Enhancing Transparency and Recognition of Advanced Clinical Expertise
Enhancing Transparency and Recognition of Advanced Clinical Expertise
ABSTRACT
The Canadian Board of Professional Psychology (CBPP) is a national, voluntary board certification body recognizing advanced, peer-reviewed professional competence among doctoral-level psychologists in Canada. Operating in a non-regulatory, complementary role, it provides nationally consistent standards to enhance transparency and recognition of advanced clinical expertise beyond registration with provincial/territorial regulatory bodies.
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The Canadian Board of Professional Psychology (CBPP) is a national board certification organization for psychologists holding doctoral degrees in psychology.
The CBPP has been developed to offer a voluntary, peer-reviewed, professional credential recognizing advanced competence and specialization for registered psychologists in Canada. It is not intended to replace or override Provincial and/or Territorial regulations. Eligible psychologists will have earned a doctoral degree in a clinically-focussed psychology program with a longitudinal developmental training model. Training must include advanced competency evaluation (e.g., comprehensive examinations), multiple supervised clinical practica, supervised pre- and post-doctoral internship/residency programs, and exposure to multiple clinical settings and supervisors.
In developing its eligibility criteria as a national body, the CBPP has considered, and is in general agreement with, the positions and accreditation standards established by the following national organizations: Canadian Psychological Association (CPA), the American Psychological Association (APA), the Canadian Register of Health Service Psychologists (CRHSP), the National Register of Health Service Psychologists (NRHSP), the Association of Canadian Psychology Regulatory Organizations (ACPRO), and the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP). Eligible psychologists must be registered in good standing with their provincial and/or territorial regulatory body and prepared to declare competencies in specific practice areas. The CBPP is intended to function in a complementary role within Canada’s existing professional landscape, aiming to recognize advanced competence. The CBPP is not a provincial regulatory body.
Purpose and Context
The CBPP is intended to identify psychologists who have met nationally consistent peer-reviewed standards of advanced professional competence, while fully respecting provincial/territorial regulatory authority.
CBPP Board Certification provides clarity for the general public, interdisciplinary professionals, school boards, insurance companies, governmental organizations, and other relevant stakeholders that psychologists holding this designation have demonstrated advanced clinical reasoning and diagnostic formulation, as well as integration of science and practice through the following:
● Completed doctoral-level education and supervised clinical training
● Completed predoctoral internship and postdoctoral supervision
● Current registration with the provincial and/or territorial regulatory body(ies) where they practice
● Been assessed for knowledge and competence in professional ethics and clinical practice that meet the standards as set forth by the CBPP The CBPP reflects an internationally recognized common professional model in which advanced, post-licensure board certification exists alongside diverse training pathways.
The CBPP:
● Does not regulate practice
● Does not replace registration with provincial/territorial regulatory bodies
● Does not alter provincial/territorial title protection
As a national credentialing board that is not affiliated with professional organizations and registering bodies, the CBPP model for psychology mirrors other existing Canadian and international health-profession models where advanced national credentials may exceed provincial/territorial registration requirements.
History, Foundation and Governance
The Canadian Board of Professional Psychology (CBPP) represents the evolution of the Canadian Academy of Psychologists in Disability Assessment (CAPDA), accomplished through CAPDA's transformation and reconstitution as the CBPP via a comprehensive revision of its bylaws, mission, and mandate.
The Canadian Academy of Psychologists in Disability Assessment (CAPDA) was an organization uniquely positioned to form the Canadian Board of Professional Psychology (CBPP). CAPDA was established in 1995 as a national organization of senior doctoral level psychologists aiming to share information, develop standards of practice and conduct, educate, and advocate on matters related to rehabilitation and disability, as well as third party and other requested assessments. The organization has published a number of best practice standards and guidelines.
CAPDA’s history demonstrates unique expertise in the creation, execution, and management of credentialing programs. Over the course of its existence, the organization’s Board of Directors moved CAPDA in the direction of developing a national board certification program and other advanced credentialing programs. In 2017, CAPDA launched the Certification in Catastrophic Impairment Evaluation (C-CAT) in collaboration with the Canadian Society of Medical Evaluators (CSME). In 2018, CAPDA and CSME introduced the Certification in Medical Legal Expertise (CMLE). These programs have credentialed mental health and medical professionals over the past decade, including psychiatrists and psychologists, in advanced catastrophic impairment and medical-legal evaluation expertise.
The CAPDA Board of Directors invited a number of senior psychologists from different practice areas and institutions, including past-presidents and founders of CAPDA, to join them in forming a task force. The aim of this task force was to morph the Academy into a credentialing organization with a much broader mandate, encompassing the credentialing of psychologists not just in disability and assessment areas, but in all areas of clinical practice, while maintaining an eye toward national standards. The task force, with legal assistance, revised the organization’s bylaws. On January 23, 2026, CAPDA held its Annual General Meeting, and the attending members voted unanimously to approve the organization’s newly created objects and changes in name, mandate, and bylaws. The formal ratification of the organization’s objects, name, and bylaws has been approved by the federal government.
The newly constituted CBPP (formerly CAPDA) moves ahead on a solid foundation of expertise in the creation, execution, and managing of credentialing programs. The CBPP will be governed independently, with an emphasis on transparency, consultation, and collaboration across the profession. We welcome doctoral level psychologists across Canada interested in working with us as we expand our processes and policies, such as including additional specialty area designations. In due course we will disseminate an online form so that interested psychologists can apply to assist in further development.
Next Steps
The CBPP will share information regarding:
● Governance and advisory structures
● Eligibility and application processes
● Registration procedures and timelines, including a streamlined fast-track application process for currently registered doctoral level psychologists in Canada
● Initial specialty certification areas
● How to get involved in developing additional specialty areas for certification.
We welcome dialogue and feedback and look forward to working collaboratively with
professional associations, training programs, and national partners.
The general email for the Board is info@cbppsychology.ca.
Sincerely,
Dr. Reena Chopra, Ph.D., C. Psych. (rchopra@cbppsychology.ca)
Dr. Jeremy Frank, Ph.D., C. Psych. (jfrank@cbppsychology.ca)
Co-Presidents
Canadian Board of Professional Psychology (CBPP)
Email us at info@cbppsychology.ca
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