Canada has introduced targeted immigration measures to help retain internationally trained physicians and address ongoing healthcare workforce shortages. These measures include a dedicated Express Entry category for physicians with Canadian work experience, additional Provincial Nominee Program spaces for medical doctors and faster work permit processing for certain provincially nominated physicians.
However, the Physicians with Canadian Work Experience category is not a separate immigration program. Applicants must first qualify for at least one program managed through Express Entry and must also satisfy the requirements of the physician category.
This article explains the eligibility requirements, eligible medical occupations, application process and other Canadian permanent residence options available to physicians.
What Is the Physicians with Canadian Work Experience Category?
In 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada introduced a dedicated Express Entry category for medical doctors who have qualifying Canadian work experience.
According to IRCC, the category is intended for physicians who have accumulated at least 12 months of full-time Canadian work experience—or an equivalent amount of part-time experience—in an eligible medical occupation during the preceding three years.
The experience does not have to be continuous, but it must have been obtained in Canada and in one eligible occupation.
Applicants must also qualify for one of the federal immigration programs managed through Express Entry. Category eligibility alone does not make someone eligible for permanent residence or guarantee an Invitation to Apply.
Read the official IRCC requirements for the Physicians with Canadian Work Experience category.
Eligible Occupations for the Physicians Category
The dedicated category currently covers the following NOC 2021 occupations:
| Medical occupation | NOC code | TEER |
| Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine | 31100 | 1 |
| Specialists in surgery | 31101 | 1 |
| General practitioners and family physicians | 31102 | 1 |
A candidate’s job title alone is not sufficient to establish eligibility. The applicant’s actual employment activities should correspond with the lead statement and a substantial number of the main duties for the selected NOC.
Dentists, veterinarians, pharmacists, nurses and other healthcare professionals are not included in this dedicated physician category. However, they may qualify under the broader Express Entry Healthcare and Social Services Occupations category or another immigration program.
Main Eligibility Requirements
To be considered under the Physicians with Canadian Work Experience category, a candidate must generally:
- Qualify for Express Entry
The candidate must meet the requirements of at least one program managed through Express Entry, such as the Canadian Experience Class or Federal Skilled Worker Program.
- Have qualifying Canadian physician experience
The candidate must have accumulated at least 12 months of full-time work experience, or an equivalent amount of part-time experience, in Canada within the previous three years.
- Work in one eligible occupation
The qualifying experience must be in one of the following occupations:
- NOC 31100 – Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine
- NOC 31101 – Specialists in surgery
- NOC 31102 – General practitioners and family physicians
- Have authorized and paid work experience
Under the Canadian Experience Class, qualifying work must generally have been performed while the applicant was authorized to work in Canada. It must be paid employment and must correspond with the applicable NOC description.
- Complete an approved language test
Express Entry candidates must provide results from an IRCC-approved English or French language test. Because the eligible physician occupations are classified as TEER 1, candidates applying through the Canadian Experience Class generally require at least CLB 7 in English or NCLC 7 in French in each language ability.
IRCC currently accepts CELPIP-General, IELTS General Training and PTE Core for English, and TEF Canada or TCF Canada for French. Language results must remain valid when the Express Entry profile and permanent residence application are submitted.
Review IRCC’s official Express Entry language test requirements.
- Meet admissibility requirements
The applicant and accompanying family members must satisfy Canada’s medical, criminality, security and other admissibility requirements.
- Plan to live outside Quebec
Federal Express Entry applicants must intend to reside outside Quebec because Quebec operates its own skilled-worker selection system. A provincial nominee must intend to settle in the province or territory that issued the nomination.
Understanding the Canadian Work-Experience Requirement
For Canadian Experience Class eligibility, one year of full-time work normally means at least 1,560 qualifying hours. IRCC counts a maximum of 30 hours per week toward this requirement.
The experience may be accumulated through:
- Full-time employment of at least 30 hours per week for 12 months;
- An equivalent period of qualifying part-time employment; or
- More than one qualifying full-time position.
The work must be paid and performed in Canada while the applicant was authorized to work. IRCC also examines whether the applicant performed the lead statement and most of the main duties associated with the declared NOC.
Applicants should review the official Canadian Experience Class eligibility requirements.
