Due to the large size of the country, you must become a Private Investigator in Canada by becoming licensed in the individual province you are a resident of. There does not exist an official federal Canadian Private Investigator course or Private Investigator training.
To become a Private Investigator throughout Canada, you must obtain a PI license in each province. This is easier than you think. Once you obtain one full Private Investigator license in one province, you can use that license to obtain other provincial Private Investigator licenses and circumvent each province's Private Investigator licensing requirements.
Canadian Private Investigator licensing requirements by province
Canadian PI Provincial Checklist
You must be 19yo or older.
You must have a clean criminal record.
You have to take a Canadian government licensing course.
You must obtain 2400hrs of experience with a PI beginner's license.
How to Become a Canadian Private Investigator, in Most Provinces
The process of becoming a Private Investigator is similar in most provinces:
You need to meet basic requirements such as age, language proficiency, and other usual requirements of this nature.
Furthermore, you need to take a provincial government approved PI licensing course. In a lot of provincial jurisdictions, there is a specific government body that controls licensed investigators.
So, it is this government body that will have a list of approved PI licensing courses. Some of these can be online courses. Once you submit the proof of your ability to meet the requirements and completion of the licensing course to the government body, you will get your PI beginner’s license. This is where your struggle will begin.
Your Canadian Private Investigator’s beginner’s license will be called something such as, “PI Under Supervision License.” You’ve guessed it, an “Under Supervision” license means you must work under the purview of a fully licensed PI.
However, the term “Under Supervision” will be in namesake only. You will not be supervised or guided by an experienced Private Investigator. In fact, PI agencies are not economically structured to have mentor or student surveillance teams. And that licensing course you took? It does not teach investigation, only what laws PIs need to be aware of. This is useful; however, new Private Investigators still need to know how to be successful working investigative operations.
This lack of guidance and Private Investigator education is why so many new Private Investigators burn out and quit and why many experienced Private Investigators are jaded. On top of this, PI clients with small budgets typically get the new unqualified Private Investigators, nobody wins in this situation. It is also not fair to small PI clients to use their files to haphazardly train new Private Investigators.
Now the time comes for you to work investigations with no Private Eye experience or education. The licensing course you took focused on legal matters with no real practical PI subjects or topics. You will always be told by employers that “soon you will get some training,” which never happens. It took me over five years to figure out the industry and get good at a few specialized fields. During that time, I struggled and probably lost several hundred thousand dollars due to losing work opportunities from a lack of skill and education. What is sad is that this is a common story in the private investigation industry.
If you make it through this meat grinder of an industry with over 2400hrs of experience, you will qualify for a "full Private Investigator license." Some jurisdictions allow you to skip over needing to obtain 2400hrs of Private Investigator experience if you have a degree in a criminal justice type field. So, you get your 2400hrs of PI experience and or a relevant degree and you can get your full Private Investigator license. This basically means you can open your own PI agency. Hopefully, when you are hiring new Private Investigators, you will appreciate the importance of proper PI education.
Example: Canadian Private Investigator License Requirements
CANADIAN PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR UNDER SUPERVISION
Restrictions: you can only work as a PI employee.
Age
You must be 18 or older.
Criminal Record
You cannot have a criminal record.
Citizen
You need to be a citizen and submit a copy of government ID.
English
You must be able to speak and write in English
Government Approved PI License Course
You will need to complete a license course approved by the government and submit proof of completion. This can be an online course.
Equivalent Education
Typically, a degree in a criminal justice type field will qualify you for a PI license.
Passport Photo
You have to provide a certified passport photo.
Fingerprinting
You have to get your fingerprints taken.
Fee
You will have to pay a small licensing fee.
Submitting
The documents you submit can be sent via mail or online uploading.
FULL CANADIAN PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR LICENSE
Permissions: You can apply for a PI business license and work for yourself.
Private Investigator Under Supervision License
You must provide the government with a copy of your PI Under Supervision license.
2400 Hours of PI Experience
You have to submit proof of your PI experience. The easiest way is to submit your employee payment documents that show the hours you worked.
Private Investigator Business License(Work for Yourself)
You will have to provide your full PI license and maybe proof of PI experience and education.
Thinking of Becoming a Canadian Private Investigator?
“ICPI Level 100 online Private Investigator Training” is the ultimate blueprint to start your exciting and rewarding career as a real Canadian Private Investigator.
ICPI will help you start successfully in this amazing new career, even if you know nothing about investigations.
Our team has vetted out the best training and investigative methods so that you can jump-start your journey towards having the meaningful career you’ve always wanted, immediately.
This training system will provide you, a successful detective, with all the templates that you need to succeed. A clear path on becoming a PI, understanding the PI business, becoming a successful PI, and thinking like a detective- all the tools you need to make six figures being an investigative Operative.
To date, this PI online training system consists of over 100 informational slides, videos, exercises and quizzes that provide a step-by-step path on how to achieve your dream job as a Private Investigator.
ICPI Level 100 takes about two weeks to complete with over 30 hours of high-quality training content that will make you a Private Investigator well on your way to becoming an expert in this fascinating career.
Canadian Certification
Get a certificate that "actually" matters. When you get certified by Novel Data in the 100 Level course, Canadian Private Investigator agencies will be aware that you understand the PI industry. This will give you a great competitive edge in the PI job market. Most PI applicants know very little about the PI job they are applying to. Not you. A PI hiring manager will not want to risk turnaround by hiring someone unfamiliar with the industry, they will choose an applicant who is familiar with what will be expected of them. With Novel Data's certification, that applicant will be you!
