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What the regulator publishes about being allowed to do this work here: what it issues, the route to it, where each step can be done, and what it costs where a figure is published.
NOC 31102 · TEER 1: usually a university degree · Checked pathway · checked October 25, 2026
The regulator here: College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (its register)
Being allowed to work in an occupation and being allowed to come to Canada are two separate decisions, made by two different bodies. Nothing on this page is part of your immigration assessment, no rule in that assessment reads it, and meeting everything here does not make you eligible for any immigration program. The reverse is also true: an immigration approval gives nobody permission to practise a regulated occupation.
A qualification earned outside Canada is not recognized automatically. Each regulator decides for itself what it will accept from your own education, examinations and experience, and it decides that about you individually. What follows is the published route, not a decision about your case.
Covered: the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia's own pages on licensing, its classes for internationally trained physicians and its timelines and fees, with Practice Ready Assessment BC's programme, pre-screening and overview pages, CaRMS's eligibility criteria and fees and the College of Family Physicians of Canada's examination page, all read on 2026-10-25. The College's requirements for each licence class and its fee schedule (Schedule B of its bylaws) were not read, and every step says so where it matters.
Anyone who wants to practise medicine in British Columbia, wherever they were educated. For a family physician trained abroad there are two published routes to the full licence: a family medicine residency entered through the R-1 match, or Practice Ready Assessment BC for a physician who already completed a family medicine residency and practised independently abroad.
An international medical graduate with no accredited Canadian or United States postgraduate training who enters family medicine at the University of British Columbia through the R-1 match, then qualifies for the College's full licence.
When you may do the work or use the titleWhen the College has issued a licence and the person appears in its directory, which the College says can be used to verify whether an individual is currently licensed. A resident practises under the College's resident licence class only as the programme requires; independent practice without supervision begins only with the full licence, for which the College's family practice requirements, which this did not read, apply.
What the regulator decides about you individuallyBeing matched to a programme is the programme's decision, through CaRMS. Which licence class the College grants, and on what conditions, is the College's decision about this applicant: its page says each class has different requirements, limits, conditions and scope of practice, and the requirements for the full family class are on a page of its own.
What you can do before you arrive
Steps that apply to everyone on this route
Job Bank says the first step for a physician trained abroad is to contact the Medical Council of Canada, and the British Columbia College's own timelines page lists the Council's source verification as a third-party step of its applications, with an estimate of two to three months. The Council's portal is physiciansapply.ca, and its page says an international graduate can apply for the MCCQE as soon as the source verification request for the medical degree has been submitted and paid for. The Council's own pages could not be read by the monitor and are held as drafts here.
Applies to everyone on this route
The account is opened and the request made online from anywhere; the medical school confirms the degree to the Council.
Delivered or received by: Medical Council of Canada
Read from Application timelines and fees (College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia) on October 25, 2026.
CaRMS requires an international medical graduate in the R-1 match to have passed the MCCQE Part I, with some provinces allowing exceptions. Job Bank gives completion of the Council's qualifying examinations as a national requirement of the occupation.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Open a physiciansapply.ca account and have your medical degree source-verified
The Council's own page, read on 2026-10-25 but held as a draft because the monitor cannot fetch it, says the examination is delivered at Prometric test centres in Canada and over seventy countries, in four sessions a year.
Delivered or received by: Medical Council of Canada, through Prometric
Read from R-1 Main Residency Match eligibility criteria (Canadian Resident Matching Service) on October 25, 2026.
What waits until you are in Canada
A step is here because the regulator says it is done in Canada, needs status in Canada first, or has not said it can be begun from abroad. Where a step below is tagged as something the regulator has to confirm, it may turn out to be startable earlier; the regulator is the one to ask, and the question is worth asking before you leave.
Steps that apply to everyone on this route
CaRMS requires an international medical graduate in the R-1 match to have passed the National Assessment Collaboration Examination, with some provinces allowing exceptions. The Council describes it as a national examination of readiness to enter a Canadian residency programme, held twice a year at a limited number of centres across Canada.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Open a physiciansapply.ca account and have your medical degree source-verified
The Council's eligibility page names centres in Canada only, so this step waits for a trip to Canada or for arrival.
Delivered or received by: Medical Council of Canada
Read from R-1 Main Residency Match eligibility criteria (Canadian Resident Matching Service) on October 25, 2026.
CaRMS requires an applicant to the R-1 match to be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada, with some exceptions. This is CaRMS's and the programmes' requirement about status; it is not an immigration decision, and nothing on these pages decides whether a person will get that status.
