Want to incorporate?
When you incorporate your medical practice, you create an entity that legally “owns” your medical practice. You become a shareholder, director or employee of that corporation.
Many physicians set up professional corporations (PCs) for their medical practices for financial and legal reasons.
CPSA can’t provide legal advice, so we recommend you consult with a lawyer or accountant with expertise in incorporation before you set up a PC and register it with us. The information on this page will help you understand the basic steps to incorporating your medical practice, registering your PC with CPSA, and any CPSA costs associated with registering. You can also register your PC, add shareholders and update your PC address on this page.
How to set up your PC
- Check the CPSA Bylaws, Health Professions Act (HPA) and Business Corporations Act for information on naming your professional corporation and other requirements for incorporating a medical practice.
- Contact your lawyer or accountant for advice.
- Make sure all Articles of Incorporation are signed by yourself and/or any other physicians who are also incorporators.
- Submit Articles for CPSA to endorse. In approximately 5-10 business days, we’ll email your endorsed articles (in PDF format) to the email address you identify on the form.
- Please note we do not keep hard copies of article submissions. Any hard copies you submit will be uploaded into CPSA’s tracking system before the paper copy is destroyed.
- Submit your CPSA-endorsed Articles of Incorporation to the Alberta Corporate Registry to establish, continue, amend or amalgamate. PDF is accepted by Alberta Registry Offices.
Register your PC with CPSA
Step 1: Request your certificate of incorporation, continuation, amendment or amalgamation from the Alberta Corporate Registry.
Step 2: Complete the CPSA PC application. You will be asked to attach a PDF of your certificate(s) and complete the payment as part of this process. The cost of registering your PC with CPSA is $525 per physician shareholder. Physicians also need to renew their PC registration with CPSA every year at the same time as annual permit renewal. This costs $210 per physician shareholder.
Add a shareholder or update your PC information
You can add a shareholder as long as the original Articles of Incorporation have a provision allowing for more voting and/or non-voting shareholders. Otherwise, you need to work with the Alberta Corporate Registry to submit an amendment before CPSA can register more physician shareholders.
It costs $210 for each shareholder you add to your PC Registration.
Other fine print
These resources can help you understand the rules behind Professional Corporations:
CPSA’s Bylaws outline our rules around professional corporations in legal terms, including information about payment, registration, annual renewal and appropriate naming conventions for your PC.
The Health Professions Act (HPA) outlines Alberta Health’s rules around setting up a PC as a registered health professional.
The Business Corporations Act outlines the Government of Alberta’s rules around setting up a PC.
CPSA Professional Corporation Guidelines and Restrictions and Other Provisions outline the basic principles of the HPA legislation above.
Professional incorporation FAQs
To see other FAQs related to Registration, click on All FAQs and filter by "Registration"
All FAQsCan I change the name of my PC?
Please refer to the Names section of the CPSA Bylaws
Submit a copy of the Articles of Amendment with the original signature(s) of the incorporating physician(s) to the College for endorsement, prior to sending to Alberta Corporate Registry.
Can I establish a PC if I am in Canada on a work permit (not a Canadian citizen) and actively registered with CPSA?
Yes. But, you (or your representative) should be clear about the specifics on citizenship before you move forward. For more information, please refer to Alberta’s Business Corporations Act (Sec 105 (3) and Part 21).
Can I maintain my Alberta PC if I move out of province?
Yes, as long as you keep an active Alberta practice permit and registered office address in Alberta where your incorporating documentation is held (e.g., lawyer, accountant). Please update your address using the form on this page.
For more information, see Alberta’s Business Corporations Act.
Can medical students or retired physicians register a PC with CPSA?
Medical students can register a PC with CPSA. Retired physicians can’t register a PC with us.
Do I need to contact Alberta Health once my PC is established?
Yes, Call Alberta Health at 780-422-1522.
If my professional corporation is registered in another province, can it operate in Alberta?
No, but you can transfer your professional corporation into Alberta if it meets CPSA naming requirements. Doing so would make your PC invalid in the previous province.
We also need to endorse Articles of Continuance with the original signature of one incorporating physician before you submit them to the Alberta Corporate Registry.
Is renewing my PC equivalent to renewing my permit?
No, physicians need to renew their practice permit annually during annual renewal. PC annual renewal is open at the same time but is a separate process.
What costs are associated with registering a PC?
All CPSA-related fees can be found on this page. Fees are subject to change without notice. You should also be aware of your legal, accountant, or Alberta Registries fees which are separate from CPSA fees.
What happens if I have a PC and choose to discontinue my practice permit or retire from practice?
We will cancel your CPSA PC Permit on the same day you discontinue your practice permit and notify Alberta Health. Only certain regulated members can maintain a CPSA PC Permit. Retired physicians can’t hold a CPSA PC permit.
Although your PC Permit with CPSA will be cancelled, your professional corporation can continue with the Corporate Registry. Please contact your lawyer or accountant for more information.
Who can be a shareholder in my PC?
Physicians with active CPSA registration can be voting shareholders.
The spouses, common-law partners, and children of physicians with active CPSA registration may be non-voting shareholders. See information sheet.
Who can sign the Articles of Incorporation?
All incorporating documents need to be signed by one physician. However, all physicians wishing to be incorporators must sign the PCA. Incorporators have to be CPSA physicians with active registration.
Questions or feedback? We'd love to hear from you.
Local: 780-969-4927
Toll-free: 1-800-561-3899 ext. 4927 (in Canada)
Fax: 780-424-5859