ESA: Electrical Safety Authority

The Electrical Safety Authority is the body that enforces electrical safety in Ontario. It inspects electrical installations, administers the Ontario Electrical Safety Code, licenses the businesses that sell electrical work under the Electricity Act, 1998 and Ontario Regulation 570/05, and regulates electrical product safety and certification marks. On a fire alarm job ESA is one of three authorities having jurisdiction, alongside the fire department and the building department. It has no role in fire alarm technician qualification: that sits with the Fire Marshal under the Fire Code, and trade certification sits with Skilled Trades Ontario.

Last updated: September 2026

What ESA does

ESA inspects electrical installations, administers the Ontario Electrical Safety Code, licenses electrical contractors and Master Electricians, and publishes the list of certification marks that decide whether a product is listed for use in Canada. If you pull a permit for fire alarm wiring, ESA is the body that comes to look at it.

Where its authority comes from

ESA's own licensing page states that "Once licensed, Licensed Electrical Contractors and Master Electricians are responsible for ensuring compliance with the Electricity Act and Licensing Regulation (O. Reg. 570/05), and other applicable laws." That is the statutory anchor for the licensing side: the Electricity Act, 1998 and Ontario Regulation 570/05.

ESA is blunt about the consequence of ignoring it. "If you intend to offer electrical installation services to the public, you must be licensed by ESA. It is the law." Anyone offering or performing electrical work without a valid licence "may be subject to compliance and enforcement procedures, including prosecution."

What ESA touches on a fire alarm job

The wiring is electrical work, so it takes a permit and an inspection like any other installation. The circuit rules come from Section 32 of the Canadian Electrical Code as adopted into the Ontario Electrical Safety Code, which covers the supply, the overcurrent protection and the separation of fire alarm conductors from other circuits. That is worked through in powering a fire alarm system.

Three things ESA does not do

ESA does not certify fire alarm technicians. The qualification for annual tests, inspections, repairs, replacements and alterations sits in Ontario Fire Code Division C, Article 1.2.1.2, and it asks for a program or course acceptable to the Fire Marshal. The two programs on the Ministry's published list are run by CFAA and by the Electrical Contractors Association of Ontario. ESA neither administers nor accepts them.

ESA does not issue the 309A. Trade certification is Skilled Trades Ontario's job. ESA licenses the business, not the tradesperson. See 309A.

An ESA inspection is not a verification. Passing an electrical inspection says the installation meets the electrical code. It says nothing about whether the system was verified to CAN/ULC-S537 or tested to CAN/ULC-S536, which are different documents assessed by different people.

What it costs

ESA publishes a 2026 licensing fee schedule effective 1 April 2026, following a stated 1.9% increase. The figures themselves sit in a PDF that would not open for us on 5 September 2026, so no dollar amount appears here. Get the schedule from ESA rather than trusting a number repeated on a contractor blog, because licensing fees move every year.

How it fits with the other credentials

The licence ESA issues is the ECRA/ESA licence, and it licenses the company. The 309A qualifies the person to do the work. The Fire Code program qualifies the person to test and alter a system already in service. Three separate things issued by three separate bodies, and a one person shop doing full fire alarm work usually needs all three. The split is set out in who can legally work on fire alarms in Ontario.

Fire Alarm Academy provides educational content only. It does not confer any certification, licence or credential, and it is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or accredited by the Canadian Fire Alarm Association, the Electrical Contractors Association of Ontario, ULC Standards, UL Standards and Engagement, CSA Group, the Electrical Safety Authority, any authority having jurisdiction, or any manufacturer. Always work from the edition of any standard adopted by your authority having jurisdiction.