FAQs

When we evaluate your education, the NCA will always factor in the entire original transcripts that you submitted, and cannot take into account personal circumstances. This means that, even if you re-take and pass the course necessary to obtain a qualifying law degree, you will qualify for an NCA assessment only if your overall average meets the NCA’s legal academic performance standard as in section 9 of the NCA Policies, and only if revised transcripts are sent to the NCA showing the mark for the retaken course.

Your academic performance is one way to show how well you understand the concepts covered during your legal education. Our policy applies to overall academic performance and to academic performance for individual grades in each of the core common law subjects. If your performance in any of the subjects is low, we may require you to take more exams.

If your overall academic performance is poor (Third Class or lower standing in the England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, India, Nigeria and other Commonwealth countries, or a GPA of less than 1 in Australia) you should not expect to receive any recognition for your degree.

A mark of 50% and higher is considered a pass.

In order for your legal qualifications to be considered current, in three of the last five years, you must have been attending a Qualifying Law Degree Program, pursuing additional legal studies, acquiring legal experience satisfactory to the Executive Director, or engaged in some combination of legal studies and legal experience.

If your legal qualifications are stale, you will be required to complete additional subjects as follows:

• For each 5-year period without current qualifications and up to 15 years – one (1) of Contracts, Torts, or Property

If some, or all, of these subjects have already been assigned, Additional Legal Subjects will be assigned from the following list:

1. Business Organizations
2. Civil Procedure
3. Commercial Law
4. Evidence
5. Family Law
6. Remedies

• If you have more than 15 years without current qualifications, the Executive Director will require the Applicant to complete one (1) Year of In-person Instruction at an institution that offers an Approved Canadian Common Law Program or within a Qualifying Law Degree program.

For complete details related to the age of your degree, refer to Section 9 of the NCA Policies.

Response times will depend on the nature of the request or the transaction. Refer to our NCA Service Standards to learn about response times for various services.

During the assessment, the NCA reviews your academic and professional experience. We find gaps between your education and training on one hand, and the knowledge you would get from an approved Canadian law school program on the other hand. Then we assign exams or studies to make sure you meet our standard, called the National Requirement.

Canadian law school graduates, as well as NCA candidates, must meet this standard to qualify for bar admissions in a common law jurisdiction in Canada.

The NCA evaluates the qualifications of anyone with a law degree, whether you are:

• a Canadian citizen who got your legal education abroad
• a Canadian civil law graduate
• a newcomer to Canada with legal qualifications earned outside of Canada
• someone considering immigrating to Canada.

When we evaluate your education, the NCA will always factor in the entire original transcripts that you submitted, and cannot take into account personal circumstances. This means that, even if you re-take and pass the course necessary to obtain a qualifying law degree, you will qualify for an NCA assessment only if your overall average meets the NCA’s legal academic performance standard as in section 9 of the NCA Policies, and only if revised transcripts are sent to the NCA showing the mark for the retaken course.

If your name has changed since you first applied to the NCA, or since your transcripts were issued, please send us a copy of your proof of name change (e.g. marriage certificate, official name change certificate, etc.) by email or regular mail. If you are applying and your transcripts are under a different name, be sure to add a note in the appropriate section of the application.

Complete the online assessment application form. Please note: We will not process the form until we receive your payment ($400.00 CDN, plus taxes). A payment module is included with the online form. The NCA accepts payment only by credit card. Consult our refund policy.

You must also arrange with the school where you got your legal education to send all official and final transcripts to the NCA. Have your school send them through a secure document share service to Transcripts@flsc.ca. A full list of acceptable document share services is provided on the Application page of the NCA website. If your law school cannot send transcripts through a secure document share service, have your law school send them by post or courier.

If you have been called to the bar in another jurisdiction, please arrange for the issuing institution (the organization that admitted you) to mail a letter or certificate to the NCA confirming the date that you were called to the bar. If your licensing body has an online directory of licensees, we can accept an entry as proof of your call to the bar. The certificate must confirm that your membership is in good standing. The issuing institution must also send us any transcripts for bar examinations or courses that you took. Only official documents submitted directly from the issuing institution are used for NCA assessments.

Documents should be addressed to:

National Committee on Accreditation
c/o Federation of Law Societies of Canada
Constitution Square
1700 – 340 Albert Street
Ottawa ON K1R 7Y6

You may apply for an NCA assessment at any time. We will process your assessment after:

• you have completed the online application form
• we have received your payment
• we have received all official documents from your law school and, if necessary, your licensing body
• we have received the results of your language screening test

This means that you may apply before you graduate from law school, but we will not complete your assessment until we get your final official transcripts from your law school and any other required documents.

Yes. We will not contact you to confirm that we received your official documents until we have received your application form. We hold all official documents until they can be matched with an application.

Once the NCA receives your application, we will send you a confirmation email within 10 business days.

It is possible that our emails are going directly into your spam folder. To make sure this does not happen, please direct emails from flsc.ca to your inbox. Follow these steps for gmail accounts:

• Sign into your Gmail.com email account using the Chrome web browser.
• Click on the “gear” icon and select “Settings”.
• Click on the “Filters and blocked addresses” tab.
• Click on “Create a new filter”.
• In the “From” field, type in: flsc.ca
• Click “Create filter with this search”.
• Click and check the box beside the words “Never send it to Spam”.
• Click “Create filter” button.

Please note: These steps apply to a Windows 10 desktop computer. If you are using a different device or software, the process may vary.

Once you have completed your application and made your payment, you can log into the NCA portal at any time to see which documents we have received. If we cannot match transcripts with an application form, we will hold them until the application form and fee payment are submitted. If the name on your transcripts is not the same as the name on your application form, please send us a copy of your proof of name change (e.g. marriage certificate, official name change certificate, etc.) by email or regular mail.

The NCA processes assessments on a “first come, first served” basis. Once the NCA receives all the necessary documents and fees, we put your file into the queue for assessment. This means that if you or your educational institution delayed sending us what we need to get started, your assessment will be delayed. Generally, you get your assessment result eight weeks after we receive the last document. We will send you an email informing you about this date.

The name on your application should match the name on your transcript and licensure documents. This makes it easier for us to match your application with the documents sent directly by your educational institutions. If the name does not match, your assessment could be delayed. If you have changed your name, or if you use different spellings of your name, please let us know. Step 2 of the NCA application form includes a section for you to list any previous or additional names that may appear in your documents or files.

In order for your legal qualifications to be considered current, in three of the last five years, you must have been attending a Qualifying Law Degree Program, pursuing additional legal studies, acquiring legal experience satisfactory to the Executive Director, or engaged in some combination of legal studies and legal experience.

If your legal qualifications are stale, you will be required to complete additional subjects as follows:

• For each 5-year period without current qualifications and up to 15 years – one (1) of Contracts, Torts, or Property

If some, or all, of these subjects have already been assigned, Additional Legal Subjects will be assigned from the following list:

1. Business Organizations
2. Civil Procedure
3. Commercial Law
4. Evidence
5. Family Law
6. Remedies

• If you have more than 15 years without current qualifications, the Executive Director will require the Applicant to complete one (1) Year of In-person Instruction at an institution that offers an Approved Canadian Common Law Program or within a Qualifying Law Degree program.

For complete details related to the age of your degree, refer to Section 9 of the NCA Policies.

Response times will depend on the nature of the request or the transaction. Refer to our NCA Service Standards to learn about response times for various services.

During the assessment, the NCA reviews your academic and professional experience. We find gaps between your education and training on one hand, and the knowledge you would get from an approved Canadian law school program on the other hand. Then we assign exams or studies to make sure you meet our standard, called the National Requirement.

Canadian law school graduates, as well as NCA candidates, must meet this standard to qualify for bar admissions in a common law jurisdiction in Canada.

The NCA evaluates the qualifications of anyone with a law degree, whether you are:

• a Canadian citizen who got your legal education abroad
• a Canadian civil law graduate
• a newcomer to Canada with legal qualifications earned outside of Canada
• someone considering immigrating to Canada.

The number of exams, subject areas or courses you will need to take depends on your legal education and professional experience. You will generally need to take at least the five mandatory Canadian law subjects.

If your qualifications are assessed after January 1, 2022, you will also need to complete a course in legal research and writing offered by an Approved Canadian Common Law Program or through the NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED).

