1.2 Cost, Validity, Retake Window, and Purchase Timeline
Key Takeaways
- The full OACP Certificate package costs $250 CAD before tax and covers Part A document processing, one attempt each at Part B and Part C, proctoring, and certificate issuance.
- You have 6 months from your purchase date to complete the online assessments, the certificate is valid for 12 months once issued, and retesting is allowed starting 10 months after you receive it.
- The $250 fee does not cover sales tax or your own medical examination fees (the optometrist and audiologist visits).
- Anyone who already holds an OACP Certificate dated after January 1, 2020 - valid or expired - is directed to the OACP Re-Testing package rather than the Full package.
- Once your signed Part A forms are reviewed and accepted, OACP says the booking email follows almost immediately, so be ready to schedule your eProctor session as soon as you submit them.
Cost, Validity, Retake Window, and Purchase Timeline
Quick Answer: The full OACP Certificate package costs $250 CAD before tax. Once issued, the certificate is valid for 12 months, you may retest starting 10 months after you receive it, and you have 6 months from your purchase date to actually sit the online Part B and Part C assessments.
Money and deadlines trip up more OACP applicants than the test content does. Missing the 6-month assessment window, or misunderstanding when you can legally retest, can cost you another $250 and weeks of delay. This section walks through every dollar figure and every clock that starts ticking the moment you pay.
What the $250 Fee Includes
The full OACP Certificate package costs $250 CAD before applicable tax. That single fee covers:
- Access to the Part A document package (Consent and Release form, Applicant Code of Conduct)
- Registration and one attempt at the Part B (SSPO) online assessment
- Registration and one attempt at the Part C (PRF-R for Policing) personality assessment
- Live remote proctoring through eProctor Canada
- Issuance of the OACP Certificate itself once everything is confirmed
What the Fee Does Not Include
- Sales tax, which is added on top of the $250 base price
- Medical examination fees - you pay your own optometrist/ophthalmologist and audiologist/hearing instrument specialist directly; the OACP does not cover or reimburse these visits
- Any third-party prep courses or books you choose to buy on your own
Three Clocks You Must Track
| Clock | Starts | Deadline / Trigger |
|---|---|---|
| Assessment window | Date of purchase | You have 6 months to complete Part B and Part C online assessments |
| Certificate validity | Date certificate is issued | Certificate is valid for 12 months |
| Retest eligibility | Date certificate is received | You may retest starting 10 months later |
Notice the overlap: because you can retest starting at month 10 but the certificate does not expire until month 12, a candidate who is still actively applying can requalify for a fresh 12-month window before the old one lapses, avoiding any gap in eligibility while continuing to apply to services.
Two Purchase Options
- Full OACP Certificate package ($250 before tax): For brand-new applicants and for anyone who has not completed the OACP Certificate process since 2020. Certificate age is not what decides this - prior participation is.
- OACP Certificate Re-Testing package ($250 before tax): For returning applicants who have completed the OACP Certificate process at least once since 2020. OACP is explicit that if you already possess an OACP Certificate dated after January 1, 2020, regardless of whether it is valid or expired, you are directed to the Re-Testing package rather than the Full package. You must still have waited the full 10-month period stated on your existing certificate before you can re-write.
Both packages cost the same $250 before tax, so the choice is about eligibility, not price. Buying the wrong one means a delay while your file is corrected.
The Retired Equivalency Package
Older prep material still mentions an OACP Equivalency package, which once let applicants carry forward components from the previous Applicant Testing Services (ATS) system rather than buying the full package. It no longer exists: OACP discontinued the Equivalency package on December 22, 2022, because all previously issued ATS components have since expired in totality. Anyone who has not completed any testing with OACP since 2020 is directed to purchase the full $250 OACP Certificate package as a new applicant. If a third-party site offers you an equivalency route, it is out of date.
Purchase-to-Certificate Timeline
| Milestone | Typical Timing |
|---|---|
| Pay the certificate fee | Day 0 |
| Receive Part A email package | Within 1 business day |
| Submit Part A documents (signed forms) | As soon as you're ready |
| Receive Part B/C booking instructions | Almost immediately once your forms are reviewed and accepted |
| Create your eProctor account and book a slot | As soon as the booking email arrives |
| Complete Part B and Part C | Anytime within 6 months of purchase |
| Certificate issued | Roughly 7-10 business days after your assessments and proctoring footage are cleared |
Why the Timeline Matters for Your Study Plan
OACP now describes the hand-off from Part A to booking as almost immediate: once your signed forms are reviewed and accepted, the booking email follows shortly after. Treat submitting Part A as the moment your testing becomes schedulable, and have a sense of when you want to sit the exam before you send those forms. That said, you have a full 6 months from purchase to write the assessments, so there is no need to book the earliest available slot or rush into the SSPO underprepared. Build a realistic study schedule across the spelling, vocabulary, grammar, and problem-solving chapters ahead, and book your eProctor session once you feel ready rather than the moment the link arrives.
Scenario: Planning a Retest Around the Clocks
An applicant received their OACP Certificate on March 1. It will expire on March 1 of the following year. They become retest-eligible on January 1 (10 months after receipt). If they are still actively applying to services in early in the new year, purchasing the Re-Testing package in January lets them requalify with a fresh certificate valid through roughly the following January - well before the original certificate's March expiry, so their eligibility to apply never lapses. Waiting until after the March expiry instead would leave them without a valid certificate for however long the re-testing process takes to complete.
How much does the full OACP Certificate package cost?
From the date of purchase, how much time do you have to complete the online Part B and Part C assessments?
An applicant received their OACP Certificate on May 1. On what date do they first become eligible to retest?
Which of these costs is NOT covered by the $250 OACP Certificate fee?