Become a Great Canadian PI
Yes, you can become a great Canada Private Investigator. How? Through Private Investigator education. Not through the short Canada government licensing course, but through at least 100hrs of practical Private Investigator education. This can be online Private Investigator training classes or in an in-class training environment. In order to become a successful Canada Private Investigator and meet Private Investigator requirements, you need to become educated on the complexities of the private investigation industry (this will also help you decide if you want to pursue the PI career) and how to set yourself up to become a successful Private Investigator. Secondly, you will need to become educated on how to perform investigations.
To learn the complexities of the Canada private investigation industry you will need to understand a few Private Investigator industry topics. Regional licensing requirements for Private Investigators will teach you what you need to obtain your Canada Private Investigator license. To help you decide if you want to enter the career of private investigation you, will have to learn the common misconceptions about the Private Investigation industry. Understanding the learning curve of a Private Investigator will set you up to become a successful PI.
Before entering the Canada Private Investigator job industry, it is useful to know the challenges encountered as a Professional Private Investigator. This will also help you make career decisions. Then you need to learn what you will be doing as a Private Investigator. Learning the areas of specialization as a Professional Private Investigator and types of clients and corresponding file requirements will help with this. You will need to learn how Canada Investigators obtain assignments and hours of work to determine if this work environment is right for you.
If you are concerned about your ability to perform as a Canada Private Investigator, learning what factors will determine your aptitude as a Professional Private Investigator and what makes a “good” Professional Private Investigator will be essential. It is also important to know the physical and health requirements and health considerations. Then there is equipment. Learning about equipment needed in order to get started in a career as a Professional Private Investigator is a must.
Furthermore, you will need to educate yourself on communication devices and their role in private investigation. Lastly and most importantly, you must learn “The Investigative Mindset.” This will teach you how to think like a Private Investigator. After you learn these concepts, you will be well on your way to becoming a Private Investigator even without experience.
After learning the complexities of the Canada private investigation industry, you will need to develop practical skills in various areas. The most important areas are Desk Investigations, Pre-surveillance, surveillance, mobile vehicle surveillance, on-foot surveillance, obtaining evidence, and litigious reporting. To learn Desk Investigations, you will need to understand what is a Desk Investigation, Desk Investigation nomenclature, corroborated/ circumstantial evidence, The Evidence Document, The Desk Investigators Mindset, Google Basics for North America, and social media search basics for North America. Surveillance will be the largest subject to learn. Under this field you should learn about setting up a proper surveillance vehicle, surveillance spot checks, and surveillance set ups for various investigative operations.
As a Canada Private Investigator, you will spend the majority of your time performing investigations solo. This is why learning single person surveillance is crucial. Furthermore, you will occasionally work in surveillance teams, so you will need to learn how to perform surveillance with two or more surveillance operatives. Canada Private Investigators perform a lot of their surveillance from a surveillance vehicle, but also on foot, you will need to learn this also. The entire reason Canada Private Investigators are hired, is to obtain evidence. Obviously, learning how to obtain evidence, mostly in video form, is a must. As a Canada Private Investigator, you will need to obtain quality video that is litigious and that will satisfy your client. At the end of all this, you will need to learn how to create an investigative report that will most likely be used in litigation. After you learn all of this, you will have no trouble becoming a successful Canada Private Investigator.
It should be apparent now, why and how you can become a Canada Private Investigator. Yes, the government licensing course is necessary but it will not set you up for success as a Private Investigator. You will always need at least 100hrs of practical Private Investigator education. You will need to learn the PI industry, as well as how to perform. In fact, becoming a Private Investigator through proper education will set you up to become more successful than Investigators with many years of experience but who have not developed a strong foundation with proper Private Investigator education.
What You Need to Learn to Become a successful Canadian PI
Regional licensing requirements for Canada Professional Private Investigators
Common misconceptions about the Private Investigation industry
The learning curve of a Professional Private investigator
Personal challenges encountered as a Canada Professional Private Investigator
Areas of specialization as a Canada Professional Private Investigator
Types of Canada clients and corresponding file requirements
How Canada Investigators obtain assignments and hours of work
What factors will determine your aptitude as a Professional Private Investigator
What makes a “good” Professional Private Investigator?
Physical health requirements and health considerations
Equipment needed in order to get started in a career as a Professional Private Investigator
Equipment Map
Computers, tablets and peripherals
Common terminology
NATO Phonetic Alphabet
The Investigative Mindset
What You Need to Learn to "Perform" Canadian Investigations
How Canadian Desk Investigations are performed
Finding missing persons in Canada
Finding missing children in Canada
Finding Canadians who intentionally disappear
Corroborated & circumstantial evidence
What is evidence & how to structure it
The Evidence Document
Google as an investigative tool
Open source Intelligence (OSINT)
Daily Gear Protocol
Data & evidence security
Surveillance
Pre-surveillance research
Communication protocols
Clients perspective
Skill vs, luck and circumstances
Risk vs. reward
Subject identification
Understanding & managing surveillance Heat
Canadian traffic conditions
Driving methods for different Canadian environments
Filming best practices
Mobile foot surveillance
PI surveillance Gearbag
Required equipment
Identifying the subject
Clothing and props
The physics or mechanics of foot surveillance
Covert equipment & techniques
On foot following techniques & best practices
Transitioning in and out of buildings
Video framing and quality
Canadian insurance investigations
Forensic investigations (rare)
Executive protection in Canada
About the Author
Peter Sandru is an Instructor & Co-Founder of NDIL with over 15 years as a Canadian Professional Private Investigator and Canadian Security Professional. Peter has spent more than a decade conducting investigations and security operations throughout the world, primarily for corporations, law firms, and government agencies. Peter has assisted in the creation of numerous Canadian investigative & security training programs in various capacities in multiple provinces. Peter has personally trained many Canadian Private Investigators.