Also, as of March 1, 2026 you must demonstrate competence in Indigenous Law and Peoples (subsection 10.5).  This can be fulfilled through a module offered by the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through an NCA approved course at a recognized Canadian law school.  Also as of March 1, 2026 you must demonstrate language competence through the Language Screening Requirement (subsection 11.1). This requirement requires that all applicants to the NCA complete a language competency screening test, in either French or English, before their qualifications are assessed.  The cost of the screen will be included in the assessment fee and will be accessed through a link provided by the NCA.

Read section 5. (Legal Education) of the NCA Policies to get a clearer idea of the specific subjects that the NCA may assign you. In most cases, you can take equivalent Canadian law school courses instead of the exams. In other cases, you may be required to attend a Canadian law school and complete specific courses.

NCA assessments focus on the core common law subjects in which applicants must show they are competent, including the Canadian subjects that are mandatory for all applicants:

• Canadian Administrative Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Constitutional Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Criminal Law (mandatory)
• Foundations of Canadian Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Professional Responsibility (mandatory)
• Contracts
• Torts
• Property
• Canadian Legal Research and Writing (mandatory)
• Indigenous Law and Peoples (mandatory)

The links explain why some courses in this list are mandatory.

The NCA requirement for distance or online education aligns with the National Requirement, which came into effect in January 2015. The National Requirement is a standard that all graduates of common law programs, including Canadian graduates, must meet to enter law society admission programs.

The National Requirement sets out the knowledge and skills law graduates must have, as well as the law school academic program and learning resources all law schools must have in place. The National Requirement applies to graduates of all Canadian law schools and NCA candidates.

With respect to what is considered a Canadian law degree, the National Requirement states:

• The law school’s academic program for the study of law consists of three academic years or its equivalent in course credits.
• The course of study consists primarily of in-person instruction and learning and/or instruction and learning that involves direct interaction between the instructor and students.

“Primarily” is defined as two-thirds (or two years). The instruction must meet the NCA’s requirements as detailed in section 7 (Mode of Study) of the NCA’s Policies.

For more details, see the “I completed a law degree through distance or online education” section at the bottom of our Assignments page.

The surest way to meet the NCA requirements is to complete at least two full years of In-person study. The NCA will also accept some online instruction that involves direct interaction between instructor and student. But the online instruction must be in a program that has at least one year of in-person instruction. The online instruction must also meet six of the eight required components for interactive online courses, as outlined in section 7.2 (Mode of Study-Interactive Learning requirement) of the NCA’s Policies.

If you hold a law degree from a two-year program that has been approved as offering Online Interactive Instruction, the two-year in-person requirement will be reduced to one year provided the program includes one year of In-person Instruction. The requirement may also be reduced at the sole discretion of the Executive Director if an Applicant has received some In-person Instruction or instruction involving direct interaction between instructor and students in an Approved Law Program

To meet a two-year In-Person requirement, you could choose any of the following options:

• One year of a course-based LL.M., plus a Legal Practise Course (LPC) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) either in England or another common law jurisdiction.
• Two one-year course-based LL.M. programs. If you choose this option, you could complete a course-based LL.M. at any approved law school in any common law jurisdiction.
• Courses in a common law J.D. or LL.B.

To meet a one-year In-Person requirement, you could choose any of the following options:

• One year of a course-based LL.M., at any approved law school in any common law jurisdiction.
• The Legal Practise Course (LPC) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) either in England or another common law jurisdiction.
• Courses in a common law J.D. or LL.B.

Additional Legal Studies completed as part of a one (1) year Program (e.g. LL.M) must consist of no less than fifty percent (50%) In-person Instruction with the remainder delivered through Interactive Online Instruction that meets the criteria outlined under paragraph 7.2(II)

Please note that, in all cases, you must take the five mandatory Canadian subjects listed below at an approved Canadian law school. The NCA Canadian legal research and writing module is normally completed with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through and NCA approved law school course. If you have already completed the two-year in-person requirement in another country, you may write the corresponding NCA examinations.

• Canadian Administrative Law
• Canadian Constitutional Law
• Canadian Criminal Law
• Foundations of Canadian Law
• Canadian Professional Responsibility
• NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED).

All NCA applicants must research their options to meet the two-year in-person instruction requirement. Then you must ask the NCA to approve the program and courses you intend to take to make sure the courses meet the requirements that the NCA has assigned. To get approval from the NCA, you need to prepare a plan of study, include all relevant information including course names and links to publicly available course descriptions and forward it to nca@flsc.ca.

If you studied in-person as part of your distance or online education, this may affect the outcome of your assessment. To be recognized as meeting the NCA’s in-person instruction requirements, studies must be completed in a program that includes at least one year of in-person instruction. To be accepted as interactive online instruction, the program must meet at least six of the eight criteria listed in section 7.2 of the NCA Policies.

Study at a local learning centre will not meet the NCA’s in-person or interactive learning requirement (NCA Policy 5.1.2).

The NCA reviews all institutions and programs at the time of the assessment to determine if the institution offers either a law school program or a program to prepare for exams. We do not consider exam preparatory programs as in-person study.

The NCA assessment considers many things, but is mostly focused on your academic qualifications. We take bar admissions programs, licensure examinations and professional experience into account; but, unless they specifically cover the content of the core common law subjects, they may not affect your assessment result.

From time to time, NCA policies do change. Only the current or “in force” NCA policy is applied during your assessment, regardless of any past policy that may have been in force when you applied to or started law school. If you attend law school overseas and plan to return to Canada to practice law, we recommended that you check our website and NCA advisories regularly for the latest information.

When we evaluate your education, the NCA will always factor in the entire original transcripts that you submitted, and cannot take into account personal circumstances. This means that, even if you re-take and pass the course necessary to obtain a qualifying law degree, you will qualify for an NCA assessment only if your overall average meets the NCA’s legal academic performance standard as in section 9 of the NCA Policies, and only if revised transcripts are sent to the NCA showing the mark for the retaken course.

The factors we consider when we assess your file are:

• the type of legal system used where you got your legal education (common law, civil law, mixed, etc.)
• the length and nature of your legal education program
• the subject areas you studied
• your academic performance in the core subject areas that the NCA requires, as well as your overall academic performance
• whether your legal education program is recognized and approved by the local authority that governs people’s admission to the practice of law
• whether you studied full-time, part-time, in-person, by online interactive instruction or by distance education
• the age of your degree and whether you have practised recently
• your professional legal experience and qualifications
• the nature and length of your professional legal experience

The assessment criteria are described in greater detail in section 3 of the NCA Policies.

The NCA assesses the legal education and experience of people who want to enter law society bar admissions in Canadian common law jurisdictions. For that reason, our process focuses on how much common law content there is in your legal education. Given that law schools educate their students based on the legal system used in that jurisdiction, it is important for us to know where you studied. If you want to know more about how legal system classifications work, please read the NCA Policies and consult this document that explains how the NCA designates the legal tradition of a jurisdiction and provides a list of common law and mixed law jurisdictions.

Rules vary greatly across jurisdictions and countries for admission to the bar and becoming licensed to practise as a lawyer. In Canada and the United States, only three-year LL.B./J.D. graduates qualify for admission to the bar. But other countries have different rules and routes to practice. The NCA examines the national rules for bar admission to determine whether your specific degree qualifies you to apply to the NCA.

In most cases, the NCA gives applicants a choice of three ways to show they are competent:

• by passing the NCA’s exams
• by taking courses in assigned subjects at a Canadian law school
• by combining 1 and 2

However, some applicants must attend law school in Canada. This is the case if you completed distance education or online programs, or have no education or training in common law.

The required length of a Canadian law degree is three years. Senior Status or Graduate Entry applicants usually need to demonstrate competency in at least seven subjects. This makes up for the shorter educational program. The NCA considers other factors as well, including your academic performance (both overall and in the core subjects), whether you are licensed to practise and your professional legal experience. These other factors may increase or decrease the number of subjects we assign.

The NCA Policies requires applicants to have three years of legal education, or the equivalent, including two years of in-person study. That means GDL graduates must complete the equivalent of two additional years of legal education (see Policy 6. [Length of Law Program] for details). A GDL graduate who has no additional legal education will also have to complete one year of in-class studies in one of the following:

• the Legal Practice Course or Bar Professional Training Course in England (the grade achieved must meet the NCA’s academic performance policy), or
• an LL.M. from a common law jurisdiction in substantive common law subjects (the grade achieved must meet the NCA’s academic performance policy).

