Registration, Fees & Forms

Firms must register with the NSSC if they conduct any of the following activities in Nova Scotia:

are in the business of trading in, or advising on, securities.
act as an investment fund manager
conduct trading activities involving commodity futures contracts or commodity futures options.

Individuals must register if they:

trade, advise or underwrite on behalf of a registered dealer or adviser
act as the ultimate designated person or chief compliance officer of a registered firm.
Proficiency Requirements for Registration
Investment Fund Manager Requirements

Exemptions from the requirement to register are available to firms and individuals in certain circumstances. For more information, see Part 8 of National Instrument 31-103.

Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO)

Investment dealers and mutual fund dealers

A firm registered as an investment dealer or a mutual fund dealer is required to be a member of a self-regulatory organization (SRO).

Prior to January 1, 2023, a firm registered as an investment dealer was required to be a member of the Investment Industry Regulatory organization of Canada (IIROC), and a firm registered as a mutual fund dealer was required to be a member of the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (MFDA).

Effective January 1, 2023, IIROC and the MFDA amalgamated to become the New Self-Regulatory Organization of Canada (New SRO), and all existing IIROC and MFDA members became members of New SRO. On June 1, 2023 the New SRO was officially renamed the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO). Going forward, all firms registered as investment dealers or mutual fund dealers are required to be a member of CIRO.

Frequently Asked Questions and Other Information

To assist registration participants in understanding and applying for registration, the Nova Scotia Securities Commission staff has compiled this summary of answers of frequently asked questions around registration.

Related Links

Failure to file annual financial statements.
Failure to file interim financial statements.
Failure to file an annual or interim management’s discussion and analysis (MD&A) or an annual or interim management report of fund performance (MRFP).
Failure to file an Annual Information Form (AIF).
Failure to file a certification of annual or interim filings required by Multilateral Instrument 52-109 Certification of Disclosure in Issuers’ Annual and Interim Filings (MI 52-109).
Failure to file required proxy materials or a required information circular.
Failure to file an issuer profile supplement on the System for Electronic Disclosure by Insiders (SEDI).
Failure to file a material change report.
Failure to provide a written update after filing a confidential report of a material change.
Failure to file a business acquisition report.
Failure to file annual oil and gas disclosure prescribed by National Instrument 51-101 Standards of Disclosure of Oil and Gas Activities (NI 51-101) or technical reports for a mineral project required under NI 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101).
Failure to file a mandatory news release.
Failure to file corporate governance disclosure as required by national Instrument 58-101 Disclosure of Corporate Governance Practices (NI 58-101).
Failure to file audit committee disclosure as required by Multilateral Instrument 52-110 Audit Committees (MI 52-110) or BC Instrument 52-509 Audit Committees.
Failure to include disclosure in an issuer’s MD&A relating to disclosure controls and procedures and their direct effectiveness that is referred to in a certificate filed under MI 52-109.
Financial statements of the reporting issuer, or the auditors’ report accompanying the financial statements, do not comply with the requirements of NI 51-102 Continuous Disclosure Obligations (NI 51-102), National Instrument 81-106 Investment Fund Continuous Disclosure (NI 81-106) or National Instrument 52-107 Acceptable Accounting Principles, Auditing Standards and Reporting Currency (NI 52-107).
The reporting issuer has acknowledged that its financial statements, or the auditors’ report accompanying the financial statements, may no longer be relied upon.
The reporting issuer’s AIF, MD&A, MRFP, information circular, or business acquisition reports do not contain information for each of the content items required by NI 51-102 or NI 81-106.
The reporting issuer’s technical disclosure or other reports do not comply with the disclosure requirements of NI 43-101 or 51-101.
Failure to pay a fee required by the Act or the regulations.
Failure to comply with any other requirement related to continuous disclosure.