The Act contains unproclaimed 2017 amendments renaming roles as travel seller and travel salesperson. What terms apply today?
TICO Certification overview
TICO Certification: TICO, the Act and who must register
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Study reference: TICO study notes from the Travel Industry Act, 2002 and O. Reg. 26/05 (Oct 2026), Ch. 1 TICO and the Travel Industry Act — Act ss. 1, 4; O. Reg. 26/05 ss. 1–2
All 12 questions in this test
Every original question, with optional answers, explanations and official references. Open an answer to study, or take the test above for instant feedback.
The Act contains unproclaimed 2017 amendments renaming roles as travel seller and travel salesperson. What terms apply today?
- Travel retailer and travel broker, in force since 2020
- Travel counsellor and tour operator, in force since 2026
- Travel seller and travel salesperson, which have been in force since 2018
- Travel agent and travel wholesaler; the changes are not in force
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: Travel agent and travel wholesaler; the changes are not in force
The definitions of travel seller and travel salesperson will take effect only on a day named by proclamation. Until then the in-force Act still uses travel agent and travel wholesaler.
Based on: Act s. 1 — 2017 amendments; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗For the exemption, what is a one-day tour?
- Any tour that costs less than $500 per person, including any hotel nights
- A tour that stays within 100 kilometres of the departure point
- A tour sold on the same day it departs from Ontario
- One that returns to its start within 24 hours, with no lodging
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: One that returns to its start within 24 hours, with no lodging
A one-day tour starts and ends at the same departure point within a 24-hour period and includes travel services other than accommodation.
Based on: O. Reg. 26/05 s. 2(3) — One-day tour; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗Which businesses operating in Ontario must register if no regulatory exemption applies?
- Only tour operators that own their own aircraft
- Travel agents and travel wholesalers operating in Ontario
- Only agencies with more than ten employees
- Every Ontario resident who books a vacation online for their family
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: Travel agents and travel wholesalers operating in Ontario
Act section 4 requires registration before acting, or holding oneself out as available to act, as a travel agent or wholesaler. Check the actual exemption conditions rather than assuming every travel-related activity is registered.
Based on: Act s. 4 — Registration required; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗Which business fits the definition of a travel wholesaler?
- A souvenir shop at a resort selling local crafts
- A tour operator that resells travel services through agents
- A taxi company that drives arriving tourists from the airport
- A cruise line selling cabins on its own ships
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A tour operator that resells travel services through agents
A travel wholesaler acquires rights to travel services to resell to travel agents, or deals with agents and wholesalers to sell services provided by others — commonly called a tour operator.
Based on: Act s. 1 — Travel wholesaler; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗Which seller may qualify for an exemption if it does not otherwise act as a travel agent or wholesaler?
- A website selling cruises to Ontario consumers
- A tour operator selling European bus tours
- A home-based agent selling Caribbean packages
- A business that sells one-day tours
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A business that sells one-day tours
Regulation section 2(2)5 lists sellers of one-day tours. The general condition in section 2(1) still applies: the person must not otherwise act as a travel agent or wholesaler. Other travel activities require their own analysis.
Based on: O. Reg. 26/05 s. 2 — Exemptions; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗Under the Travel Industry Act, what is a travel agent?
- An airline that sells seats on its own scheduled flights
- A person who owns a hotel and rents its own rooms to visiting tourists
- Any person who travels for business more than 30 days a year
- Someone who sells consumers travel services supplied by others
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: Someone who sells consumers travel services supplied by others
A travel agent sells, to consumers, travel services provided by another person. End suppliers selling their own services, such as hotels and airlines, are not travel agents for that activity.
Based on: Act s. 1 — Travel agent; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗Under O. Reg. 26/05, what does accommodation NOT include?
- Services for the guest's room
- Facilities related to the room
- Meals
- The room itself
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: Meals
Accommodation means any room used for lodging, including related facilities and services for the traveller, but it does not include meals.
Based on: O. Reg. 26/05 s. 1 — Accommodation; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗For certain non-accommodation end suppliers under section 2(2)2, which payment arrangement would break the advance-payment condition of the exemption?
- Accepting payment by credit card or debit card
- Taking over 25% of the price more than 30 days ahead
- Selling to customers who live outside of Ontario
- Booking more than ten separate tours in any one calendar month
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: Taking over 25% of the price more than 30 days ahead
This particular exemption excludes airlines, cruise lines and bus lines and limits taking more than 25% of the cost more than 30 days before the services. Accommodation end suppliers appear in a separate category without this payment condition; do not apply it indiscriminately to a lodge or hotel.
Based on: O. Reg. 26/05 s. 2(2) para 2 — End suppliers; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗Under the Act, what are travel services?
- Any product sold to a person who lives outside Ontario
- Transportation or lodging for travellers, and related services
- Restaurant meals, museum passes and theatre tickets bought by tourists
- Only international flights booked through an agency
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: Transportation or lodging for travellers, and related services
Travel services are transportation or sleeping accommodation for a traveller, tourist or sightseer, or other services combined with that transportation or accommodation.
Based on: Act s. 1 — Travel services; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗An amateur hockey team runs a bus trip for its members. Which condition must be met for it to be exempt?
- The team must buy trip cancellation insurance for every member on the bus
- The bus must return home empty during the tournament
- The trip must be sold through TICO's own booking website
- The destination is within 2,000 km and customer funds go into trust
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: The destination is within 2,000 km and customer funds go into trust
Members' groups providing overland travel are exempt if trips are only for members and their purposes, funds go into trust, no one profits, the destination is no more than 2,000 km away and the vehicle stays at the destination.
Based on: O. Reg. 26/05 s. 2(2) para 8 — Associations; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗What is the Travel Industry Council of Ontario (TICO)?
