How Many Validators Do I Need? CBA Validator Rules for Every Canadian Regulator (2026)

Ontario (PEO): at least 1 validator

PEO’s minimum is one validator, and there is no maximum. You assign exactly one validator to each of the 34 competencies, and one person may validate all of them if they know each example first-hand. You do not need a validator for every employer, only for the work examples you submit.

• Work done in Canada: each validator must have been licensed as a P.Eng. in Canada (in any province or territory) and eligible to practise at the time the work was carried out. Someone who became licensed only after the work cannot validate it. (This is the August 2026 wording; PEO’s November 2024 guide said “at the time of validation”.)
• Work outside Canada: the validator should be a senior engineering practitioner, licensed in that jurisdiction, who can prove their qualifications on request. A US PE can validate US work but not Canadian work. PEO assessors decide whether a validator is acceptable.
• Who qualifies: ideally a direct supervisor, but managers, mentors, clients and colleagues from other workplaces are also accepted. Family members and relatives are typically not acceptable.
• Timing: once PEO notifies your validators, you cannot change your experience information. If a validator declines, you must assign a new one to their competencies.

If nobody at your company holds a P.Eng., plan this early. See No P.Eng. at Your Company? How to Get Your CBA Experience Validated.

Alberta (APEGA): at least 3 validators, plus references

APEGA requires at least three validators; with fewer, the application is declined. Each of APEGA’s 22 competencies has one validator, one validator can cover at most 20, and every listed validator must validate at least one.

• Licensing: APEGA sets no fixed number of licensed validators. A P.Eng. is expected for technical (Category 1) competencies performed in Canada, and APEGA looks at the validator’s registration when they complete the forms. For work outside Canada, a “practitioner in engineering” (an engineering degree plus at least four years of engineering experience) is accepted, with a résumé if they validate Category 1. For Categories 2 to 6, a P.Eng. or practitioner is preferred but not required.
• Relationship: validators must have direct knowledge of the work and have supervised and reviewed it. An indirect manager who gave only a high-level review may not qualify. Family members are not acceptable.
• References are separate: you also need at least one reference for each employer or position, who confirms your dates and role on a Modified Reference Questionnaire. A reference can be the same person as a validator. All reference and validator forms are due within 90 days of paying the application fee.
• Confidentiality: validator and reference forms are released only if your application is refused and you request a Section 32 appeal.

Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon

First-time applicants to NAPEG and Engineers Yukon complete APEGA’s CBA in myAPEGA with a verification code from their own regulator, so APEGA’s rules apply: at least three validators, no more than 20 competencies each, and separate references. See Engineers Yukon and NAPEG: How Northern Applicants Complete APEGA’s CBA.

Saskatchewan (APEGS): at least 4 validators, 2 licensed

APEGS’s Competency Assessment Guide (version 23, November 21, 2025) requires at least four validators, including at least two licensed professional engineers or geoscientists in Canada “or equivalent”. The validators who submit feedback must together cover at least four years of experience, so you may need more than four.

• “Or equivalent” includes US PEs: licensees elsewhere in Canada, licensed engineers from IPEA or APEC member countries (a US PE qualifies) and US-licensed professional geoscientists all count toward the two.
• Canadian experience: every competency based on Canadian experience needs a licensed professional who took responsibility for the work and was licensed when it took place. If the validator for that example is not licensed, a Professional Reference Validator must confirm that they took responsibility for that period.
• International experience: an unlicensed validator needs a four-year engineering degree and at least four years of experience, and must supply a brief résumé in English.
• References: a complete submission also needs at least two Professional References, collected through the CBA system. An employer from which you use no example needs an Employment History Validator.
• No late fixes: examples and validator assignments are locked once your submission goes to validation, and version 23 dropped the clause that let APEGS accept a non-conforming validator in extenuating circumstances.

British Columbia (EGBC): at least 4 validators, one your supervisor

EGBC requires at least four validators who together cover at least four years of experience (Policy 4.D, January 30, 2026). No maximum is published, and one validator may validate any number of competencies.

• Supervisor: one validator must be your supervisor, in the same or a related discipline.
• Licensing: there is no fixed number. EGBC’s April 2024 guide says ideally all validators are professional engineers, or the equivalent licensed practitioner in the country where the experience was gained; the 2017 guide’s “minimum of two” P.Eng. rule was dropped. Colleagues, clients and consultants with first-hand knowledge may also validate. Explain any non-P.Eng. validators in your supporting documents; EGBC may ask for a résumé.
• Canadian-environment competencies: if the validators for these are not P.Eng., they should be direct supervisors.
• Family and friends: the relationship must be disclosed. If no replacement is available, the Credentials Committee will interview you.

Manitoba (EGM): at least 4 validators, 2 licensed, one your supervisor

EGM uses EGBC’s April 2024 guides, adopted in October 2024. You need at least four validators covering at least four years of experience, and one must be your supervisor in the same or a related discipline.

• Licensing: EGM’s CBA FAQ says its policy of two professionally registered validators (P.Eng./P.Geo. or equivalent) “still stands”; the guides add that ideally all are licensed.
• Where licensed: a P.Eng. validator must be registered in the province or country where the work took place.
• English: validators of the communication competencies must have communicated with you in English.

