Your annual practice fee must be paid by May 31 every year to maintain a valid B.C. teaching certificate. If your certificate is cancelled because your annual practice fee is not paid by the final deadline, you will need to apply for a new teaching certificate. You need to pay the fee to keep your certificate – even if you are:
If you are receiving full LTD benefits from the BCTF Salary Indemnity Plan as of March 31, the Plan will pay the fee and recover it from your July benefit. The BCTF will make payment on your behalf during the last part of May. If you are approved on LTD after March 31, you will need to pay the fee yourself. Contact the BCTF Income Security Division for more information.
You can pay online by logging in to Your Account. To pay, you can use Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Visa Debit or Debit Mastercard. You can also use pre-paid Visa or Mastercard.
Make cheques payable to the Minister of Finance and include your certificate number. Mail it to the Ministry of Education and Child Care, 201-828 8th Avenue W, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1E2. Post-dated cheques are not accepted.
Please note: After we receive payments, they can take two to three days to clear.
If your employer deducted the annual practice fee from your wage, it will automatically appear on your T4 slip.
If you paid your fee online or by cheque, you can log in to Your Account starting in February of each year to download and print your tax receipt.
You can pay your annual practice fee online. If this is your first time logging in to Your Account, you must sign-up for a Basic BCeID account before you can log in to Your Account. If you already have a Basic BCeID, use it to log in to Your Account.
If you do not have a BCeID you will need to create one for secure access to Your Account.
Inside Your Account you can
Log in to pay your annual practice fee online
If you are eligible for certification, you will be notified by email to pay your initial certification fee inside Your Account. Your certificate will not be issued until you pay this fee. Your fee is prorated during your first year, depending on when you become a certified teacher:
| Deadlines | Fee | Description |
|---|---|---|
| April 1 to May 31 | $95 | Annual payment period. Payment must be received by (not mailed by) May 31 to avoid a late fee. |
| June 1 to June 30 | $95 + $30 (late fee) = $125 | Pay the annual practice fee with a late fee to avoid certificate suspension. The late fee cannot be waived. |
| July 1 to October 31 | $95 + $30 (late fee) + $30 (late fee) = $155 | Certificate suspended for non-payment of fees. To maintain your certificate, pay the two late fees and the annual practice fee. Late fees cannot be waived. You are not able to teach at a B.C. school or B.C.-accredited offshore school until you have paid your fees and the suspension has been lifted. |
| November 1 | Certificate is cancelled for non-payment of fees | You will need to apply for a new certificate and re-qualify before you can teach at a B.C. school or B.C.-accredited offshore school. |
If you choose to end your teaching certification in B.C., you may be able to request a refund of your annual practice fee.
Contact the Service BC Help Desk by phone Monday through Friday, 7:30 am to 5:00 pm Pacific time.
