contact the College at 416-972-9882 or 1-877-828-9380 or email info@ocswssw.org. For full details regarding the College’s online services, please read our Guide for Online Renewal.

Ready to renew? Visit our Online Registrant Services to renew your registration.

Online Registrant Services

Registration Renewals

Registrants can renew their registration and pay their annual fee through the College’s online registrant services. The registration year for the College is January 1st to December 31st. 

The annual fee (also referred to as a renewal fee) for a year must be paid on or before December 31st of the previous year. Currently, the College accepts the following payment methods:

  • Mastercard
  • Visa
  • Visa Debit
  • Mastercard Debit
  • Cheque
  • Money order

A $50 late fee penalty will be charged if the annual fee is received after January 31st of the registration year.

Once your annual fee is processed, the tax receipt and registrant card will be available online under the “Renewal Receipts” tab from the menu. From the Registration Renewal History grid, click on the “Registration card and tax receipt” of the selected Registration Year to open a PDF file than you can print, save, or send by email.

* For new graduates who are registered on or before December 31st of the year in which they graduate from a social work or social service work program, the renewal fee for these new graduate registrants in the two subsequent years of their registration will be reduced by $100, provided that the payment of the annual fee is made prior to the date on which the late payment penalty is effective.

Resignation/Cancellation

If you do not need to renew your registration (i.e. you no longer use the title “social worker” or “social service worker”, nor hold yourself out to be a social worker or social service worker) and you wish to avoid your certificate of registration being suspended, you must send a notice of resignation by regular mail, fax or by email informing the College of your resignation.

Update Your Information

If you change employers or move, you must advise the College online or in writing within 30 days. The College is required to make the current business name and business address of registrants available to the public on the public register.

You can use our Online Registrant Services to update the following information easily:

  • Personal information – Home address, telephone number, fax number or email
  • Business information – Business name, telephone number, fax number or email (Contact us if your business name is not listed as one of the existing options)
  • Practice information – your function, setting and practice field

Name Change

If you are changing your name, you must advise the College of both your former name(s) and your new name(s) in writing and include a copy of the change of name certificate or marriage certificate for our records. You may send the information via fax to 416-972-1512, by email to info@ocswssw.org or mail to our address, attention Registration Department.

If disclosure of your business address(es) and business telephone number(s) may jeopardize your safety, please advise the Registrar in writing. The Registrar will assess whether there is a basis for this information not to be made available to the public. In addition, if you use a pseudonym in your practice of social work or social service work for personal safety, please advise the Registrar in writing. In both cases, provide written details. Please do not forget to indicate your registration number on all correspondence with the College.

Related FAQs
    • Payment must be received in full on or before December 31st.
    • The College is not able to offer an instalment plan for payment of the annual or renewal fees at this time.
    • The College will accept a post-dated cheque for payment before December 31st.
    • As per bylaws of the College, the annual fee (also referred to as a renewal fee) for a year must be paid on or before December 31st of the previous year.
    • A registrant who fails to pay the annual fee on or before January 31st shall pay a penalty of $50.
    • The Registrar may suspend the certificate of registration of a registrant of the College for failure to pay the annual fee or penalty prescribed by the bylaws.
    • The Registrar shall not suspend a registrant’s certificate of registration without first giving the registrant two months notice of the default and intention to suspend.

  • No. The cost of regulating a registrant of the College does not change as a result of hours worked or income.

  • If your certificate of registration is suspended, you will no longer be able to:

    • Use the title of social service worker/registered social service worker or social worker/registered social worker or their French equivalents.
    • Represent or hold out, expressly or by implication, that you are a social service worker/registered social service worker or social worker/registered social worker.
    • In addition, it is an act of professional misconduct to engage in the practice of social work or social service work while your certificate is suspended.
    • You will not be able to stand for election to Council, nor vote in the election of members to Council.
    • A permanent suspension annotation will be placed on the Register of the College which is information that is available to the public.