Atlantic Canada: at least 4 validators

Engineers Nova Scotia

You need at least four validators, and two must be P.Eng. with direct knowledge of your work; alternatives are accepted only on an exceptional basis. A P.Eng. validating Canadian work must have been registered in Canada during that period, and for work abroad the validator is expected to be a senior practitioner licensed there. One validator may validate every example, with the others giving overall feedback only. Under the CBA, validators replace references.

APEGNB (New Brunswick)

You need at least four validators, one of whom must be your supervisor in the same or a related discipline. APEGNB publishes no required number of licensed validators (ideally all are licensed). Family members and relatives are not acceptable, and a validator who is not a P.Eng. or P.Geo. must explain how they are a practitioner in their field and provide a CV.

Engineers PEI

You need at least four validators who together cover at least four years. Two must be P.Eng., and one must be a direct supervisor who shares your discipline. Examples for the Canadian competencies must be validated by a P.Eng., and colleagues, clients or consultants need prior approval from Engineers PEI.

PEGNL (Newfoundland and Labrador)

You need at least four validators covering at least four years, including one direct supervisor and two P.Eng./P.Geo. or equivalent. A validator who is not a Canadian-registered P.Eng. or P.Geo. must provide a CV, and a PEGNL-approved mentor can act as a validator when you have no P.Eng. supervisor.

More detail is in our guides to Engineers Nova Scotia, APEGNB, Engineers PEI and PEGNL.

Quebec (OIQ): a supervising engineer instead of validators

OIQ does not use validators or the 34-competency CBA. Since April 1, 2019 it has run its own competency-based evaluation in the Programme d’accès à la profession. As a CPI (candidat(e) à la profession d’ingénieur), you complete at least 24 months of supervised practice within five years, with one supervising engineer for each practice period. The supervisor must be an OIQ member with three years of practice in the last five; an engineer licensed outside Quebec may supervise non-reserved activities only.

For each period you describe situations that demonstrate OIQ’s 6 competencies and 28 elements and rate yourself; your supervisor then rates each element from 0 to 5. The minimum is 3 (2 for project management and professional development), and 8 elements must be shown in a Canadian context. Supervision must start at the beginning of the period: after-the-fact supervision is refused. You cannot reuse a PEO or APEGA CBA for OIQ, and engineers already licensed elsewhere in Canada use OIQ’s mobility route instead. More in How Quebec (OIQ) Assesses Engineering Experience: The CPI Program vs. the CBA.

Common validator mistakes

• Assuming one validator is enough. A single validator works only at PEO. Everywhere else you need at least 3 (APEGA, NAPEG and Engineers Yukon) or 4.
• Miscounting licensed validators. At PEO, every validator of Canadian work must have been a P.Eng. when the work was done, not just one of them. APEGS, EGM, Engineers Nova Scotia, Engineers PEI and PEGNL need at least two licensed validators.
• Choosing by title instead of knowledge. One validator for many competencies is fine if they know each example first-hand. What weakens a file is a validator rating work they did not observe or supervise, such as a director who only saw summaries.
• Treating validators as references at APEGA. APEGA also needs at least one reference per employer or position, due within the same 90 days.
• Coaching the rating. Brief your validators on each example and your role, but never ask them to match your self-rating. Ratings are independent, and you will not see them.
• Assuming a foreign licence works everywhere. A US PE counts toward APEGS’s two licensed validators, but at PEO a US PE can validate only work done outside Canada. See Can a US PE, an Overseas Engineer or a Non-Engineer Validate Your CBA?
• Leaving validators until the end. People retire, change jobs and miss emails. Line up a replacement early, and if a validator declines or goes quiet, see Validator Declined, Not Responding or Retired? What to Do in Each Province.

Pre-submission checklist

1. Meet your regulator’s minimum (PEO 1; APEGA 3; the others 4), and at EGBC, APEGS, EGM, Engineers PEI and PEGNL make sure your validators together cover at least four years.
2. Count your licensed validators against your regulator’s rule, and check when each one was licensed (at PEO, it must be when the work was done).
3. At EGBC, EGM, APEGNB, Engineers PEI and PEGNL, include your supervisor as a validator.
4. Give each competency exactly one validator who saw that work first-hand. At APEGA, keep each validator to 20 competencies or fewer and give every validator at least one.
5. For work abroad, check your regulator’s rule for non-Canadian validators and prepare any résumé or CV it asks for.
6. List references separately where required: APEGA (one per employer or position) and APEGS (two Professional References).
7. Use a business email address for each validator where possible, and tell them to expect a link from the regulator.
8. Finalize your examples before validators are notified. At PEO and APEGS you cannot edit them afterwards.

Official sources

• PEO — CBA Applicant Guide (August 2026)
• PEO — CBA and experience FAQ
• APEGA — CBA Guide for Engineering Applicants (V7.4, July 18, 2026)
• APEGA — Work experience requirements for engineers
• APEGS — Competency Assessment Guide for Candidates and Validators (Version 23, November 21, 2025)
• EGBC — Competency Assessment Guide for Engineering Applicants and Trainees (revised April 2024)
• EGBC — Policy 4.D Experience Validators (v1.0, January 30, 2026)
• EGM — CBA Guide for Engineering Applicants (adopted October 2024)
• EGM — CBA FAQ
• Engineers Nova Scotia — Competency-Based Assessment Guide
• APEGNB — Competency-Based Assessment Guidelines
• Engineers PEI — EIT Information Session (September 15, 2026)
• PEGNL — Registration Policy (December 2025)
• OIQ — Volet pratique, Programme d’accès à la profession: Guide de référence (01/2026, in French)