Applies to everyone on this route
The proof is uploaded, but the status itself has to exist. Which exceptions British Columbia's programmes allow is on CaRMS's British Columbia page, which this did not read.
Delivered or received by: Canadian Resident Matching Service
Read from R-1 Main Residency Match eligibility criteria (Canadian Resident Matching Service) on October 25, 2026.
CaRMS says individual provinces and residency programmes add requirements and restrictions of their own, so the British Columbia criteria on CaRMS's own provincial page govern who may apply. Being matched is the programme's decision.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Pass the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination (MCCQE, formerly Part I), Pass the NAC Examination, Hold Canadian citizenship or permanent residence before the match
The application is made online, but the match requires citizenship or permanent residence, so for most applicants it follows status rather than preceding it.
Delivered or received by: Canadian Resident Matching Service
Read from R-1 Main Residency Match fees (Canadian Resident Matching Service) on October 25, 2026.
The residency itself. Job Bank gives the national requirement as two to three years of family medicine residency training, and the College lists a resident licence class among the classes it grants, each with its own requirements, limits, conditions and scope. What the programme requires of a resident is the programme's.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Apply to British Columbia family medicine programmes through the R-1 Main Residency Match
Training in a British Columbia programme is done in British Columbia. The College's resident licence page was not read; the College's licensing page is the place to start.
Delivered or received by: The University of British Columbia's family medicine programme
Read from Job requirements: family physicians in Canada (Job Bank, Employment and Social Development Canada) on October 25, 2026.
The CFPC's examination is open to its members who completed an approved family medicine residency or a combination of training and practice experience under its eligibility guidelines. The College's own page describes its assessment class in terms of postgraduate training in a jurisdiction acceptable to the CFPC, and lists CFPC examination or reciprocity eligibility among the third-party steps of its applications.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Complete the family medicine residency under the College's resident licence
The CFPC's page read for this does not say where the examination is sat; ask the CFPC.
Delivered or received by: College of Family Physicians of Canada
Read from Certification Examination in Family Medicine (College of Family Physicians of Canada) on October 25, 2026.
The full licence permits independent practice without supervision anywhere in British Columbia. Its requirements are on the College's full family class page, which this did not read; the College's timelines page says a licence is issued within three business days of payment once an application is approved, and that its fees are in Schedule B of its bylaws. Once issued, the person appears in the College's directory, which the College says can be used to verify whether an individual is currently licensed.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Pass the Certification Examination in Family Medicine
The College's application form is submitted through its own channels and tracked online; by this point the person is in British Columbia.
Delivered or received by: College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia
Read from Application timelines and fees (College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia) on October 25, 2026.
Steps that depend on the regulator’s assessment of you
The College says each licence class has different requirements, limits, conditions and scope of practice. Which class this applicant qualifies for, and on what conditions, is its decision about them, made from the documents and third-party confirmations on the file.
Depends on the regulator’s assessment of you
After: Apply to the College for the full (family) licence and pay its fee
Nothing about this step is done by the applicant; it is the College's own work on the file.
Delivered or received by: College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia
Read from Licensing (College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia) on October 25, 2026.
Records the regulator needs, which can be requested before you leave. This is not the document list for an immigration application: that list goes to IRCC, and this one goes to the regulator. Where a record has to come straight from the institution that issued it, asking early matters most, because nobody else can send it for you.
Job Bank says the first step for a physician trained abroad is to contact the Medical Council of Canada, and the British Columbia College's own timelines page lists the Council's source verification as a third-party step of its applications, with an estimate of two to three months. The Council's portal is physiciansapply.ca, and its page says an international graduate can apply for the MCCQE as soon as the source verification request for the medical degree has been submitted and paid for. The Council's own pages could not be read by the monitor and are held as drafts here.
Sent by the institutionThe account is opened and the request made online from anywhere; the medical school confirms the degree to the Council.
There is no total here, and no overall time to licensure. Regulators publish their own fees and their own processing times for their own steps; none of them publishes a total for the route, and a total we added up ourselves would be read as theirs. Each figure below is either the body’s own published number with the date it published it, or the reason there is no number. Add them up yourself if you need a budget, and treat the result as yours.
An internationally trained family physician who completed a family medicine residency outside Canada and practised independently: PRA-BC's pre-screening asks for two years of postgraduate training abroad including at least eight weeks in family medicine, at least two years of independent practice as a general or family practitioner, and at least 24 weeks and 960 hours of practice in the preceding three years.
