Canadian · Professional Licensing
CPA Ontario member directory lookup.
Trying to find a CPA or accounting firm in Ontario? CPA Ontario’s official directories let you search by name, employer or city. This page explains which directory to use and links to the live search pages.
Use the official directory for the answer: CPA Ontario’s public search is name-, employer- and city-based, not a number validator. This page cannot confirm anyone’s membership or licence status; use CPA Ontario’s own result.
What CPA Ontario's directories cover
CPA Ontario runs four separate public directories, each for a different question:
- Member Directory — anyone in good standing or under a membership suspension, searchable by name, employer or city
- Firm Directory — firms registered with CPA Ontario, in good standing or suspended
- Public Accounting Licence (PAL) Directory — individuals currently entitled to practise public accounting, plus anyone who held a PAL in the past 5 years
- Certificate of Authorization (COA) Directory — professional corporations currently or recently authorized to practise public accounting
CPA Ontario states plainly that a name appearing in the directory does not by itself guarantee current good standing — the directories may lag regulatory updates, so a status question always goes to CPA Ontario's own customer service.
Find a CPA or firm in Ontario
Start with CPA Ontario’s Member Directory, then use the Firm, PAL or COA directory when that is the record you need. The official site owns the search result.
Why you'd check a CPA Ontario member
The most common reasons: an employer or client verifying an accountant's credentials before hiring or engaging them, confirming a bookkeeper claiming a CPA designation is actually entitled to use it, checking that a firm offering public accounting services holds a current PAL or COA, and confirming there's no active suspension before relying on someone's work.
What "CPA" alone doesn't tell you
Not every CPA Ontario member holds a Public Accounting Licence — PAL is a separate, additional authorization layered on top of CPA membership, required specifically to sign off on public accounting engagements like audits and reviews. Someone can be a legitimate CPA Ontario member and still not be entitled to practise public accounting, which is exactly why the PAL and COA directories exist as their own separate searches.
Frequently asked questions
Can I search CPA Ontario by a membership number?
No. CPA Ontario's public directories are searched by name, employer, or city — there's no public-facing membership number field the way CPSO or PEO offer for their registrants.
What's the difference between the Member Directory and the PAL Directory?
The Member Directory covers general CPA Ontario membership. The PAL Directory covers the smaller, separate group specifically licensed to practise public accounting (audits, reviews, and related engagements) — not every member holds one.
What if someone doesn't show up in any directory?
They may not be a current CPA Ontario member, may be registered under a different legal name, or their membership may have been revoked or resigned (the directories list only members in good standing or under suspension). Contact CPA Ontario's customer service directly to confirm.
Format explainer only — not a verification tool
This page describes what CPA Ontario's directories cover. It does not check anyone's membership status, and nothing you might type here is transmitted anywhere. Use the official CPA Ontario directories linked above to confirm a member's current status.