Special Rules for Fee-for-Service and Self-Employed Physicians
Many doctors in Canada provide publicly funded medical services as independent contractors or under fee-for-service arrangements. This historically created a problem because self-employment normally does not count toward the Canadian Experience Class work-experience requirement.
IRCC introduced a public policy that may allow qualifying work performed by physicians providing publicly funded medical services to be counted as Canadian work experience, even where the physician is considered self-employed.
This exemption is highly important, but it should not be applied automatically to every self-employed doctor. The payment structure, organization providing the work, source of funding, work authorization, dates of experience and supporting evidence must be carefully reviewed.
IRCC also gives specific instructions about how qualifying physicians should report this experience in their Express Entry profiles. Applicants should obtain case-specific advice before answering the self-employment questions because an incorrect answer can affect both eligibility and the CRS score.
Read IRCC’s official information about the physician public policy and self-employed medical work.
Credential Assessment and Medical Licensing
Immigration eligibility and authorization to practise medicine are separate matters.
Before working as a medical doctor in Canada, an internationally trained physician must generally:
- Have their foreign medical credentials assessed; and
- Obtain the required licence from the applicable provincial or territorial medical regulatory authority.
For Express Entry, applicants whose primary occupation is NOC 31100, 31101 or 31102 must obtain an Educational Credential Assessment for their primary medical diploma from the Medical Council of Canada when an ECA is required.
An ECA confirms the Canadian equivalency of an educational credential for immigration purposes. It does not, by itself, authorize a person to practise medicine in Canada.
Review IRCC’s official Educational Credential Assessment requirements for doctors.
How Category-Based Express Entry Selection Works
The process generally involves the following stages:
- Determine eligibility for a program managed through Express Entry.
- Complete the required language test and credential assessment.
- Create or update an Express Entry profile.
- Enter the Express Entry pool and receive a Comprehensive Ranking System score.
- IRCC identifies candidates who meet the physician-category requirements.
- Eligible candidates are ranked according to their CRS scores.
- IRCC invites the highest-ranking eligible candidates during a physician-category, general or program-specific round.
- An invited candidate normally has 60 days to submit a complete permanent residence application.
Meeting the minimum eligibility requirements does not guarantee an invitation. The number of invitations, CRS cutoff, tie-breaking rule and timing can change from one round to another.
For example, IRCC’s official rounds table reports that the June 24, 2026 Physicians with Canadian Work Experience round issued 271 Invitations to Apply, with a CRS score of 223 for the lowest-ranked invited candidate. Previous results do not predict or guarantee the outcome of a future round.
Applicants can monitor the official IRCC Express Entry rounds of invitations.
Provincial Nominee Program Options for Physicians
Express Entry is not the only permanent residence option for doctors.
IRCC has announced up to 5,000 reserved federal immigration spaces through the Provincial Nominee Program for medical doctors with qualifying employment, job offers or letters of support. These spaces are in addition to regular PNP allocations.
Provincial criteria are different across Canada. A province may examine factors such as:
- Medical licensing or eligibility for licensing;
- A job offer, employment agreement or letter of support;
- The location and duration of employment;
- The physician’s occupation and specialty;
- The needs of the provincial healthcare system;
- Current immigration status; and
- The applicant’s genuine intention to live and work in the nominating province.
IRCC also states that provincially nominated medical doctors may be eligible for expedited work permit processing—described as 14-day processing—so they can work while their permanent residence applications are processed. Applicants must still provide the required provincial support letter, employer documents, offer-of-employment number and other supporting evidence.
Learn more through IRCC’s official pages for medical doctors with Canadian experience and faster work permit processing for nominated doctors.
Options for Doctors Without Canadian Medical Work Experience
A doctor who does not yet have one year of Canadian physician experience will not qualify for the dedicated Physicians with Canadian Work Experience category. However, other options may be available.
Healthcare and Social Services Express Entry Category
NOC 31100, 31101 and 31102 are also included in the broader Healthcare and Social Services Occupations category. Under that category, the required work experience may be obtained in Canada or abroad, provided the candidate meets the applicable requirements and qualifies for an Express Entry program.
Provincial Nominee Programs
A physician with a qualifying provincial job offer or letter of support may be considered under a provincial immigration pathway, subject to the individual province’s requirements.
