If you are a registered member taking a temporary break from the practice of professional forestry in BC or an enrolled member not actively working toward registration, you may request permission to take a leave of absence (LOA). Reasons for requesting a leave are many and varied, but some common reasons include medical considerations, being away from work on maternity or paternity leave, returning to school, living and working outside the province, working in a job that doesn't involve the practice of professional forestry or unemployment.

Update August 2011

Changes to the Registered Members Change of Status Policy with Regards to Leave of Absence
Council has approved changes to the Registered Members Change of Status Policy. The policy change is in line with the recent changes to the procedures for reviewing members' change of status requests wherein applications for inactive status (e.g. leave of absence, retirement, resignation) are now forwarded to the Professional Practice Committee to determine whether the applicant is practicing professional forestry. The changes to the policy will mean that:

1. All leave of absences will be effective annually only up until the end of November each year (to the end of the Association's fiscal year).
2. Members wishing to stay on a leave of absence for longer than one year must re-apply before the start of each fiscal year (by November 30th) for another leave of absence.
3. Members who fail to apply for a further leave of absence prior to November 30 each year will be automatically reinstated to active status as RFT or RPF on December 1.
   

How to Apply for a Leave of Absence

1. Determine your eligibility. To determine if you are eligible to apply for a leave of absence, please refer the applicable policy.
   

   a)	Enrolled members refer to the Registration Policy
   b)	Registered members refer to the Registered Members Change of Status Policy

2. Determine whether a leave of absence is appropriate in your circumstance. A leave of absence coincides with our fiscal year (December 1 to November 30).
3. Complete the Change of Status form.
   Change of Status Form (fillable form)
4. Submit the Change of Status form with the current fee for an annual leave of absence. See the Fees page for more information.
   Fees
5. Your request will be forwarded to the board of examiners for consideration.

Extending a Leave of Absence
To extend your leave of absence, you must re-apply by submitting a completed request for change of status form, non-practice declaration form and LOA fee to the registration department by November 30^th or else you will be invoiced for the reinstatement fee and full annual membership dues for the incoming fiscal year.
Change of Status Form (fillable form)

Note: Registered members are also required to participate in the Self-Assessment process and may only apply for a LOA if you have answered NO to all the questions on the Professional Practise Questionnaire. Please visit the Self-Assessment page for more information.

Reinstatement from Leave of Absence
See the Reinstatement page for more information.
Reinstatement

Forms & Publications
Change of Status Form (fillable form)
Registered Members Change of Status Policy
Registration Policy

Additional Resources
Fees
Self-Assessment

More Information
If you have any questions about requesting a leave of absence, contact the registration department. [more]

Some of the above documents are in PDF format. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view them. You can download Acrobat Reader here.