Newfoundland and Labrador teachers are certified by the Office of Teacher Certification and Records: Level IV starts with a 120 credit hour education degree (or 90 plus 30), a stream-specific coursework pattern, a 60-day practicum, and a $115 initial application fee, with decisions in 50 days for Memorial graduates and 20 business days for labour mobility applicants.
Applies in: Newfoundland and Labrador
Written November 13, 2026
To teach in Newfoundland and Labrador you need a teaching certificate from the Office of Teacher Certification and Records, in the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, and you need it before you accept a job: the province states that individuals may not accept a teaching position until they have been certified. Entry is at Level IV, which takes an approved 120 credit hour bachelor's degree in teacher education, or a 90 credit hour undergraduate degree plus a 30 credit hour Bachelor of Education, your stream's coursework pattern, and a 60-day supervised practicum. The initial application fee is $115. Certificates are issued as Permanent, Interim, or Interim Provisional, at Levels IV, V, VI, and VII.
The degree can arrive in either of two shapes:
On top of the degree shape, each stream has its own coursework pattern.
Primary/elementary stream
Intermediate/secondary stream
Graduates of an approved Bachelor of Education program who meet these requirements are eligible for certification to teach Kindergarten through Grade 12.
Completion of a 60-day supervised student teaching practicum is required. The Office states the substitute in the same breath: applicants who have not completed a 60-day practicum may still be eligible if they have completed two years of verified teaching experience, or a combination of practicum and teaching experience equivalent to 60 days.
If you meet the degree and stream requirements but not every condition for a permanent certificate, the fallback is the Interim Provisional Teaching Certificate, issued at Level IV. It carries an expiry and lets you teach while you complete the final certification requirements the Registrar sets. Its stream patterns are lighter — for example, 30 credit hours of professional teacher education and a single 3-credit methodology course — and one of its conditions is that you are certified, or eligible for certification, in the jurisdiction where your Bachelor of Education was awarded. It can be upgraded once all the Registrar's conditions are satisfied.
For teachers trained in Newfoundland and Labrador — in practice, Memorial University graduates — the Office lists the package:
Teachers holding a valid certificate from another Canadian province or territory file the same package plus an official statement of professional standing from every province, territory, state, or country where they hold or held a teaching certificate, sent directly from the licensing body, confirming they are in good standing and free to accept employment as a teacher. Transcripts covering studies completed outside Canada need a WES evaluation on that route.
Residency is not a condition. Canadian citizens holding certification in another jurisdiction may apply, and applicants who are not Canadian citizens submit proof of a valid work permit for Canada and a valid Social Insurance Number before a certificate can be issued.
The Office publishes service standards for application processing, and they run from the point all information the regulatory body needs has been received:
To avoid delays, the Office advises applicants not to make follow-up inquiries until the applicable decision period has concluded.
Certificates rise with further approved study, and salary classification follows the level awarded — Levels IV, V, VI, or VII — together with recognized years of teaching experience under the collective agreements. An upgrade application costs $200 under the same payment schedule. Level V takes either an approved Bachelor of Education totalling a minimum of 150 credit hours meeting the permanent requirements, or Level IV plus an additional 30 credit hours through an approved degree, diploma, or integrated program of study. Level VI adds a further 30 credit hours on the same terms. Level VII requires Level VI plus an approved master's degree totalling at least 30 credit hours.
One rule guards the whole ladder: all studies beyond those completed for your initial certification must have prior written approval from the Registrar of Teacher Certification. Ask at least three months before you plan to begin an additional program, because unapproved coursework may not count.
Internationally educated teachers now start at Pathways to Teach Canada, the single entry point and first step for this province. Pathways assesses credentials and sends the report to the Office; if your teacher education program was not completed entirely in English or French, you also complete the Language Competency Assessment for the Teaching Profession. Pathways is an assessment service, not a certification process — the certification decision stays with the Office of Teacher Certification. Effective October 31, 2025, WES ICAP reports are no longer accepted from new applicants in this stream, who must obtain a Pathways credential assessment report instead.
An applicant still outside Canada can request a Statement of Eligibility once the application and the Pathways report have been received and assessed. The statement is proof that you meet the qualifications for a Newfoundland and Labrador Teaching Certificate; it is not the certificate. To finish, you provide proof of authorization to work in Canada and a clear criminal record check and vulnerable sector check.
Questions go to the Office at teachercertification@gov.nl.ca or (709) 729-3020.
The Newfoundland and Labrador pages opened for this guide state the Level IV credit-hour and stream requirements, the 60-day practicum and its two-year experience substitute, the document package, and the 50-day, 50-business-day, and 20-business-day decision standards. The certification page text itself does not state a dollar fee; the fee figures in this guide — $115 for an initial application and $200 for an upgrade application — come from the Office's payment schedule form linked from that page. The pages do not state a tuition figure for Memorial University's Bachelor of Education or a teacher salary — salary classification follows the certificate level and recognized experience under the teachers' collective agreements — so this guide gives neither.
The Office of Teacher Certification and Records, in the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. Every teacher employed in the province's public and independent Kindergarten to Grade 12 schools is legally required to hold a valid Newfoundland and Labrador Teaching Certificate, and you may not accept a teaching position until you have been certified.
Level IV, the entry level, requires an approved bachelor's degree in teacher education comprising a minimum of 120 credit hours, or a combination of an approved 90 credit hour undergraduate degree and a 30 credit hour Bachelor of Education (or equivalent teacher preparation program). You also complete your stream's coursework pattern and a 60-day supervised student teaching practicum.
Primary/elementary requires 30 credit hours of general coursework including literacy and numeracy, 30 credit hours of professional education including inclusive education and assessment and evaluation, and 12 credit hours of methodology courses. Intermediate/secondary requires 30 credit hours in one area of expertise related to Newfoundland and Labrador Kindergarten to Grade 12 education, 18 credit hours in a second area, 30 credit hours of professional teacher education, and two 3-credit methodology courses, at least one aligned with the primary area.
Not necessarily. Applicants who have not completed a 60-day practicum may still be eligible if they have completed two years of verified teaching experience, or a combination of practicum and teaching experience equivalent to 60 days. Separately, an Interim Provisional Teaching Certificate at Level IV exists for applicants who meet the degree and stream requirements but still have Registrar's conditions to satisfy.
The Office publishes service standards that run from the point a complete file is received: a registration decision within 50 days for Memorial University Faculty of Education graduates, within 50 business days for internationally educated applicants, and within 20 business days for labour mobility applicants. The Office asks applicants not to make follow-up inquiries until the applicable period has concluded.
With Pathways to Teach Canada, the single entry point for internationally educated teachers applying in Newfoundland and Labrador. Pathways assesses your credentials and, where your program was not completed entirely in English or French, your language competency through the Language Competency Assessment for the Teaching Profession. From October 31, 2025, WES ICAP reports are no longer accepted for new applications. If you are still outside Canada, a Statement of Eligibility can be issued after assessment; it is not a certificate, and final certification needs proof of authorization to work in Canada plus a clear criminal record and vulnerable sector check. The initial application fee is $115 on every route.