Bar school training is a factor in all assessments. Please ensure to have all the documents related to your call to the bar sent to the NCA directly by the institution that issued them.

If you earned your education and experience in a mixed jurisdiction that includes common law, we will consider the common law content of your programs and experience. We ask most graduates from a mixed jurisdiction to show they are competent in all eight core subjects.  This document explains how the NCA designates the legal tradition of a jurisdiction and provides a list of common law and mixed law jurisdictions.

• Canadian Administrative Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Constitutional Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Criminal Law (mandatory)
• Foundations of Canadian Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Professional Responsibility (mandatory)
• Contracts
• Torts
• Property

You will also need to show competence in Canadian Legal Research and Writing, Indigenous Law and Peoples as well as Language competency.

We consider applicants from legal systems that do not have a substantial common law component, such as civil law, on a case-by-case basis. This document explains how the NCA designates the legal tradition of a jurisdiction and provides a list of common law and mixed law jurisdictions. If you have no common law exposure (academic or professional), you are not likely to receive any recognition for your legal education and experience.

You can obtain common law education through an LL.M. program or by taking individual courses, including our core courses listed below. Before you enroll in a Canadian law school program of courses, make sure that the NCA approves them. To help, we invite you to read about the Canadian law school programs that offer NCA approved subjects.

• Canadian Administrative Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Constitutional Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Criminal Law (mandatory)
• Foundations of Canadian Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Professional Responsibility (mandatory)
• Contracts
• Torts
• Property

Once you have completed at least four common law subjects, we can review your file. Then we can let you know which courses you still need to show competence in for an NCA Certificate of Qualification. At that point, you can choose to take NCA exams rather than attend law school courses, if you wish.

You may also complete a program of courses in a law school in another common law jurisdiction; for example, a Graduate Diploma in Law in England, or an LL.M. for Foreign Trained Lawyers in the United States. If you choose this option, you will need to complete the five mandatory Canadian subjects by writing NCA examinations or complete NCA approved subjects in a Canadian law school.

Another way to show that you have a substantive exposure to the common law is by earning certification as a paralegal or notary in a Common Law Jurisdiction. This includes having a P1 license in Ontario or being a full member of the British Columbia Notaries Association.

Your academic performance is one way to show how well you understand the concepts covered during your legal education. Our policy applies to overall academic performance and to academic performance for individual grades in each of the core common law subjects. If your performance in any of the subjects is low, we may require you to take more exams.

If your overall academic performance is poor (Third Class or lower standing in the England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, India, Nigeria and other Commonwealth countries, or a GPA of less than 1 in Australia) you should not expect to receive any recognition for your degree.

If you have not met the academic standard outlined in section 8. (Academic Legal Performance) of the NCA Policies, the NCA is unable to recognize your degree. You may request a review of your file after you have improved your academic performance by doing one of the following:

• Being called to a state bar that requires substantive bar exams (the bar exam results must be forwarded to our office from the state bar along with a letter of good standing). Contact the NCA to find out which state bar exams we accept.
• Passing the Legal Practice Course or Bar Professional Training Course in England or a similar program in another common law jurisdiction (the grade achieved must meet the NCA’s academic performance policy).
• Completing an LL.M. from a common law jurisdiction. If you complete an LL.M. at a Canadian law school, you must achieve the institution’s passing grade. If you complete an LL.M. abroad, the NCA’s academic performance policy will apply.
• Completing a graduate diploma in law (GDL) program in England. Your grade must meet the NCA’s academic performance policy.

Once you have completed one of these four options, you must ask the issuing institution to forward your transcripts directly to the NCA. You must also send a written request for a file review to nca@flsc.ca. The Executive Director will review your file. If appropriate, we will issue you an amended assessment that outlines subject areas for the courses or exams you need to complete to earn your Certificate of Qualification.

The National Requirement sets out the specific abilities and skills that Canadian bar admission applicants must have. It also sets out the academic programs and learning resources that Canadian law schools in common law jurisdictions must have in place.

Foreign law schools do not need to follow the National Requirement, and the NCA does not review foreign schools for quality. When you attend an approved Canadian law school or take the NCA’s exams, it helps ensure that you meet the standards of quality required by regulators of the Canadian legal profession.

In order for your legal qualifications to be considered current, in three of the last five years, you must have been attending a Qualifying Law Degree Program, pursuing additional legal studies, acquiring legal experience satisfactory to the Executive Director, or engaged in some combination of legal studies and legal experience.

If your legal qualifications are stale, you will be required to complete additional subjects as follows:

• For each 5-year period without current qualifications and up to 15 years – one (1) of Contracts, Torts, or Property

If some, or all, of these subjects have already been assigned, Additional Legal Subjects will be assigned from the following list:

1. Business Organizations
2. Civil Procedure
3. Commercial Law
4. Evidence
5. Family Law
6. Remedies

• If you have more than 15 years without current qualifications, the Executive Director will require the Applicant to complete one (1) Year of In-person Instruction at an institution that offers an Approved Canadian Common Law Program or within a Qualifying Law Degree program.

For complete details related to the age of your degree, refer to Section 9 of the NCA Policies.

The number of exams, subject areas or courses you will need to take depends on your legal education and professional experience. You will generally need to take at least the five mandatory Canadian law subjects.

If your qualifications are assessed after January 1, 2022, you will also need to complete a course in legal research and writing offered by an Approved Canadian Common Law Program or through the NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED).

Also, as of March 1, 2026 you must demonstrate competence in Indigenous Law and Peoples (subsection 10.5).  This can be fulfilled through a module offered by the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through an NCA approved course at a recognized Canadian law school.  Also as of March 1, 2026 you must demonstrate language competence through the Language Screening Requirement (subsection 11.1). This requirement requires that all applicants to the NCA complete a language competency screening test, in either French or English, before their qualifications are assessed.  The cost of the screen will be included in the assessment fee and will be accessed through a link provided by the NCA.

Read section 5. (Legal Education) of the NCA Policies to get a clearer idea of the specific subjects that the NCA may assign you. In most cases, you can take equivalent Canadian law school courses instead of the exams. In other cases, you may be required to attend a Canadian law school and complete specific courses.

NCA assessments focus on the core common law subjects in which applicants must show they are competent, including the Canadian subjects that are mandatory for all applicants:

• Canadian Administrative Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Constitutional Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Criminal Law (mandatory)
• Foundations of Canadian Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Professional Responsibility (mandatory)
• Contracts
• Torts
• Property
• Canadian Legal Research and Writing (mandatory)
• Indigenous Law and Peoples (mandatory)

The links explain why some courses in this list are mandatory.

As of March 1, 2026, all NCA applicants must complete a language screening test before their qualifications are assessed or if they request a review of their NCA file if they have completed additional legal studies to address the non recognition of their legal education. Only those who have already completed a valid language test accepted by the NCA and completed with the required scores within the last two years may be exempted from this requirement.  More details are at Statement on Language Requirements.

If you do not successfully meet the minimum language proficiency score on the screening test, you will be required to complete a full language assessment.

This document explains which tests the NCA accepts and the minimum score the NCA requires for each test to meet the language requirement.

Proof of successful completion of your language test must be provided to the NCA by the test administrator within two years of the completion of the language assessment.

For more information, consult section 11 (Language Proficiency Requirement) of the NCA Policies.

The NCA requirement for distance or online education aligns with the National Requirement, which came into effect in January 2015. The National Requirement is a standard that all graduates of common law programs, including Canadian graduates, must meet to enter law society admission programs.

The National Requirement sets out the knowledge and skills law graduates must have, as well as the law school academic program and learning resources all law schools must have in place. The National Requirement applies to graduates of all Canadian law schools and NCA candidates.

With respect to what is considered a Canadian law degree, the National Requirement states:

• The law school’s academic program for the study of law consists of three academic years or its equivalent in course credits.
• The course of study consists primarily of in-person instruction and learning and/or instruction and learning that involves direct interaction between the instructor and students.

“Primarily” is defined as two-thirds (or two years). The instruction must meet the NCA’s requirements as detailed in section 7 (Mode of Study) of the NCA’s Policies.

For more details, see the “I completed a law degree through distance or online education” section at the bottom of our Assignments page.

The surest way to meet the NCA requirements is to complete at least two full years of In-person study. The NCA will also accept some online instruction that involves direct interaction between instructor and student. But the online instruction must be in a program that has at least one year of in-person instruction. The online instruction must also meet six of the eight required components for interactive online courses, as outlined in section 7.2 (Mode of Study-Interactive Learning requirement) of the NCA’s Policies.

