Eligibility to apply for registration

In Alberta, all physicians and physician assistants must be registered with CPSA. Whether it be medical learners in Alberta, new graduates, or physicians moving from another province or country, physicians apply to register for practice in Alberta under many unique circumstances.

The first step in applying for registration with CPSA is to submit a Review of Qualifications.

This is our pre-screening process for every applicant to confirm they meet all eligibility requirements. The statistics below highlight how many applications are currently under review and how many have been deemed eligible to apply for registration in Alberta.

Standard Route

If a physician is deemed eligible to apply for Registration, has Canadian credentials and has passed all certifying exams, they may qualify to apply for the General Register through the Standard Route to Registration.

This means the physician will be able to enter into independent practice once their application is submitted and approved.

Provisional Route

If a physician is deemed eligible to apply for Registration but received their training outside of Canada or failed a Canadian certifying exam, they may qualify to apply for the Provisional Register through the Provisional Route to Registration.

This route requires applicants to undergo assessment(s), and those who received their training outside of Canada must obtain sponsorship.

Registration timelines for application approval

Once a physician has submitted a complete registration application (application includes all required documentation and for those with credentials outside of Canada, includes securing sponsorship and passing the Therapeutics Decision Making (TDM) exam, if applicable), CPSA will be able to make a registration decision.

Practice Readiness Assessment statistics

A Practice Readiness Assessment (PRA) is the required final step of an alternate path to independent practice in Alberta for international medical graduates (IMGs) who don’t have complete Canadian credentials. Once an IMG registers with CPSA, they must pass this 2-part assessment of their clinical competence, chart management and professionalism to join CPSA’s Provisional Register.

IMGs with training comparable to that obtained in Canadian universities only need to complete the supervised practice assessment portion. If a Canadian medical graduate fails a national exam, they also have to participate in a portion of this assessment and pass before joining the Provisional Register.