When you may do the work or use the titleWhen the College has issued a licence and the person appears in its directory. The assessment licence permits practice only within the assessment; the provisional licence that follows permits practice with the limits and conditions the College sets, for the return of service; independent practice without supervision begins only with the full licence.
What the regulator decides about you individuallyPre-screening is PRA-BC's decision about the applicant, the preliminary assessment of eligibility for the assessment and provisional classes is the College's, and selection is the health authorities'. The College's page says there is no direct route to the assessment licence except by referral from PRA-BC, so nothing here can be applied for out of order.
What you can do before you arrive
Steps that apply to everyone on this route
PRA-BC's pre-screening requires academic credentials verification of the medical degree, passport and the postgraduate training letters that confirm the seven core rotations, through physiciansapply.ca, which is the Medical Council of Canada's portal. The College's timelines page estimates the Council's source verification at two to three months.
Applies to everyone on this route
The account is opened and the requests made online from anywhere; the issuing institutions confirm the documents to the Council. Ask the institutions early: the Council's verification is the longest estimate on this route.
Delivered or received by: Medical Council of Canada
Read from Pre-screening requirements (Practice Ready Assessment BC) on October 25, 2026.
From 17 April 2026 PRA-BC requires every applicant to have passed an acceptable English test, with the minimum scores achieved in a single sitting, and no longer accepts the waiver letters the College itself accepts from medical schools and training institutions. The accepted tests and scores are on its requirements page.
Applies to everyone on this route
The accepted tests are offered in many countries, but which centres are open to you is the test provider's question, and whether expired results can be considered is PRA-BC's, case by case.
Delivered or received by: Practice Ready Assessment BC
Read from Pre-screening requirements (Practice Ready Assessment BC) on October 25, 2026.
PRA-BC's pre-screening asks for a medical degree from a school in the World Directory of Medical Schools; two years of postgraduate training abroad leading to recognition as a general or family physician, including at least eight weeks in family medicine and at least four weeks in each of six other rotations; at least two years of independent practice as a general or family practitioner; and at least 24 weeks and 960 hours of clinical practice in the preceding three years, excluding research, teaching, administration and regulatory work. A current CV that explains every activity is part of the application.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Have your medical degree, passport and postgraduate training letters verified through physiciansapply.ca
The evidence is submitted with the expression of interest from anywhere; what counts is PRA-BC's reading of it against its criteria and the College's bylaw on currency of practice.
Delivered or received by: Practice Ready Assessment BC
Read from Pre-screening requirements (Practice Ready Assessment BC) on October 25, 2026.
PRA-BC is an assessment programme for internationally trained family physicians who completed a family medicine residency outside Canada, run as a collaboration that includes the College. Pre-screening against its criteria is the first thing it does with an application. Its own pages also name the Medical Council of Canada's Therapeutics Decision-Making examination among what a referred candidate needs; that requirement is on a page this did not read, so ask PRA-BC when it has to be passed.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Pass an English test PRA-BC accepts, in a single sitting, Show two years of postgraduate training with the seven core rotations, two years of independent practice, and 960 hours in the past three years
The expression of interest is made online from anywhere. PRA-BC reviews applications in phases and places later ones on a waitlist.
Delivered or received by: Practice Ready Assessment BC
Read from Practice Ready Assessment BC (Practice Ready Assessment BC) on October 25, 2026.
What waits until you are in Canada
A step is here because the regulator says it is done in Canada, needs status in Canada first, or has not said it can be begun from abroad. Where a step below is tagged as something the regulator has to confirm, it may turn out to be startable earlier; the regulator is the one to ask, and the question is worth asking before you leave.
Steps that apply to everyone on this route
The College's assessment licence is for internationally trained physicians whose postgraduate training was not in a jurisdiction the College of Family Physicians of Canada accepts, and the College says every request for it comes by referral from PRA-BC. The assessment is a period of supervised practice in which clinical competence is assessed; how long it is and where it is held are on PRA-BC's assessment pages, which this did not read.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: PRA-BC refers you and a health authority selects you
The assessment is done in British Columbia, in a community the programme assigns. Holding the licence and practising under it needs the legal ability to work in British Columbia, which is an immigration question that belongs to the immigration side of your plan.
Delivered or received by: College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia, with a supervising assessor
Read from Internationally trained physicians (College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia) on October 25, 2026.
PRA-BC says a physician who completes the programme's requirements fulfils a three-year return of service within a British Columbia community, and the College's provisional licence permits practice with the limits and conditions it sets. The community is one the health authorities identified for the session.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Complete the assessment in a British Columbia community under the College's assessment licence
The return of service is in the British Columbia community the health authorities named; PRA-BC publishes material about each one.