  • For the removal of the suspension, you must pay a reinstatement fee of $150 plus applicable taxes, the penalty for failure to pay the annual fee of $50 and the annual fee of $360.

  • Under the Social Work and Social Service Work Act, 1998, the College has a broad range of responsibilities on behalf of the public and registrants, including:

    • Registering members of the professions.
    • Setting entry-to-practice requirements and standards of practice.
    • Promoting quality assurance so that registrants maintain competence.
    • Managing a thorough complaints and discipline process.

    These fees are in line with the fees of similarly sized colleges in Ontario.

    • The mandate of the College is to protect the public interest. The College is unlike a professional association whose mandate is to advocate and provide services for its members.
    • However, benefits of registration in the College include: the ability to use the title “social worker”/”social service worker” or “registered social worker”/”registered social service worker”; eligibility to stand for election to Council, the opportunity to vote in the election of Councillors to Council; receipt of all College publications, for example, Practice Guidelines, Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice and Perspective Newsletters; practice consultations; online registrant services; and attendance at the Annual Meeting and Education Day.

  • Resignation/Cancellation
    If you do not need to renew your registration (i.e. you no longer use the title “social worker” or “social service worker”, nor hold yourself out to be a social worker or social service worker) and you wish to avoid your certificate of registration being suspended, you must send a signed letter, fax or email to the Registrar informing her of your resignation.

    Retirement
    If you are no longer practising social work or social service work and do not intend to return to practice in Ontario or any other jurisdiction, you will have the option to apply for a retired class of certificate of registration. Registrants in the retired class will pay a $50 annual fee and will not be required to participate in the Continuing Competence Program (CCP).  Registrants in the retired class will not be able to move back into the general class unless they re-apply to the College and meet all of the registration requirements. Prior to moving into the retired class, registrants will be required to complete an application form, and indicate that they will comply with the requirements set out in the regulation and do not intend to return to practice in Ontario or any other jurisdiction.

  • Should you wish to re-apply for registration as a registrant of the College, you will be required to complete another application form, submit all of the required documentation, pay the prescribed fees and meet the requirements for registration as a registrant of the College prescribed by the bylaws, processes and regulations in existence at the time you re-apply.

    NOTE: If you intend to return to practice in the future, you may wish to apply for a certificate of registration in the inactive class instead.

  • The College does not offer such discounts.

  • Only registrants of the OCSWSSW who have an email address on file with the College have access to the online registrant services.

  • Yes. The College encrypted the online section of the site, which prevents any unauthorized individuals from viewing or obtaining any information you provide. Registrants should also take steps to prevent others from seeing their information, particularly if you access the site on a public computer. Do not share your password with anyone. It is advised that you occasionally change your password.

  • If you wish to update this section, you must ask your academic institution to mail an official transcript with the institution seal and/or stamp directly to the OCSWSSW.

  • The CCP documents are available on the College website at http://www.ocswssw.org/registrants/continuing-competence-program/.

  • The online renewal system typically takes about 15 minutes to review your personal information and complete the online renewal.

  • In order to complete your annual renewal online, you will be required to answer several questions and make declarations regarding your practice question, participation in the Continuing Competence Program and your professional conduct. Once you have answered these questions and agreed to the Declaration of Compliance, you will be directed to the payment section to complete the renewal.

  • Currently, the College accepts the following  payment methods:

    • Mastercard
    • Visa
    • Visa Debit
    • Mastercard Debit
    • Cheque
    • Money order

    The online payments are made through a secured server. If you choose to mail a cheque or money order, be sure to write your registration number and attach a print confirmation from the payment page once you’ve completed the online renewal form.

  • Registrants are responsible for ensuring they renew on time to avoid incurring late charges. If the College does not receive your payment by January 31, a $50 late fee will automatically be added onto your renewal fee. Failure to pay the annual fees can result in suspension of a registrant’s certificate of registration.

  • Please contact the College by phone (416-972-9882 or 1-877-828-9380) or email renewals@ocswssw.org to inform us that you renewed online and also mailed the paper renewal form.