- A trade association that travel agencies may join voluntarily
- A private insurer that sells trip cancellation coverage
- A federal agency that licenses airlines flying from Ontario
- Ontario's travel regulator under the Travel Industry Act
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: Ontario's travel regulator under the Travel Industry Act
TICO is Ontario's travel regulator. It administers the Travel Industry Act, 2002 and O. Reg. 26/05, which regulate travel retailers, websites and travel wholesalers operating in Ontario.
Based on: TICO study notes from the Travel Industry Act, 2002 and O. Reg. 26/05 (Oct 2026), Ch. 1 TICO and the Travel Industry Act, TICO blog 2026 — About TICO
Official reference ↗A teacher arranges a curriculum-linked one-day school excursion. Which condition is required for the registration exemption?
- When it is curriculum-based, approved and earns the teacher no profit
- Whenever all of the students' parents sign a written waiver form in advance
- When the school is located outside of Ontario
- When the trip is shorter than seven days in total
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: When it is curriculum-based, approved and earns the teacher no profit
The exemption covers curriculum-related one-day tours, or other curriculum travel arranged through a registered travel agent. The relevant school authority must approve and the teacher must receive no gain beyond participating. Parental permission alone is not this exemption.
Based on: O. Reg. 26/05 s. 2(2) para 7 — Teachers; checked 2026-10-24
Official reference ↗
TICO, the Act and who must register: key rules to remember
Our summary of what the official handbook says on this topic, in our own words. Read it before or after the practice questions above, then check the original chapter. Read the official chapter ↗
TICO and the law
- Regulator: The Travel Industry Council of Ontario (TICO) is Ontario's travel regulator; it administers the Travel Industry Act, 2002 and O. Reg. 26/05 for travel retailers, websites and travel wholesalers (tour operators) in Ontario.
- Registration: Acting as an agent or wholesaler in Ontario requires registration unless an exemption applies; working for a registered agency is distinct from registering an independent business.
Definitions (in force)
- Travel agent: a person who sells, to consumers, travel services provided by another person.
- Travel wholesaler: a person who acquires rights to travel services to resell to a travel agent, or who deals with travel agents or wholesalers to sell travel services provided by another person (a tour operator).
- Travel services: transportation or sleeping accommodation for a traveller, tourist or sightseer, or other services combined with that transportation or accommodation.
- Unproclaimed changes: 2017 amendments that would rename these "travel seller" and "travel salesperson" are not yet in force; the current terms remain travel agent and travel wholesaler.
- Holding out: s. 4: no one may act, or hold themselves out as available to act, as a travel agent or travel wholesaler unless registered.
Accommodation
- Accommodation: Accommodation means any room used for lodging plus related facilities and services for the traveller, but not meals.
Exempt persons (if they do not otherwise act as agents or wholesalers)
- Accommodation suppliers: End suppliers of accommodation who also provide local travel services bought from others.
- Other end suppliers: The separate conditional exemption in s. 2(2)2 covers certain other end suppliers (not airlines, cruise lines or bus lines) providing bought-in local services, with no more than 25% taken more than 30 days ahead. Do not apply this payment condition to the separate accommodation category.
- Scheduled carriers: Public carriers selling scheduled transportation; bus agents appointed by a carrier.
- One-day tours: Sellers of one-day tours (start and end at the same point within 24 hours, no accommodation); sellers of guide or sightseeing services in Ontario.
- Teachers: Teachers arranging curriculum-related one-day tours, or other curriculum travel through a registered agent, with school approval and no gain beyond participating.
- Members trips: Religious organizations, amateur sports teams, unincorporated associations and not-for-profit clubs providing overland travel to their own members for educational, cultural, religious or athletic purposes, with funds in trust, no profit, destination no more than 2,000 km away, and the vehicle staying at the destination.
- Real estate: Real estate brokerages and their registrants trading in short-term rental properties.
Study the TICO, the Act and who must register rules as flashcards →
Other topics
- Certification and office staffingThe 2026 TICO Certification Program, who must be certified to sell or give travel advice, supervisor/manager rules for each office, certified counsellors on duty and records of staff certificates.
- Registration requirements and noticesEligibility to register, grounds for refusal, proposals and Licence Appeal Tribunal hearings, immediate suspension, $10,000 security for new applicants, business names, home offices, branches, certificates and the notices registrants must give.
- Financial requirements, trust accounts and recordsFinancial filings, positive working capital, bank accounts, the Travel Industry Act trust account and its rules, security instead of a trust account and six-year business records.
- Advertising and representationsRequired details in ads, false advertising, all-inclusive price rules, information required in written ads for specific travel services, photographs, registrar orders and pre-approval.
- Disclosure before the saleWhat a travel agent must tell the customer before an agreement and before taking payment or card details, advice for travel outside Canada, insurance advice and counselling fees.
- Invoices and travel documentsWhat the customer's statement, invoice or receipt must show, price increase wording, wholesaler statements, numbering, document delivery timelines and checking documents.
- Changes, refunds and alternativesTelling customers about changes, verifying accommodation, the events that require an offer of a full refund or comparable alternative, price increase limits and the files registrants must keep.
- Resale, supplier failure and liabilityJoint liability for customer money, written supplier agreements, duties when a supplier fails, rules on air carriers, refunding commissions and when registrants must repay the Fund.
- Compensation Fund claimsWho can claim from the Travel Industry Compensation Fund, the demand and eligibility rules, what is not covered, the six-month deadline, documents, registrant claims and hearings.
- Fund limits, trip completion and major eventsThe $5,000 per-person limit, event caps, trip completion and immediate departure payments, and major event rules.
- Complaints, inspections and offencesHow complaints are handled, inspections, discipline, receivers and freeze orders, offences and penalties, limitation periods and the information TICO publishes.