Atlantic Immigration Program
Doctors interested in an Atlantic province may qualify through the Atlantic Immigration Program if they obtain a qualifying offer from a designated employer and satisfy the program requirements.
Rural or Francophone Community Immigration Pilots
Doctors who want to work in a participating rural or Francophone community may have options through the Rural Community Immigration Pilot or Francophone Community Immigration Pilot. These programs normally require a qualifying job offer and a community recommendation.
IRCC provides an overview of immigration options for doctors without Canadian medical work experience.
Can Family Members Be Included?
Yes. IRCC permits a principal applicant to include eligible family members in a permanent residence application, including:
- A spouse or common-law partner;
- Dependent children of the applicant or spouse; and
- Eligible dependent children of a dependent child.
Family composition must be declared accurately. Even a non-accompanying spouse or child may need to complete medical, identity and background requirements.
Why Professional Immigration Advice May Be Valuable
Hiring an immigration professional is not mandatory. Applicants may prepare and submit their own applications. However, physician cases can involve issues that are different from ordinary Express Entry applications.
Professional advice may be particularly valuable for:
- Identifying whether the physician category, healthcare category, Canadian Experience Class, Federal Skilled Worker Program or a PNP offers the best strategy;
- Selecting the correct NOC based on actual medical duties and specialization;
- Assessing fee-for-service or independent-contractor work under the physician public policy;
- Confirming whether the Canadian work experience was authorized and properly documented;
- Reviewing Medical Council of Canada credential-assessment requirements;
- Calculating Canadian work hours and CRS points accurately;
- Examining job offers, provincial support letters and medical employment agreements;
- Maintaining legal status and work authorization while waiting for an invitation;
- Reviewing language-result and ECA expiry dates;
- Preparing complete employment evidence and explanatory submissions;
- Ensuring consistency between Express Entry profiles, work permit records, provincial applications and permanent residence forms; and
- Responding to procedural fairness letters or additional-document requests.
An incorrect NOC, unsupported work-experience claim, inaccurate date or misunderstanding of the physician self-employment exemption can affect eligibility and may lead to delays or refusal. Early professional review can help identify these risks before an Express Entry profile or permanent residence application is submitted.
How HV Global Immigration Ltd. Can Help
HV Global Immigration Ltd. is a CICC-licensed Canadian immigration consulting firm based in Calgary, Alberta. The firm assists individuals, families, healthcare professionals, employers and businesses with federal and provincial immigration matters.
HV Global Immigration Ltd. is led by Harish Sharma, RCIC, a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant and member of the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants. His RCIC licence number is R534969.
Harish Sharma and the HV Global team provide personalized, ethical and cost-effective immigration services. For physicians and internationally trained doctors, assistance may include:
- Comprehensive Express Entry eligibility assessment;
- Physician-category and healthcare-category review;
- NOC and medical work-experience assessment;
- CRS calculation and improvement strategy;
- Review of fee-for-service and publicly funded medical work;
- Provincial Nominee Program assessment;
- Work permit and status planning;
- Document checklists and supporting-evidence review;
- Express Entry profile preparation;
- Permanent residence application preparation and submission; and
- Professional representation and communication with immigration authorities.
Learn more about Harish Sharma and HV Global Immigration Ltd..
Book a Consultation With Harish Sharma, RCIC
If you are a family physician, general practitioner, surgeon, medical specialist or internationally trained doctor, a professional assessment can help you understand whether you qualify under the dedicated physician category or another Canadian immigration pathway.
Contact HV Global Immigration Ltd. today to schedule a consultation with Harish Sharma, RCIC.
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.hvglobal.ca
Book a Consultation: Contact HV Global Immigration Ltd.
Whether you already practise medicine in Canada or are exploring opportunities from overseas, HV Global Immigration Ltd. can help you evaluate your options and develop a practical immigration strategy for you and your family.
Disclaimer: This article provides general information and does not constitute legal advice. Immigration programs, category requirements, provincial nomination criteria, invitation scores and processing procedures may change. Eligibility must be assessed based on the applicant’s individual circumstances. No immigration representative can guarantee an invitation, nomination, work permit or permanent residence approval. Medical licensing is a separate process administered by provincial and territorial medical regulatory authorities.
Posted on: August 2026