If you hold a law degree from a two-year program that has been approved as offering Online Interactive Instruction, the two-year in-person requirement will be reduced to one year provided the program includes one year of In-person Instruction. The requirement may also be reduced at the sole discretion of the Executive Director if an Applicant has received some In-person Instruction or instruction involving direct interaction between instructor and students in an Approved Law Program

To meet a two-year In-Person requirement, you could choose any of the following options:

• One year of a course-based LL.M., plus a Legal Practise Course (LPC) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) either in England or another common law jurisdiction.
• Two one-year course-based LL.M. programs. If you choose this option, you could complete a course-based LL.M. at any approved law school in any common law jurisdiction.
• Courses in a common law J.D. or LL.B.

To meet a one-year In-Person requirement, you could choose any of the following options:

• One year of a course-based LL.M., at any approved law school in any common law jurisdiction.
• The Legal Practise Course (LPC) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) either in England or another common law jurisdiction.
• Courses in a common law J.D. or LL.B.

Additional Legal Studies completed as part of a one (1) year Program (e.g. LL.M) must consist of no less than fifty percent (50%) In-person Instruction with the remainder delivered through Interactive Online Instruction that meets the criteria outlined under paragraph 7.2(II)

Please note that, in all cases, you must take the five mandatory Canadian subjects listed below at an approved Canadian law school. The NCA Canadian legal research and writing module is normally completed with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through and NCA approved law school course. If you have already completed the two-year in-person requirement in another country, you may write the corresponding NCA examinations.

• Canadian Administrative Law
• Canadian Constitutional Law
• Canadian Criminal Law
• Foundations of Canadian Law
• Canadian Professional Responsibility
• NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED).

All NCA applicants must research their options to meet the two-year in-person instruction requirement. Then you must ask the NCA to approve the program and courses you intend to take to make sure the courses meet the requirements that the NCA has assigned. To get approval from the NCA, you need to prepare a plan of study, include all relevant information including course names and links to publicly available course descriptions and forward it to nca@flsc.ca.

If you studied in-person as part of your distance or online education, this may affect the outcome of your assessment. To be recognized as meeting the NCA’s in-person instruction requirements, studies must be completed in a program that includes at least one year of in-person instruction. To be accepted as interactive online instruction, the program must meet at least six of the eight criteria listed in section 7.2 of the NCA Policies.

Study at a local learning centre will not meet the NCA’s in-person or interactive learning requirement (NCA Policy 5.1.2).

The NCA reviews all institutions and programs at the time of the assessment to determine if the institution offers either a law school program or a program to prepare for exams. We do not consider exam preparatory programs as in-person study.

The NCA assessment considers many things, but is mostly focused on your academic qualifications. We take bar admissions programs, licensure examinations and professional experience into account; but, unless they specifically cover the content of the core common law subjects, they may not affect your assessment result.

In most cases, the NCA gives applicants a choice of three ways to show they are competent:

• by passing the NCA’s exams
• by taking courses in assigned subjects at a Canadian law school
• by combining 1 and 2

However, some applicants must attend law school in Canada. This is the case if you completed distance education or online programs, or have no education or training in common law.

The NCA approves courses for NCA applicants only to assist them in meeting their assignments.  Once you have chosen the courses you want to take, send us an email with the name of the course(s), the course code and the name of the school. If you are studying outside Canada, you also need to forward a course description or syllabus. We will review your information and send you an email that says whether or not the course meets the requirement. The process usually takes two weeks for Canadian schools and slightly longer for schools abroad.

The required length of a Canadian law degree is three years. Senior Status or Graduate Entry applicants usually need to demonstrate competency in at least seven subjects. This makes up for the shorter educational program. The NCA considers other factors as well, including your academic performance (both overall and in the core subjects), whether you are licensed to practise and your professional legal experience. These other factors may increase or decrease the number of subjects we assign.

The NCA Policies requires applicants to have three years of legal education, or the equivalent, including two years of in-person study. That means GDL graduates must complete the equivalent of two additional years of legal education (see Policy 6. [Length of Law Program] for details). A GDL graduate who has no additional legal education will also have to complete one year of in-class studies in one of the following:

• the Legal Practice Course or Bar Professional Training Course in England (the grade achieved must meet the NCA’s academic performance policy), or
• an LL.M. from a common law jurisdiction in substantive common law subjects (the grade achieved must meet the NCA’s academic performance policy).

If you earned your education and experience in a mixed jurisdiction that includes common law, we will consider the common law content of your programs and experience. We ask most graduates from a mixed jurisdiction to show they are competent in all eight core subjects.  This document explains how the NCA designates the legal tradition of a jurisdiction and provides a list of common law and mixed law jurisdictions.

• Canadian Administrative Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Constitutional Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Criminal Law (mandatory)
• Foundations of Canadian Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Professional Responsibility (mandatory)
• Contracts
• Torts
• Property

You will also need to show competence in Canadian Legal Research and Writing, Indigenous Law and Peoples as well as Language competency.

We consider applicants from legal systems that do not have a substantial common law component, such as civil law, on a case-by-case basis. This document explains how the NCA designates the legal tradition of a jurisdiction and provides a list of common law and mixed law jurisdictions. If you have no common law exposure (academic or professional), you are not likely to receive any recognition for your legal education and experience.

You can obtain common law education through an LL.M. program or by taking individual courses, including our core courses listed below. Before you enroll in a Canadian law school program of courses, make sure that the NCA approves them. To help, we invite you to read about the Canadian law school programs that offer NCA approved subjects.

• Canadian Administrative Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Constitutional Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Criminal Law (mandatory)
• Foundations of Canadian Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Professional Responsibility (mandatory)
• Contracts
• Torts
• Property

Once you have completed at least four common law subjects, we can review your file. Then we can let you know which courses you still need to show competence in for an NCA Certificate of Qualification. At that point, you can choose to take NCA exams rather than attend law school courses, if you wish.

You may also complete a program of courses in a law school in another common law jurisdiction; for example, a Graduate Diploma in Law in England, or an LL.M. for Foreign Trained Lawyers in the United States. If you choose this option, you will need to complete the five mandatory Canadian subjects by writing NCA examinations or complete NCA approved subjects in a Canadian law school.

Another way to show that you have a substantive exposure to the common law is by earning certification as a paralegal or notary in a Common Law Jurisdiction. This includes having a P1 license in Ontario or being a full member of the British Columbia Notaries Association.

The National Requirement sets out the specific abilities and skills that Canadian bar admission applicants must have. It also sets out the academic programs and learning resources that Canadian law schools in common law jurisdictions must have in place.

Foreign law schools do not need to follow the National Requirement, and the NCA does not review foreign schools for quality. When you attend an approved Canadian law school or take the NCA’s exams, it helps ensure that you meet the standards of quality required by regulators of the Canadian legal profession.

If you have studied law abroad, you must have an NCA Certificate of Qualification to qualify for law society bar admissions in all common law provinces and territories in Canada.

A Certificate of Qualification proves you have shown the NCA that your knowledge of Canadian law is similar to the knowledge of someone who got their law degree through an approved Canadian common law program. The NCA gives you a certificate once you successfully complete the process.

No. Getting a Certificate of Qualification is not the same as earning an LL.B., a J.D. or any other degree from a Canadian law school. But it does show that you have knowledge similar to someone who has those qualifications.

Once you have completed all of your NCA assignments, you can request your Certificate of Qualification.  If you completed courses, make sure that your school sends all your final transcripts to the NCA.  To request your certificate, visit the NCA portal and follow these steps:

1. Select “Manage Yourself”.
2.  Click on the heading “Request Certificate”.
3. Complete the form and click “Submit”.

The Certificate of Qualification does not expire. However, each law society has rules outlining the acceptable delay between when the NCA issues your Certificate of Qualification and when you enter the bar admissions process. You may consult the law society where you intend to practise to learn their rules.

No, the Certificate of Qualification does not admit you to the bar. To become a licensed lawyer in a Canadian common law jurisdiction you must apply to that jurisdiction’s law society for bar admissions once you have your certificate.

The rules and regulations for admission to practise law in Canada are set by the provincial and territorial law societies. Information about the bar admissions process is available through them.

The rules and regulations for admission to practise law in Canada, which often include an articling process, are set by the provincial and territorial law societies. You can get information about articling programs directly from each law society.

