Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation: the Practice Eligibility Route
Requirements as published by the Royal College. Last reviewed August 2026.
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation at a glance
- Required time in training
- 5 yearsSTR: Five (5) years of approved residency training
- 2026 exam timing
- Written in the Spring; Applied in the Fall (same year)
- Apply for assessment of training
- by April 30 of the year before your exam
- Register for the exam
- September 1 – November 4 of the year before
- Exam attempts
- Maximum 4 attempts per component within a 5-year eligibility period
The Royal College reads your postgraduate training and practice record in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation against the published Specialty Training Requirements. Those requirements are set out in full below, so you can see how your own training compares before you apply.
What licence can I get, and when?
Certification is national. Licensure is provincial. You do not need Royal College certification (FRCPC) to be licensed. Several provinces license you at an earlier PER stage, and the earliest any province accepts is the eligibility letter alone. The table applies to every specialty that reached exam eligibility through the PER.
Full province table: MCCQE, job offer and licence type
| Province | MCCQE | RC written | RC applied | Licence issued | Job offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alberta | Required | Required | Required | Full | Not required |
| British Columbia | Not required | Required | Required | Provisional | Required |
| Saskatchewan | Required | Required | Required | Provisional | Required |
| Manitoba | Not required | Required | Required | Provisional | Required |
| Ontario | Not required | Required | Not required | Provisional, 3 years | Required |
| Nova Scotia (a) | Not required | Not required | Not required | Defined, 6 to 24 months | Required |
| Nova Scotia (b) | Not required | Required | Required | Full | Required |
| New Brunswick | Not required | Not required | Not required | Special, then Defined | Required |
| Newfoundland & Labrador, PEI | Required* | Not required | Not required | Provisional | Required |
* The MCCQE may be waived where the candidate has five or more years of independent practice abroad. Case by case, never guaranteed.
Educational only. Rules change, and each regulator decides on factors that may not be listed here; Filipe Santos MD does not make licensure decisions. Checked October 9, 2026 against each regulator's pages; Ontario confirmed with the CPSO in October 2026. Confirm with the regulator before you act.
Province notes (Alberta, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the MCCQE) are in the PER guide.
How training is structured
The Royal College sets out the training for Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation in the blocks below. An internationally trained specialist is assessed on whether their own training and practice record is comparable in structure and content.
Requirements document: 2008; Editorial Revision May 2016, Version 1.2; applies to those who begin training on or after July 1st, 2012
Required experiences11
Specific experiences the Royal College names for this discipline.
- 1.1 Six (6) months in Internal Medicine, which must include at least three (3) months of general Internal Medicine (clinical teaching unit (CTU) or its equivalent)
- 1.2 Two (2) months in surgery consisting of two or more of the following or their subspecialties: 1.2.1 General Surgery; 1.2.2 Neurosurgery; 1.2.3 Orthopedic Surgery; 1.2.4 Plastic Surgery; 1.2.5 Urology; 1.2.6 Vascular Surgery
- 1.3 Three (3) months training consisting of one (1) month each in three of: 1.3.1 Anesthesiology; 1.3.2 Critical care medicine; 1.3.3 Diagnostic Radiology; 1.3.4 Emergency Medicine; 1.3.5 Family medicine; 1.3.6 Palliative care; 1.3.7 Pediatrics or its subspecialties; 1.3.8 Vascular medicine; 1.3.9 Psychiatry or its subspecialties; 1.3.10 training relevant to Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, approved by the program director
- 1.4 At least one (1) month of training in Geriatric Medicine
- 2. Nine (9) months of residency training to include three (3) months each of Rheumatology, Neurology, and Orthopedic Surgery
- 3.1 One (1) month in cardiac and/or respiratory rehabilitation
- 3.2 Three (3) months full time equivalent residency training in each of the rehabilitation of persons with: 3.2.1 amputation (including prosthetics and orthotics); 3.2.2 cerebrovascular disease; 3.2.3 spinal cord disorders; 3.2.4 acquired brain disorders
- 3.3 Three (3) months full time equivalent residency training in pediatric rehabilitation
- 3.4 Three (3) months full time equivalent residency training in research activities
- 3.5 Six (6) months full time equivalent residency training in disorders of the musculoskeletal system
- 3.6 Four (4) months full time equivalent residency training in comprehensive rehabilitation of neuromuscular diseases including but not exclusively electrodiagnosis
Flexible or selective components2
Where the requirements allow a choice.
- 3.7 Seven (7) months of elective residency at the discretion of the program director to pursue a clinical or research area of focus within the specialty
- 4. Three (3) months of directed residency training in any of the following selectives: 4.1 additional research training; 4.2 community based rehabilitation; 4.3 in-patient short-term rehabilitation; 4.4 in-patient acute care rehabilitation consultation service; 4.5 general rehabilitation outpatient clinic; 4.6 senior resident rehabilitation outpatient clinic; 4.7 geriatric rehabilitation; 4.8 other Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation rotations at the discretion of the residency program committee/program director
Common questions
More questions about specialists trained abroad, each answered once with its official source, are in the IMG FAQ Center.
What is the Practice Eligibility Route in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation?
The Practice Eligibility Route (PER) is the Royal College process by which an internationally trained specialist can be assessed for eligibility to sit the certification examination in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation without repeating a Canadian residency. The Royal College reads your postgraduate training and practice record against the published Specialty Training Requirements for the discipline.
What training does the Royal College expect in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation?
The Specialty Training Requirements describe five (5) years of approved residency training. The full block-by-block structure is set out on this page, taken from the Royal College document for this discipline.
Does meeting the training requirements guarantee eligibility?
No. Eligibility is a committee decision made on your individual file, and other factors are considered. This page reproduces the published requirements so you can see how your own training compares before you apply; it is not an eligibility ruling.
Where do I start?
Read the seven steps in the PER guide, then have your training mapped against the Specialty Training Requirements before you pay any fees. The free PDF for this specialty carries the steps, the document checklist, and the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation requirements in one file.
The Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation guide as one PDF
The seven PER steps, your document checklist, and the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation training requirements in a single file. Free. Not sure the PER is your route? The screener checks your file against every route in about two minutes.
Other specialties27
Canadian clinical fellowships in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation are in the Fellowship Finder.
Adapted from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada Specialty Training Requirements for Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Royal College; every application is reviewed individually and final decisions rest solely with the Royal College. Verify current requirements at royalcollege.ca.