British Columbia’s new mortgage regulatory regime: What industry participants need to know

British Columbia’s new Mortgage Services Act (the “MSA”) came into force on October 13, 2026, replacing the long-standing prior legislation, the Mortgage Brokers Act (the “Prior Legislation”).

The MSA represents the most significant overhaul of mortgage regulation in British Columbia in decades, introducing a broader scope of regulated activities, a modernized licensing framework, and substantially enhanced enforcement powers. The MSA regime is administered by the British Columbia Financial Services Authority (“BCFSA”).

Financial institutions, mortgage lenders, brokerages, servicers, securitization vehicles and their advisers should continue to assess the effect of the new regime. Below, we provide a high-level overview of the key changes.

A much broader scope of regulated activity

The Prior Legislation regulated a relatively narrow set of activities under a simpler model requiring registration for “mortgage brokers” and “submortgage brokers.” The MSA takes a fundamentally different approach. It regulates four distinct categories of “mortgage services,” each of which require appropriate licensing:

• Dealing in mortgages:

  Soliciting, advising on, negotiating and arranging mortgage transactions.

• Trading in mortgages:

  Buying, selling or exchanging mortgages on one’s own behalf or on behalf of others (a new category that may capture securitization vehicles and aggregators).

• Mortgage lending:

  Lending money secured by real property, now regulated as a standalone activity.

• Administering Mortgages:

  Collecting payments, monitoring obligations and enforcing repayment.

This expanded scope means that entities which previously operated outside of BC’s mortgage regulatory perimeter may now find themselves subject to licensing requirements for the first time.

At a glance: Prior Legislation vs. new regime

The MSA also introduces new substantive duties, including obligations to act in good faith and prohibitions on wrongful taking and deceptive dealing, together with a “conduct unbecoming” standard. The BCFSA has broad rule-making authority over conduct standards, disclosure requirements, continuing education and trust account management.

The four new licence categories

The MSA has four distinct licence categories, each tailored to a specific role in the mortgage industry:

Navigating the exemptions

The MSA and the accompanying Mortgage Services Regulation provide a number of exemptions from the licensing requirements, including for savings institutions (which include banks) and their directors, officers and employees, investment dealers providing certain services in relation to syndicated mortgage securities, and individuals making simple referrals.

However, we anticipate that these exemptions can be challenging to navigate. Whether an exemption applies often turns on the individual providing the service, the entity on whose behalf it is provided (including whether services are provided to affiliates or to third parties), and the specific mortgage services being carried out.

As a result, an entity may be exempt while its affiliates or employees are not, and an individual may be exempt for some activities but not others.

How Gowling WLG can help

The transition to the MSA requires careful analysis by all mortgage industry participants operating in British Columbia. For financial institutions in particular, the nuances of the exemption framework mean that a thorough assessment of corporate structures and mortgage-related activities across the group is essential.

Whether you need to assess your licensing requirements, review your compliance framework or understand how the exemptions apply across your corporate group, our team is ready to assist.

To learn more or discuss how these changes could support your business objectives, contact one of the authors or a member of our Financial Services Regulation and Real Estate groups.