The NCA does not accredit law programs and does not “approve” non-Canadian law schools. Instead, the NCA researches law schools in other countries to assess people’s applications. As part of our research, we take into account whether a school is recognized by the national accreditation body in its jurisdiction (the American Bar Association in the United States, the Bar Council of India in India, etc.). Read our website section titled ‘Canadian considering studying abroad’ for an overview of the NCA if you plan to study law outside Canada. It may also be helpful to review our Law Schools page.

The NCA does not give advice or recommendations about which law school or program you should choose. If you know you will apply to us in future, you should make sure the program you choose is approved by that school’s local bar or accreditation body, and that graduates of the program are eligible to be admitted to the local bar. This is important because it is one of the requirements to qualify for an NCA assessment. But the law school’s general reputation is not something we consider in our assessments.  It may be helpful to consult our Law Schools page.

From time to time, NCA policies do change. Only the current or “in force” NCA policy is applied during your assessment, regardless of any past policy that may have been in force when you applied to or started law school. If you attend law school overseas and plan to return to Canada to practice law, we recommended that you check our website and NCA advisories regularly for the latest information.

The NCA assesses the legal education and experience of people who want to enter law society bar admissions in Canadian common law jurisdictions. For that reason, our process focuses on how much common law content there is in your legal education. Given that law schools educate their students based on the legal system used in that jurisdiction, it is important for us to know where you studied. If you want to know more about how legal system classifications work, please read the NCA Policies and consult this document that explains how the NCA designates the legal tradition of a jurisdiction and provides a list of common law and mixed law jurisdictions.

Rules vary greatly across jurisdictions and countries for admission to the bar and becoming licensed to practise as a lawyer. In Canada and the United States, only three-year LL.B./J.D. graduates qualify for admission to the bar. But other countries have different rules and routes to practice. The NCA examines the national rules for bar admission to determine whether your specific degree qualifies you to apply to the NCA.

If you earned your education and experience in a mixed jurisdiction that includes common law, we will consider the common law content of your programs and experience. We ask most graduates from a mixed jurisdiction to show they are competent in all eight core subjects.  This document explains how the NCA designates the legal tradition of a jurisdiction and provides a list of common law and mixed law jurisdictions.

• Canadian Administrative Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Constitutional Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Criminal Law (mandatory)
• Foundations of Canadian Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Professional Responsibility (mandatory)
• Contracts
• Torts
• Property

You will also need to show competence in Canadian Legal Research and Writing, Indigenous Law and Peoples as well as Language competency.

We consider applicants from legal systems that do not have a substantial common law component, such as civil law, on a case-by-case basis. This document explains how the NCA designates the legal tradition of a jurisdiction and provides a list of common law and mixed law jurisdictions. If you have no common law exposure (academic or professional), you are not likely to receive any recognition for your legal education and experience.

You can obtain common law education through an LL.M. program or by taking individual courses, including our core courses listed below. Before you enroll in a Canadian law school program of courses, make sure that the NCA approves them. To help, we invite you to read about the Canadian law school programs that offer NCA approved subjects.

• Canadian Administrative Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Constitutional Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Criminal Law (mandatory)
• Foundations of Canadian Law (mandatory)
• Canadian Professional Responsibility (mandatory)
• Contracts
• Torts
• Property

Once you have completed at least four common law subjects, we can review your file. Then we can let you know which courses you still need to show competence in for an NCA Certificate of Qualification. At that point, you can choose to take NCA exams rather than attend law school courses, if you wish.

You may also complete a program of courses in a law school in another common law jurisdiction; for example, a Graduate Diploma in Law in England, or an LL.M. for Foreign Trained Lawyers in the United States. If you choose this option, you will need to complete the five mandatory Canadian subjects by writing NCA examinations or complete NCA approved subjects in a Canadian law school.

Another way to show that you have a substantive exposure to the common law is by earning certification as a paralegal or notary in a Common Law Jurisdiction. This includes having a P1 license in Ontario or being a full member of the British Columbia Notaries Association.

Your academic performance is one way to show how well you understand the concepts covered during your legal education. Our policy applies to overall academic performance and to academic performance for individual grades in each of the core common law subjects. If your performance in any of the subjects is low, we may require you to take more exams.

If your overall academic performance is poor (Third Class or lower standing in the England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, India, Nigeria and other Commonwealth countries, or a GPA of less than 1 in Australia) you should not expect to receive any recognition for your degree.

The NCA requirement for distance or online education aligns with the National Requirement, which came into effect in January 2015. The National Requirement is a standard that all graduates of common law programs, including Canadian graduates, must meet to enter law society admission programs.

The National Requirement sets out the knowledge and skills law graduates must have, as well as the law school academic program and learning resources all law schools must have in place. The National Requirement applies to graduates of all Canadian law schools and NCA candidates.

With respect to what is considered a Canadian law degree, the National Requirement states:

• The law school’s academic program for the study of law consists of three academic years or its equivalent in course credits.
• The course of study consists primarily of in-person instruction and learning and/or instruction and learning that involves direct interaction between the instructor and students.

“Primarily” is defined as two-thirds (or two years). The instruction must meet the NCA’s requirements as detailed in section 7 (Mode of Study) of the NCA’s Policies.

For more details, see the “I completed a law degree through distance or online education” section at the bottom of our Assignments page.

The surest way to meet the NCA requirements is to complete at least two full years of In-person study. The NCA will also accept some online instruction that involves direct interaction between instructor and student. But the online instruction must be in a program that has at least one year of in-person instruction. The online instruction must also meet six of the eight required components for interactive online courses, as outlined in section 7.2 (Mode of Study-Interactive Learning requirement) of the NCA’s Policies.

If you hold a law degree from a two-year program that has been approved as offering Online Interactive Instruction, the two-year in-person requirement will be reduced to one year provided the program includes one year of In-person Instruction. The requirement may also be reduced at the sole discretion of the Executive Director if an Applicant has received some In-person Instruction or instruction involving direct interaction between instructor and students in an Approved Law Program

To meet a two-year In-Person requirement, you could choose any of the following options:

• One year of a course-based LL.M., plus a Legal Practise Course (LPC) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) either in England or another common law jurisdiction.
• Two one-year course-based LL.M. programs. If you choose this option, you could complete a course-based LL.M. at any approved law school in any common law jurisdiction.
• Courses in a common law J.D. or LL.B.

To meet a one-year In-Person requirement, you could choose any of the following options:

• One year of a course-based LL.M., at any approved law school in any common law jurisdiction.
• The Legal Practise Course (LPC) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) either in England or another common law jurisdiction.
• Courses in a common law J.D. or LL.B.

Additional Legal Studies completed as part of a one (1) year Program (e.g. LL.M) must consist of no less than fifty percent (50%) In-person Instruction with the remainder delivered through Interactive Online Instruction that meets the criteria outlined under paragraph 7.2(II)

Please note that, in all cases, you must take the five mandatory Canadian subjects listed below at an approved Canadian law school. The NCA Canadian legal research and writing module is normally completed with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through and NCA approved law school course. If you have already completed the two-year in-person requirement in another country, you may write the corresponding NCA examinations.

• Canadian Administrative Law
• Canadian Constitutional Law
• Canadian Criminal Law
• Foundations of Canadian Law
• Canadian Professional Responsibility
• NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED).

All NCA applicants must research their options to meet the two-year in-person instruction requirement. Then you must ask the NCA to approve the program and courses you intend to take to make sure the courses meet the requirements that the NCA has assigned. To get approval from the NCA, you need to prepare a plan of study, include all relevant information including course names and links to publicly available course descriptions and forward it to nca@flsc.ca.

If you studied in-person as part of your distance or online education, this may affect the outcome of your assessment. To be recognized as meeting the NCA’s in-person instruction requirements, studies must be completed in a program that includes at least one year of in-person instruction. To be accepted as interactive online instruction, the program must meet at least six of the eight criteria listed in section 7.2 of the NCA Policies.

Study at a local learning centre will not meet the NCA’s in-person or interactive learning requirement (NCA Policy 5.1.2).

The NCA reviews all institutions and programs at the time of the assessment to determine if the institution offers either a law school program or a program to prepare for exams. We do not consider exam preparatory programs as in-person study.

If you wish to request a change in the start time, you may do so by submitting the NCA Rescheduling Request Form or by contacting Monitor EDU at schedule@monitoredu.com. Please note that we may not be able to accommodate your preferred start time. You may cancel an exam up to 24 hours before the scheduled date of the exam through the NCA Portal.

