Eligibility and application | Medical Council of Canada

Eligibility requirements

To apply to the MCCQE Part I, you must be a graduate from, or a student who is expected to complete all requirements to graduate from:

A medical school accredited by the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS); or
A medical school listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools and identified by a Canada Sponsor Note indicating it is an acceptable medical school in Canada; or
A United States School of Osteopathic Medicine accredited by the American Osteopathic Association.

Limited exam attempts

You may take the MCCQE Part I up to a maximum of 4 times. Carefully consider your circumstances and preparedness before each MCCQE Part I attempt. Once you choose to start the exam, it will count as an attempt.

Exam attempts before 2018 do not count towards the total limit. A No Standing does not count as an attempt; a fail result or a Denied Standing are considered attempts.

You cannot retake the exam if you have a pass result.

After your third attempt, you will be required to wait 1 year from the time you receive the result before reapplying for your fourth attempt. This 1-year waiting period has been implemented to enable candidates to take the time to prepare for their fourth and final attempt, and it cannot be shortened or waived.

The limited exam attempts policy is applied consistently to all candidates.

Before applying: understanding the exam eligibility window

You will not be able to schedule your exam date until your application has been accepted. After your application is accepted, you will have a 12-month eligibility window to schedule and write the MCCQE Part I at an available Prometric test centre or through remote proctoring. All exam appointments are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Scheduling for an upcoming session opens approximately 5 months before the session start date. For example, if a session start date is on April 17, scheduling would open in early December of the previous year. Unless you extend your eligibility window, it will expire after 12 months or when you write the exam, withdraw from the exam, or are absent from the exam, whichever comes first.

If you are a student:

You can apply up to 15 months prior to your expected date of graduation. Once your application is accepted, your eligibility window will begin 12 months before your expected date of graduation. You can only schedule an exam appointment during this period.

For example:

Expected date of graduation: June 1, 2024
Application date: as early as March 1, 2023
Eligibility window: June 1, 2023 to June 1, 2024

Requesting a test accommodation in your exam application

If you have a documented functional limitation and associated accommodation need, you can request a test accommodation for the MCCQE Part I. Keep in mind that exam applications that include a request for test accommodations will require up to 9 weeks processing time, once all the eligibility requirements have been fulfilled and all the required supporting documentation has been received.

How to apply for the MCCQE Part I

If you meet the eligibility requirements, you can apply for the MCCQE Part I at any time through your physiciansapply.ca account by following the instructions below. If you do not already have an account, you will need to create one.

Applying as a Canadian medical student or graduate

If required, prepare copies of your acceptable identity document(s) that will need to be submitted with your exam application. Your primary identity document(s) must be certified according to our certification requirements.
Review the guidelines on preparing your documents to ensure your documents are ready for upload.
Log into your physiciansapply.ca account.
Click on Examinations from the main menu, then on Apply for an exam.
Follow the steps to complete your application and upload your documents as indicated on each page.
Submit payment for your MCCQE Part I application fee.

Please allow up to 4 weeks for your application to be processed. You will receive a message in your account once your application has been accepted to confirm that you can schedule your exam appointment with Prometric.

> Learn more about how to schedule your exam

Information on applying to the 2025 CaRMS R-1 Main Residency

If you want to apply to the 2025 Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS) R-1 Main Residency Match and verify your Canadian citizenship through the MCC and/or obtain a MINC, you must submit your MCCQE Part I application and the required documents no later than October 18, 2024 in order to obtain your Identity Validity Period (IVP) prior to the opening of file review on November 29, 2024.

Applying as an international medical student

Follow the steps below if you are an international medical student, a U.S. medical student or a student from a U.S. School of Osteopathic Medicine and would like to apply to take the MCCQE Part I:

If required, prepare copies of your acceptable identity document(s) that will need to be submitted with your exam application. Your primary identity document(s) must be certified according to our certification requirements.
Have the Student attestation form completed by your medical school. You will be required to upload the completed form when submitting your exam application.
Review the guidelines on preparing your documents to ensure your documents are ready for upload.
Log into your physiciansapply.ca account.
Click on Examinations from the main menu, then on Apply for an exam.
Follow the steps to submit your application and upload your documents as indicated on each page.
Complete payment for your MCCQE Part I application fee.

Please allow up to 4 weeks for your documents and application to be processed. You will receive a message in your account once your application has been accepted to confirm that you can schedule your exam appointment with Prometric.

If the MCC has previously reviewed all the necessary documentation, you may receive notification that your MCCQE Part I application has been accepted sooner.

> Learn more about how to schedule your exam

Information for IMGs applying for the 2025 CaRMS R-1 Main Residency match

If you want to apply for the 2025 Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS) R-1 Main Residency Match and provide results for both the MCCQE Part I and the National Assessment Collaboration (NAC) Examination, you can choose to take the NAC Examination and the MCCQE Part I in the order that you prefer.

> Learn about CaRMS and MCC exams

Applying as an international medical graduate

Follow the steps below if you are an international medical graduate (IMG), a U.S. medical graduate or a graduate from a U.S. School of Osteopathic Medicine and would like to apply to take the MCCQE Part I:

If you have not already done so, create a source verification request (SVR) for your medical degree through your physiciansapply.ca account. You can proceed with the exam application as soon as you have submitted and paid for the SVR for your medical degree.
If required, prepare copies of your acceptable identity document(s) that will need to be submitted with your exam application. Your primary identity document(s) must be certified according to our certification requirements.
Review the guidelines on preparing your documents to ensure your documents are ready for upload.
Log into your physiciansapply.ca account.
Click on Examinations in the main menu, then click on Apply for an exam.
Follow the steps to submit your application and upload your documents as indicated on each page.
Submit payment for your MCCQE Part I application fee.

Please allow up to 4 weeks for your documents and application to be processed. Once your documents are approved and the status of your medical degree is reviewed and accepted in your physiciansapply.ca account, you will receive a message that your application is complete. At that time, you will be able to schedule your exam appointment with Prometric.

If the MCC has previously reviewed all the necessary documentation, you may receive notification that your MCCQE Part I application has been accepted sooner.

> Learn more about how to schedule your exam

Information for IMGs applying for the 2025 CaRMS R-1 Main Residency match

> Learn about CaRMS and MCC exams

Reapplying for the MCCQE Part I

If you previously applied as:

An international medical student, a U.S. medical student, or a student from a U.S. School of Osteopathic Medicine, and your expected date for completion of medical degree requirements has changed since you first submitted your Student attestation form, you must submit a new form.
A student and are now a graduate, you must submit an SVR through your physiciansapply.ca account for your medical degree.
A graduate and you have already submitted your final medical degree diploma for source verification, you are not required to resubmit the diploma.

Note: When reapplying, you may need to provide new acceptable identity documents if your identity validity period has expired.

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