Delivered or received by: College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia, with the health authority
Read from Overview (Practice Ready Assessment BC) on October 25, 2026.
The College's own page describes its licence classes in terms of postgraduate training in a jurisdiction acceptable to the College of Family Physicians of Canada, and lists CFPC examination or reciprocity eligibility among the third-party steps of its applications. The CFPC's examination is open to its members who completed an approved residency or a combination of training and practice experience under its eligibility guidelines; a physician on this route is the second kind. When CFPC certification has to be held to move from the provisional to the full class is on the College's class pages, which this did not read.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Complete the assessment in a British Columbia community under the College's assessment licence
The CFPC's page read for this does not say where the examination is sat; ask the CFPC. Whether a particular physician's training and practice meet its eligibility guidelines is the CFPC's decision.
Delivered or received by: College of Family Physicians of Canada
Read from Certification Examination in Family Medicine (College of Family Physicians of Canada) on October 25, 2026.
The full licence permits independent practice without supervision anywhere in British Columbia. Its requirements are on the College's full family class page, which this did not read; the College's timelines page says a licence is issued within three business days of payment once an application is approved. Once issued, the person appears in the College's directory, which the College says can be used to verify whether an individual is currently licensed.
Applies to everyone on this route
After: Practise under a provisional licence for the three-year return of service, Obtain certification from the College of Family Physicians of Canada
The application is made through the College's own channels; by this point the person is practising in British Columbia.
Delivered or received by: College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia
Read from Internationally trained physicians (College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia) on October 25, 2026.
Steps that depend on the regulator’s assessment of you
The College publishes a preliminary assessment of eligibility for the assessment and provisional classes at two to three weeks after all required documentation, valid for three years. Whether this applicant is eligible for either class is the College's decision about them, and PRA-BC's referral depends on it.
Depends on the regulator’s assessment of you
After: Submit an expression of interest to Practice Ready Assessment BC
Nothing about this step is done by the applicant beyond supplying the documents the College asks for.
Delivered or received by: College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia
Read from Application timelines and fees (College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia) on October 25, 2026.
PRA-BC refers candidates who meet its pre-screening criteria and hold the College's eligibility decision to the health authorities, which interview and select for the communities they have identified. Selection is their decision about the people referred, and the number of places in each session is theirs.
Depends on the regulator’s assessment of you
After: The College assesses your preliminary eligibility for the assessment and provisional classes
Nothing about this step is done by the applicant beyond the interview.
Delivered or received by: Practice Ready Assessment BC and the British Columbia health authorities
Read from Practice Ready Assessment BC (Practice Ready Assessment BC) on October 25, 2026.
Records the regulator needs, which can be requested before you leave. This is not the document list for an immigration application: that list goes to IRCC, and this one goes to the regulator. Where a record has to come straight from the institution that issued it, asking early matters most, because nobody else can send it for you.
PRA-BC's pre-screening requires academic credentials verification of the medical degree, passport and the postgraduate training letters that confirm the seven core rotations, through physiciansapply.ca, which is the Medical Council of Canada's portal. The College's timelines page estimates the Council's source verification at two to three months.
Sent by the institutionThe account is opened and the requests made online from anywhere; the issuing institutions confirm the documents to the Council. Ask the institutions early: the Council's verification is the longest estimate on this route.
PRA-BC's pre-screening asks for a medical degree from a school in the World Directory of Medical Schools; two years of postgraduate training abroad leading to recognition as a general or family physician, including at least eight weeks in family medicine and at least four weeks in each of six other rotations; at least two years of independent practice as a general or family practitioner; and at least 24 weeks and 960 hours of clinical practice in the preceding three years, excluding research, teaching, administration and regulatory work. A current CV that explains every activity is part of the application.
Sent by youThe evidence is submitted with the expression of interest from anywhere; what counts is PRA-BC's reading of it against its criteria and the College's bylaw on currency of practice.
There is no total here, and no overall time to licensure. Regulators publish their own fees and their own processing times for their own steps; none of them publishes a total for the route, and a total we added up ourselves would be read as theirs. Each figure below is either the body’s own published number with the date it published it, or the reason there is no number. Add them up yourself if you need a budget, and treat the result as yours.
You can ask us to research this occupation and province. Somebody here reads it and writes back what they find, or that we could not verify it: the answer appears with your request on this page when you are signed in, and we email it to you as well. Nothing is added to these pages until a lawyer has published it. Where your professional history is unusual enough that no published route fits it, ask for a specialist to look at it instead.
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