We charge an administrative fee of $100.00 CDN, plus taxes, per each exam you cancel. Cancellations will be accepted up to the day before your exam. If you fail to cancel your NCA exam before midnight (ET) the day before the exam, you will lose your exam fees. We will not give you a refund once your exam has taken place.

We apply refunds, in Canadian dollars only, to the same credit card the exam was charged against. There are no exceptions to this rule. If you use a foreign credit card, you are responsible for any difference in transaction fees, and any fluctuations in exchange rates. You must cancel NCA exams through your account in the NCA portal.

Once the NCA has processed a refund, we cannot reverse it or refund the administrative fee that you paid.

The NCA will not defer an exam registration. You must now cancel your exam and re-register for a future session.

• Sign into your account in the NCA portal.
• Select “Refund” under the heading “Exam history” of the “My Course Info” tab.
• Click on the “Refund” button beside the exam(s) you wish to cancel. (You must make a separate refund request for each exam you wish to cancel.)

If you have any questions, please contact us at exam@flsc.ca.  You may also wish to consult our refund policy.

Your failure to appear for an exam will not be recorded as an attempt. However, you will lose your exam fee for that exam. You will also be required to re-register and pay the full exam fee again.

The NCA does not set make-up exams. If you miss an exam for any reason, you will be required to register for that exam in another exam session. No special exam sessions will be set.

The NCA will send you a confirmation email to let you know the date and time of your exam. If you do not receive a confirmation by one week before the exam, please contact exam@flsc.ca.

Due to sequestering requirements, you will not be permitted to leave your exam room until after one hour of the start of your exam. If you take a break during this time, your exam will be terminated and disqualified.

After the hour, notify the proctor that you wish to take a break. Do not take it until the proctor tells you it is okay to do so.  The exam clock will continue to run during your break. Your break is limited to five minutes or less. The proctor will monitor to ensure that you are back in front of your computer within this time. Exceeding this time will result in your exam being terminated and disqualified. This will be strictly enforced.

Visit the Exam schedule page of the website. The exam schedule also indicates when you can register for your exams.

When you register for your exam, you will select the exam date that works for you. About two weeks before the exam session starts, you will be able to find your scheduled exam start time in the NCA portal under the “Exam History” tab.  If you do not see it there one week before the exam, please contact exam@flsc.ca.

If you wish to request a change in the start time, you may do so by submitting the NCA Rescheduling Request Form or by contacting Monitor EDU at schedule@monitoredu.com. Please note that we may not be able to accommodate your preferred start time. You may cancel an exam up to 24 hours before the scheduled date of the exam through the NCA Portal.

The number of exams, subject areas or courses you will need to take depends on your legal education and professional experience. You will generally need to take at least the five mandatory Canadian law subjects.

If your qualifications are assessed after January 1, 2022, you will also need to complete a course in legal research and writing offered by an Approved Canadian Common Law Program or through the NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED).

Also, as of March 1, 2026 you must demonstrate competence in Indigenous Law and Peoples (subsection 10.5).  This can be fulfilled through a module offered by the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through an NCA approved course at a recognized Canadian law school.  Also as of March 1, 2026 you must demonstrate language competence through the Language Screening Requirement (subsection 11.1). This requirement requires that all applicants to the NCA complete a language competency screening test, in either French or English, before their qualifications are assessed.  The cost of the screen will be included in the assessment fee and will be accessed through a link provided by the NCA.

Read section 5. (Legal Education) of the NCA Policies to get a clearer idea of the specific subjects that the NCA may assign you. In most cases, you can take equivalent Canadian law school courses instead of the exams. In other cases, you may be required to attend a Canadian law school and complete specific courses.

Results are generally released 10 to 12 weeks after the date of the last scheduled exam in each session. If results are available earlier, we will release them. The NCA notifies applicants by email once all results are available.

A mark of 50% and higher is considered a pass.

If you want to write your exam in French, register for the exam and then send an e-mail to exam@flsc.ca before the registration deadline, indicating that you wish to do so.  This will give us adequate time to arrange for translation of the exam.

You must study on your own for the exams (i.e. without help from the NCA) and you are responsible for getting your own NCA study materials. Our exam outlines (syllabi) include a list of publishers you can contact to buy the books you need. You can also buy the study materials at a local law school bookstore, law library, other bookstore or online.

Exam outlines (also known as a syllabi) for each subject are revised as required. We may update them from time to time without notice but when updates are required they are updated and posted on the website before an exam registration opens. When you register for an exam, please check that you are using the most current version.

Always check the exam outline before you buy your study materials because textbooks change from time to time. It is especially important that you buy the right edition of every text. The cases and articles you need can generally be found on the internet. CanLII is also a good resource and is free of charge.

See our Assistance for NCA students page for other resources.

Most of the case law and legislative resources you need are available on CanLII, the free legal information resource funded by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. On CanLII, you will find all decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada and of all federal, provincial, territorial and appellate courts.

Your exam registration fee gives you access to the Nexis Lexis Advance, a provider of computer-assisted legal research. To access Nexis Lexis Advance, you need a user ID and password, which we will send to your email address a few weeks after the registration deadline. Please review and comply with all terms of use when you get your Advance access. If you fail to do so, your Advance account will be closed.

The first time you sign in to Advance you will be asked to change your password. Remember that your user ID and password are personal, and you should not share them with anyone.

No, NCA students generally study on their own for the NCA exams. However, you may wish to explore resources available through several Canadian law schools and private tutoring services. It is up to you whether you use these resources. None of them is required by the NCA or provincial law societies, and none is endorsed by the NCA.  You may also visit our Assistance for NCA Students page.

The NCA exams are open-book. You can use any type of reference material during exams that you wish. This includes typed or hand-written notes that are annotated, highlighted, tabbed, indexed or marked in any other way.

You may have at your desk a clear container for a drink, and a small bag with food for a snack.

You may not have at your work station electronic devices other than those required to complete your online exam. Please refer to the Technical Requirements and Exam Rules pages for more information.

Yes, your study material may be highlighted, tabbed, indexed or notated, etc.

Other than studying, you need to do the following to prepare for your exam:

1. Find a quiet location where you will not be interrupted to take your exam.
2. Ensure you meet the exam technical requirements.
3. 24 hours before your exam, have MonitorEDU test your computer set-up to ensure your system works well during your exam.
4. Have a beverage or food in a clear container if you wish to eat or drink during the exam.
5. Present your government-issued photo ID to the Proctor before you begin your exam.

You may also refer to our Online Exam Tip Sheet.

We charge an administrative fee of $100.00 CDN, plus taxes, per each exam you cancel. Cancellations will be accepted up to the day before your exam. If you fail to cancel your NCA exam before midnight (ET) the day before the exam, you will lose your exam fees. We will not give you a refund once your exam has taken place.

We apply refunds, in Canadian dollars only, to the same credit card the exam was charged against. There are no exceptions to this rule. If you use a foreign credit card, you are responsible for any difference in transaction fees, and any fluctuations in exchange rates. You must cancel NCA exams through your account in the NCA portal.

Once the NCA has processed a refund, we cannot reverse it or refund the administrative fee that you paid.

The NCA will not defer an exam registration. You must now cancel your exam and re-register for a future session.

The NCA does not set make-up exams. If you miss an exam for any reason, you will be required to register for that exam in another exam session. No special exam sessions will be set.

No. You must not keep any notes you took while writing the exam. The proctor is to ensure you destroy all notes taken during the exam. If you fail to do so, you will automatically be disqualified. Your attempt will be recorded, but you will not get any result. To retake the exam, you will have to re-register for the exam and pay the exam fee. You may keep only your study notes you had before writing the exam.

The NCA accommodates applicants with disabilities and we make special accommodations on an individual basis for NCA exams. To arrange for accommodations, please contact the NCA to get an Accommodations Request Form. You will need to complete the form and submit it, along with supporting documents, to the Accommodations Coordinator .

You will be able to register for the next sitting of that exam, provided you have not failed the subject four times.

You may write NCA exams three times. NCA’s Executive Director may grant you a fourth and final attempt after you submit request to the NCA. We will not approve fifth attempts on NCA exams. If you fail a subject four times, you must complete that subject at a law school. For details, see section 17.2 (Examination Attempts) of the NCA Policies.

