Pay your annual teaching practice fee

Your annual practice fee must be paid by May 31 every year to maintain a valid B.C. teaching certificate. The annual fee is $80. There are no discounts or prorated fee options.

You need to pay the fee to keep your certificate in good standing – even if you are:

• Retiring but may be employed as a teacher-on-call
• Using your B.C. certification to accept employment in B.C.
• Unsure whether you will be employed as a teacher
• On leave from your position and have not arranged for your employer to remit the fee

If you are receiving full LTD benefits from the BCTF Salary Indemnity Plan as of March 30, 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 30, you will need to pay the fee yourself. Contact the BCTF Income Security Division for more information. 

Payment options

Deducted from your payroll

• If you work for a school district or independent school on April 30, your employer will automatically deduct the annual fee from your payroll in the spring each year
• If you work for more than one school board or authority, you will need to elect one employer to deduct the annual fee
• If you are on leave, intermittently employed or teaching on call, check with your employer about paying the fee. It may not be possible to deduct it from your payroll – you might need to pay your own annual fee

Pay online

You can pay online by logging into 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. 

Cheque, money order or bank draft

Make cheques payable to the Minister of Finance and include your certificate number. Mail it to the Ministry of Education and Child Care, 400-2025 West Broadway, Vancouver, BC V6J 1Z6. Post-dated cheques are not accepted.

Please note: After we receive payments, they can take two to three days to clear.

Income tax receipts

If your employer deducted the annual fee from your pay, 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.

Initial annual practice fee

Once you are eligible for certification, you will be notified by email to pay your annual practice fee using 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:

• June 1 - November 30: $80
• December 1 - March 31: $40
• April 1 - May 31: $120 (includes a $40 pro-rated fee for the rest of the school year, plus the full $80 annual fee for the following school year)

Annual practice fee

Refunds

If you choose to end your teaching certification in B.C., you may be able to request a refund of your annual practice fee.

• Find out how to end or relinquish your certificate