Membership FAQs

1. Does EMDR Canada provide Basic EMDR  training?

2. Are “EMDR Canada Membership” and “Certification in EMDR” the same thing?

“EMDR Canada Membership” and “Certification in EMDR” are separate of each other.  Many of our Members confuse these two programs.  Membership in EMDR Canada affords you the benefits that are listed at MEMBERSHIP BENFITS.  Certification in EMDR is completed through EMDRIA and requires meeting particular criteria as established by EMDRIA. There is a separate application process and criteria that clinicians must complete before they may apply for Certification.

There has also been confusion regarding Membership for Certified and Approved Consultants. Membership in EMDR Canada meets the EMDRIA requirement for the fee charged by EMDRIA for the Certification/ Approved Consultant and Approved Trainer designations. Separate membership in EMDRIA is not required. Your Membership Renewal is due November 1^st of each calendar year.  Certification and Approved Consultant Renewals, on the other hand, are sent out, directly from EMDRIA, 60 to 90 days prior to your certification expiration date, which could be any month of the year, dependent upon the approval date of your application.  Those of you who applied for Certification or Approved Consultant between the months of November and January may easily confuse the two Renewals, since you probably receive them near the same time. 

Membership is not required for Certification, Approved Consultant or Approved Trainer; however, in order to receive the EMDRIA member rate you are required to maintain your membership in good standing for the two years, or you will be charged the difference.

3. Does completion of basic training in EMDR mean that you are Certified in EMDR?

Completion of basic EMDR training is just that – completion.  Certification is an advanced process, which is only offered through EMDRIA.

4. I'm a members of EMDR Canada, but I'm not listed on the website. Why is that?

Members are required to provide permission for some or all of their contact details to be listed in the publicly displayed directory. This permission is available to you through the UPDATE PROFILE link in the Members’ Area of the website. You can change permissions and contact details such as address, email and phone number at anytime by logging in with your unique username and password  at your convenience. Remember to SAVE the information should you change anything in your profile. If  for some reason changes were not saved you will see a red alert at the top of the page when it re-loads. This alert will inform you of what is missing or not acceptable to the website parameters.

5.  I would like to direct potential clients to my website. Why is there no option for this on the EMDR Canada website?

EMDR Canada is a non-profit association of therapists. Laws regulating the operation of non-profit organizations do not allow the organization or its members to gain financially from membership. This means we cannot endorse or advertise any one member’s therapy practice. Furthermore, EMDR Canada does not hold authority to regulate the practice of psychotherapy in general or EMDR specifically.

Our mission statement explains:

EMDR Canada is dedicated to establishing, maintaining, and promoting the highest standards of excellence and integrity in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing practice, research and education.

6. Are EMDRIA and EMDR Canada affiliated?

EMDR Canada maintains an affiliate status with EMDRIA. While there is vision in the EMDR Canada organization for us to service our members completely, we still look to our parent organization to administer certain aspects such as Certification and Consultant designations. Membership in EMDR Canada provides a distinct advantage to Canadian EMDR-trained therapists – Members in EMDR Canada also provides membership in EMDRIA. Canadians reap the benefits of both organizations including directory listings, access to the Journal of EMDR Research and Practice, member rates for both annual conferences, both organizations newsletters, etc.

It is the goal of EMDR Canada to provide a Canadian presence for our members, striving to respect and acknowledge a Canadian identity in a bilingual manner.

7. Are EMDRIA, the EMDR Institute, and EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program (EMDR HAP) all affiliated?

EMDR International Association (EMDRIA) is not affiliated with either the EMDR Institute or EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Programs (HAP).  The EMDR Institute is a for-profit training organization. EMDR HAP is a non-profit 501(C)(3) organization. EMDRIA is a non-profit 501(C)(6) organization. The EMDR Institute is one of many Providers of Basic EMDR Training that EMDRIA has approved. They have also been approved as an EMDRIA Credit Provider for advanced EMDR programs that they offer. (Basic EMDR training is not considered an advanced EMDR program and is not awarded EMDRIA Credits).  EMDR HAP is also approved by EMDRIA as an Approved Provider of Basic EMDR Training. We are all a part of the EMDR community, and we do provide reports from EMDR HAP in our Newsletter from time to time, but our businesses are completely separate and not affiliated. 

8. Does EMDR Canada maintain a general EMDR listserv?

Currently, EMDR Canada maintains a discussion forum. EMDR Canada members, through membership benefits have access to several EMDRIA listservs – one for Clinician Support in Disaster Response, one for Researchers, and listservs for the EMDRIA Child Special Interest Group and Military Special Interest Group. 

Many members think that EMDR Canada or EMDRIA provides a general EMDR listserv, but this is a service that the EMDR Institute provides to those people who have been trained by the EMDR Institute, and is not affiliated with EMDRIA.

EMDRIA also does offer members the opportunity to interact through the online EMDRIA Forum. Using the Forum, members can post clinical questions and other members can respond with useful information. This feature can be found in the "Members Only" section of the website.

9.  Are EMDR Canada members required to obtain EMDRIA credits or other continuing education credits to maintain their membership in EMDR Canada?

Members are only required to pay their annual dues and subscribe to EMDRIA’s Code of Conduct to maintain their membership.  EMDRIA Credits are "required" for obtaining designations of Certification in EMDR or Approved Consultant in EMDR. Consult your registering body for other continuing education credit requirements which are separate from EMDR Canada and EMDRIA. We encourage all members to attend programs such as these in order to keep up with the most current ways in which to utilize EMDR.