If you want to request permission to attempt an exam a fourth and final time, you must send your request in writing to the NCA’s Executive Director. With your request, you must include a statement confirming your understanding that the fourth (4^th) attempt is the final attempt and that, if unsuccessful, you will be required to take the subject in law school.

Visit the Exam schedule page of the website. The exam schedule also indicates when you can register for your exams.

When you register for your exam, you will select the exam date that works for you. About two weeks before the exam session starts, you will be able to find your scheduled exam start time in the NCA portal under the “Exam History” tab.  If you do not see it there one week before the exam, please contact exam@flsc.ca.

If you wish to request a change in the start time, you may do so by submitting the NCA Rescheduling Request Form or by contacting Monitor EDU at schedule@monitoredu.com. Please note that we may not be able to accommodate your preferred start time. You may cancel an exam up to 24 hours before the scheduled date of the exam through the NCA Portal.

You must study on your own for the exams (i.e. without help from the NCA) and you are responsible for getting your own NCA study materials. Our exam outlines (syllabi) include a list of publishers you can contact to buy the books you need. You can also buy the study materials at a local law school bookstore, law library, other bookstore or online.

Exam outlines (also known as a syllabi) for each subject are revised as required. We may update them from time to time without notice but when updates are required they are updated and posted on the website before an exam registration opens. When you register for an exam, please check that you are using the most current version.

Always check the exam outline before you buy your study materials because textbooks change from time to time. It is especially important that you buy the right edition of every text. The cases and articles you need can generally be found on the internet. CanLII is also a good resource and is free of charge.

See our Assistance for NCA students page for other resources.

Most of the case law and legislative resources you need are available on CanLII, the free legal information resource funded by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. On CanLII, you will find all decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada and of all federal, provincial, territorial and appellate courts.

Your exam registration fee gives you access to the Nexis Lexis Advance, a provider of computer-assisted legal research. To access Nexis Lexis Advance, you need a user ID and password, which we will send to your email address a few weeks after the registration deadline. Please review and comply with all terms of use when you get your Advance access. If you fail to do so, your Advance account will be closed.

The first time you sign in to Advance you will be asked to change your password. Remember that your user ID and password are personal, and you should not share them with anyone.

No, NCA students generally study on their own for the NCA exams. However, you may wish to explore resources available through several Canadian law schools and private tutoring services. It is up to you whether you use these resources. None of them is required by the NCA or provincial law societies, and none is endorsed by the NCA.  You may also visit our Assistance for NCA Students page.

Yes, your study material may be highlighted, tabbed, indexed or notated, etc.

Yes, you can keep the study material you prepared before the exam for use during the exam. You cannot, however, keep any notes you took while writing the exam. The proctor is to ensure you destroy all notes taken during the exam. If you fail to do so, you will automatically be disqualified. Your attempt will be recorded, but you will not get any result. To retake the exam, you will have to re-register for the exam and pay the exam fee.

You may only write your exam on paper or in person if you have a medical reason for doing so.  To find out more about exam accommodations, refer to the Accommodations section of the Exam Information page of our website or contact the NCA to get an Accommodations Request Form.

Results are generally released 10 to 12 weeks after the date of the last scheduled exam in each session. If results are available earlier, we will release them. The NCA notifies applicants by email once all results are available.

No, we will not rush the grading of individual exams. To protect the integrity of the grading process, our examiners grade the exams all together so that they can re-read and re-evaluate the exams as they go along. This helps ensure consistent and fair results for all applicants writing the same exam.

A mark of 50% and higher is considered a pass.

You will be able to register for the next sitting of that exam, provided you have not failed the subject four times.

You may write NCA exams three times. NCA’s Executive Director may grant you a fourth and final attempt after you submit request to the NCA. We will not approve fifth attempts on NCA exams. If you fail a subject four times, you must complete that subject at a law school. For details, see section 17.2 (Examination Attempts) of the NCA Policies.

If you want to request permission to attempt an exam a fourth and final time, you must send your request in writing to the NCA’s Executive Director. With your request, you must include a statement confirming your understanding that the fourth (4^th) attempt is the final attempt and that, if unsuccessful, you will be required to take the subject in law school.

Due to sequestering requirements, you will not be permitted to leave your exam room until after one hour of the start of your exam. If you take a break during this time, your exam will be terminated and disqualified.

After the hour, notify the proctor that you wish to take a break. Do not take it until the proctor tells you it is okay to do so.  The exam clock will continue to run during your break. Your break is limited to five minutes or less. The proctor will monitor to ensure that you are back in front of your computer within this time. Exceeding this time will result in your exam being terminated and disqualified. This will be strictly enforced.

The NCA exams are open-book. You can use any type of reference material during exams that you wish. This includes typed or hand-written notes that are annotated, highlighted, tabbed, indexed or marked in any other way.

You may have at your desk a clear container for a drink, and a small bag with food for a snack.

You may not have at your work station electronic devices other than those required to complete your online exam. Please refer to the Technical Requirements and Exam Rules pages for more information.

Yes, your study material may be highlighted, tabbed, indexed or notated, etc.

Yes, you can keep the study material you prepared before the exam for use during the exam. You cannot, however, keep any notes you took while writing the exam. The proctor is to ensure you destroy all notes taken during the exam. If you fail to do so, you will automatically be disqualified. Your attempt will be recorded, but you will not get any result. To retake the exam, you will have to re-register for the exam and pay the exam fee.

You may only write your exam on paper or in person if you have a medical reason for doing so.  To find out more about exam accommodations, refer to the Accommodations section of the Exam Information page of our website or contact the NCA to get an Accommodations Request Form.

Other than studying, you need to do the following to prepare for your exam:

1. Find a quiet location where you will not be interrupted to take your exam.
2. Ensure you meet the exam technical requirements.
3. 24 hours before your exam, have MonitorEDU test your computer set-up to ensure your system works well during your exam.
4. Have a beverage or food in a clear container if you wish to eat or drink during the exam.
5. Present your government-issued photo ID to the Proctor before you begin your exam.

You may also refer to our Online Exam Tip Sheet.

We charge an administrative fee of $100.00 CDN, plus taxes, per each exam you cancel. Cancellations will be accepted up to the day before your exam. If you fail to cancel your NCA exam before midnight (ET) the day before the exam, you will lose your exam fees. We will not give you a refund once your exam has taken place.

We apply refunds, in Canadian dollars only, to the same credit card the exam was charged against. There are no exceptions to this rule. If you use a foreign credit card, you are responsible for any difference in transaction fees, and any fluctuations in exchange rates. You must cancel NCA exams through your account in the NCA portal.

Once the NCA has processed a refund, we cannot reverse it or refund the administrative fee that you paid.

The NCA will not defer an exam registration. You must now cancel your exam and re-register for a future session.

No. You must not keep any notes you took while writing the exam. The proctor is to ensure you destroy all notes taken during the exam. If you fail to do so, you will automatically be disqualified. Your attempt will be recorded, but you will not get any result. To retake the exam, you will have to re-register for the exam and pay the exam fee. You may keep only your study notes you had before writing the exam.

You will be able to register for the next sitting of that exam, provided you have not failed the subject four times.

The National Committee on Accreditation (NCA) is a standing committee of the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. Committee members include administrators of provincial and territorial law societies and members of the practising bar, and representatives of the Council of Canadian Law Deans.

We help Canada’s law societies protect the public interest by making sure that anyone who earned their legal education and training outside Canada has the knowledge they need to practise law in Canada. We tell people how to improve their knowledge of Canadian law so it compares to the knowledge they would get from an approved Canadian common law degree program.

The NCA does this using a process that assesses your academic training and professional experience. Then the NCA uses a single standard to determine what exams or studies you need to complete to either fill gaps in your knowledge or show that you have the knowledge you need.

Response times will depend on the nature of the request or the transaction. Refer to our NCA Service Standards to learn about response times for various services.

During the assessment, the NCA reviews your academic and professional experience. We find gaps between your education and training on one hand, and the knowledge you would get from an approved Canadian law school program on the other hand. Then we assign exams or studies to make sure you meet our standard, called the National Requirement.

Canadian law school graduates, as well as NCA candidates, must meet this standard to qualify for bar admissions in a common law jurisdiction in Canada.

A Certificate of Qualification proves you have shown the NCA that your knowledge of Canadian law is similar to the knowledge of someone who got their law degree through an approved Canadian common law program. The NCA gives you a certificate once you successfully complete the process.

