Going On Leave

Only members of the College of Dietitians of Ontario may legally use the titles of dietitian, registered dietitian, RD or any other variation or abbreviation.   If you intend to use the RD title while you are on leave (even if you are not being paid), then you must maintain your membership with the College.   If you resign from the College, you may not use the protected titles.

There is no option to put a hold on your membership or pay reduced fees while you are on leave.  If you remain registered with the College, you are a member of a regulated profession and entitled to use the title of RD.

The cost regulating a profession does not change significantly when a member is not practising or on leave.  The law sets out the responsibilities of a regulatory College, including maintaining a website and register, processes in place to receive and investigate complaints from the public, and having programs for registration and quality assurance.  The costs of regulation are shared by all members, regardless of their employment or working status.

If you choose to remain a member (even though you aren’t working) you must update your member profile accordingly. Login to your member dashboard and update your Current Working Status under your Practice Profile to indicate you are On-leave. If you are currently still employed while on-leave, your employment information can remain as-is on your member profile.

While on leave, you must also complete your annual renewal each year, including payment of the renewal fee, any other Registration or QA requirements that you might be eligible for (e.g. SDL Tool and JKAT every 5 years).

An unrestricted certificate of registration with the College means that an RD has maintained competence to practise dietetics in Ontario. The Quality Assurance (QA) Program has the responsibility to assess RDs who have not practised at least 500 hours over the past three years to determine their competence. Annually, at renewal of membership, every member must declare their practise hours in the last three years. Members who declare fewer than 500 hours of practise in the past three years are referred to the QA Committee.

If you resign between November and April, the College would refund a prorated portion of your annual renewal fee (for the number of months remaining from when you resign until the end of the current renewal year). If you resign after April 30, there is no refund of your annual fees. More information on fees can be found under the Application and Membership Fees section and in bylaw #2.

If you choose to resign and reapply in the future, you would need to pay all appropriate application fees and you would be assessed against the registration requirements that exist at the time that you reapply (not the requirements that may have existed when you originally became a member).

For example, if you did not previously write and pass the CDRE, you would be required to pass the CDRE when you reapply as long as the CDRE remains a registration requirement.

When you reapply to the College you will be subject to all of the registration requirements which exist at the time of your new application.  If your leave extends for a longer period, it is possible that this could include demonstrating that your dietetic knowledge and skills remain current.  Consult the College website to review the currency requirements in existence when you are ready to reapply.