The number of exams, subject areas or courses you will need to take depends on your legal education and professional experience. You will generally need to take at least the five mandatory Canadian law subjects.

If your qualifications are assessed after January 1, 2022, you will also need to complete a course in legal research and writing offered by an Approved Canadian Common Law Program or through the NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED).

Also, as of March 1, 2026 you must demonstrate competence in Indigenous Law and Peoples (subsection 10.5).  This can be fulfilled through a module offered by the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through an NCA approved course at a recognized Canadian law school.  Also as of March 1, 2026 you must demonstrate language competence through the Language Screening Requirement (subsection 11.1). This requirement requires that all applicants to the NCA complete a language competency screening test, in either French or English, before their qualifications are assessed.  The cost of the screen will be included in the assessment fee and will be accessed through a link provided by the NCA.

Read section 5. (Legal Education) of the NCA Policies to get a clearer idea of the specific subjects that the NCA may assign you. In most cases, you can take equivalent Canadian law school courses instead of the exams. In other cases, you may be required to attend a Canadian law school and complete specific courses.

As of March 1, 2026, all NCA applicants must complete a language screening test before their qualifications are assessed or if they request a review of their NCA file if they have completed additional legal studies to address the non recognition of their legal education. Only those who have already completed a valid language test accepted by the NCA and completed with the required scores within the last two years may be exempted from this requirement.  More details are at Statement on Language Requirements.

If you do not successfully meet the minimum language proficiency score on the screening test, you will be required to complete a full language assessment.

This document explains which tests the NCA accepts and the minimum score the NCA requires for each test to meet the language requirement.

Proof of successful completion of your language test must be provided to the NCA by the test administrator within two years of the completion of the language assessment.

For more information, consult section 11 (Language Proficiency Requirement) of the NCA Policies.

The NCA requirement for distance or online education aligns with the National Requirement, which came into effect in January 2015. The National Requirement is a standard that all graduates of common law programs, including Canadian graduates, must meet to enter law society admission programs.

The National Requirement sets out the knowledge and skills law graduates must have, as well as the law school academic program and learning resources all law schools must have in place. The National Requirement applies to graduates of all Canadian law schools and NCA candidates.

With respect to what is considered a Canadian law degree, the National Requirement states:

• The law school’s academic program for the study of law consists of three academic years or its equivalent in course credits.
• The course of study consists primarily of in-person instruction and learning and/or instruction and learning that involves direct interaction between the instructor and students.

“Primarily” is defined as two-thirds (or two years). The instruction must meet the NCA’s requirements as detailed in section 7 (Mode of Study) of the NCA’s Policies.

For more details, see the “I completed a law degree through distance or online education” section at the bottom of our Assignments page.

The surest way to meet the NCA requirements is to complete at least two full years of In-person study. The NCA will also accept some online instruction that involves direct interaction between instructor and student. But the online instruction must be in a program that has at least one year of in-person instruction. The online instruction must also meet six of the eight required components for interactive online courses, as outlined in section 7.2 (Mode of Study-Interactive Learning requirement) of the NCA’s Policies.

If you hold a law degree from a two-year program that has been approved as offering Online Interactive Instruction, the two-year in-person requirement will be reduced to one year provided the program includes one year of In-person Instruction. The requirement may also be reduced at the sole discretion of the Executive Director if an Applicant has received some In-person Instruction or instruction involving direct interaction between instructor and students in an Approved Law Program

To meet a two-year In-Person requirement, you could choose any of the following options:

• One year of a course-based LL.M., plus a Legal Practise Course (LPC) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) either in England or another common law jurisdiction.
• Two one-year course-based LL.M. programs. If you choose this option, you could complete a course-based LL.M. at any approved law school in any common law jurisdiction.
• Courses in a common law J.D. or LL.B.

To meet a one-year In-Person requirement, you could choose any of the following options:

• One year of a course-based LL.M., at any approved law school in any common law jurisdiction.
• The Legal Practise Course (LPC) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) either in England or another common law jurisdiction.
• Courses in a common law J.D. or LL.B.

Additional Legal Studies completed as part of a one (1) year Program (e.g. LL.M) must consist of no less than fifty percent (50%) In-person Instruction with the remainder delivered through Interactive Online Instruction that meets the criteria outlined under paragraph 7.2(II)

Please note that, in all cases, you must take the five mandatory Canadian subjects listed below at an approved Canadian law school. The NCA Canadian legal research and writing module is normally completed with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED) or through and NCA approved law school course. If you have already completed the two-year in-person requirement in another country, you may write the corresponding NCA examinations.

• Canadian Administrative Law
• Canadian Constitutional Law
• Canadian Criminal Law
• Foundations of Canadian Law
• Canadian Professional Responsibility
• NCA legal research and writing module with the Canadian Centre for Professional Legal Education (CPLED).

All NCA applicants must research their options to meet the two-year in-person instruction requirement. Then you must ask the NCA to approve the program and courses you intend to take to make sure the courses meet the requirements that the NCA has assigned. To get approval from the NCA, you need to prepare a plan of study, include all relevant information including course names and links to publicly available course descriptions and forward it to nca@flsc.ca.

If you studied in-person as part of your distance or online education, this may affect the outcome of your assessment. To be recognized as meeting the NCA’s in-person instruction requirements, studies must be completed in a program that includes at least one year of in-person instruction. To be accepted as interactive online instruction, the program must meet at least six of the eight criteria listed in section 7.2 of the NCA Policies.

Study at a local learning centre will not meet the NCA’s in-person or interactive learning requirement (NCA Policy 5.1.2).

The NCA reviews all institutions and programs at the time of the assessment to determine if the institution offers either a law school program or a program to prepare for exams. We do not consider exam preparatory programs as in-person study.

The NCA assessment considers many things, but is mostly focused on your academic qualifications. We take bar admissions programs, licensure examinations and professional experience into account; but, unless they specifically cover the content of the core common law subjects, they may not affect your assessment result.

The NCA does not accredit law programs and does not “approve” non-Canadian law schools. Instead, the NCA researches law schools in other countries to assess people’s applications. As part of our research, we take into account whether a school is recognized by the national accreditation body in its jurisdiction (the American Bar Association in the United States, the Bar Council of India in India, etc.). Read our website section titled ‘Canadian considering studying abroad’ for an overview of the NCA if you plan to study law outside Canada. It may also be helpful to review our Law Schools page.

The NCA does not give advice or recommendations about which law school or program you should choose. If you know you will apply to us in future, you should make sure the program you choose is approved by that school’s local bar or accreditation body, and that graduates of the program are eligible to be admitted to the local bar. This is important because it is one of the requirements to qualify for an NCA assessment. But the law school’s general reputation is not something we consider in our assessments.  It may be helpful to consult our Law Schools page.

From time to time, NCA policies do change. Only the current or “in force” NCA policy is applied during your assessment, regardless of any past policy that may have been in force when you applied to or started law school. If you attend law school overseas and plan to return to Canada to practice law, we recommended that you check our website and NCA advisories regularly for the latest information.

When we evaluate your education, the NCA will always factor in the entire original transcripts that you submitted, and cannot take into account personal circumstances. This means that, even if you re-take and pass the course necessary to obtain a qualifying law degree, you will qualify for an NCA assessment only if your overall average meets the NCA’s legal academic performance standard as in section 9 of the NCA Policies, and only if revised transcripts are sent to the NCA showing the mark for the retaken course.

If your name has changed since you first applied to the NCA, or since your transcripts were issued, please send us a copy of your proof of name change (e.g. marriage certificate, official name change certificate, etc.) by email or regular mail. If you are applying and your transcripts are under a different name, be sure to add a note in the appropriate section of the application.

It is possible that our emails are going directly into your spam folder. To make sure this does not happen, please direct emails from flsc.ca to your inbox. Follow these steps for gmail accounts:

• Sign into your Gmail.com email account using the Chrome web browser.
• Click on the “gear” icon and select “Settings”.
• Click on the “Filters and blocked addresses” tab.
• Click on “Create a new filter”.
• In the “From” field, type in: flsc.ca
• Click “Create filter with this search”.
• Click and check the box beside the words “Never send it to Spam”.
• Click “Create filter” button.

Please note: These steps apply to a Windows 10 desktop computer. If you are using a different device or software, the process may vary.

Unless you have been called to the bar in a different jurisdiction, you may not call yourself a lawyer until you have successfully completed the bar admissions process with a Canadian law society and been called to the bar.