Restrictive permit – Sponsored professor

If you are an international medical graduate (IMG) and have an academic profile that meets an exceptional need, you may apply for a restrictive permit (sponsored professor) to practice medicine in Quebec. 

You must obtain a position as a sponsored professor in one of Quebec’s four faculties of medicine before you submit your application.

Physicians who do not meet the sponsored professor profile requirements and who completed their medical training or residency program in a faculty of medicine outside Canada or the United States may also take the following routes to the permit to practice:

• Regular permit – By recognition of the equivalence of an M.D. degree
• Restrictive permit – Quebec-France MRA – Practice Ready Assessment (PRA)
• Restrictive permit – Clinician – Practice Ready Assessment (PRA) 

Restrictive permit (sponsored professor)

Pursuant to section 35 of the Medical Act, the Collège may issue a restrictive permit (sponsored professor) in accordance with guidelines established for sponsored professors (in French only) (see the excerpt from the minutes of the meeting of the Board of Directors, CDA-20-152) that is valid for the term of your sponsored professor position. It may be converted subject to certain requirements.

The Committee on Admission to Practice (CAP) of the Collège is responsible for reviewing credentials and issuing permits.

The permit is restricted with respect to three aspects:

• place of practice (only authorized to practice in a health care institution; the permit does not authorize “independent” or private practice);
• the professional acts authorized;
• validity (1 year, renewable annually).

A restrictive permit may be converted into a regular permit subject to certain requirements. Please see the page Converting a restrictive permit into a regular permit.

The guidelines also set out the criteria for revoking a restrictive permit:

• the permit holder is struck off or resigns from the Roll of the Order;
• the permit holder no longer has privileges in a health care institution, confirmed by a resolution of the health care institution’s board of directors;
• the permit holder ceases to practice;
• the permit holder does not have a sponsored professor position in a Quebec university, irrespective of the health care institution they have privileges in.

Requirements:

• You have a Doctor of Medicine degree or an equivalent degree from a school or faculty listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools published by the Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER). 
• You have completed postgraduate training that is roughly equivalent to that required in Quebec in the discipline for which the restrictive permit application is being submitted.
• You have a specialist’s certificate (or equivalent credential) in the discipline for which the permit application is being submitted.
• You practiced competently in the area of medical expertise for which the restrictive permit application is being submitted for twelve months during the two years preceding your application. 
• You have provided proof of French language proficiency or passed the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) examination.
• You participated in the ALDO-Quebec educational activity before your permit was issued.

Since the full process is lengthy (9 to 18 months on average) and you must maintain your clinical experience, we encourage you to keep practicing as you complete the steps.

Note that the CMQ does not intervene at all steps of the process.
The deadlines indicated at certain steps are given as an indication. They can vary significantly depending on the individual background of the candidates. 

Step 1 – Obtain a sponsored professor position in one of Quebec’s four faculties of medicine

To be recruited as a sponsored professor, you will have to contact the Dean’s Office at one of Quebec’s four faculties of medicine in order to determine if you meet the eligibility criteria for the position. You will also have to contact the director of professional services in the health care institution where you obtain privileges.

A letter from the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and a letter from the health care institution’s Director of Professional Services must be sent directly to the Collège. 

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Step 2 – Submit an application for medical registration and the required documents

To submit an application, from your personal account on the MCC’s physiciansapply.ca site, please select:

1. Application for medical registration
2. QC Collège des médecins du Québec
3. Restrictive permit - Professor sponsored by a Québec Faculty of Medicine

You will also have to provide the required documents. Some must be sent to the Collège, while others must be submitted to physiciansapply.ca.

You are responsible for following up on any documents you submit to physiciansapply.ca (please authorize the Collège to access all your documents).

Note that these documents will be source verified and must be given the verification status “Passed” during the restrictive permit application process for the permit to be issued. 

Acknowledgment of receipt of the application: 5 business days

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Step 3 – Review of the complete file by the Committee on Admission to Practice (CAP)

The Committee on Admission to Practice (CAP) will render a decision regarding the issue of the restrictive permit (sponsored professor). The Committee meets regularly to study applications for eligibility for a restrictive permit based on the complete file. The CAP’s decision will be sent to you within 15 days of the date of the decision.

If you would like to request a review of the CAP’s decision, the procedure is as follows: you may request a review of the decision by the Collège’s Request Committee provided you submit your request in writing to the secretary of the CAP within 30 days of receipt of the CAP’s decision letter. The Request Committee also gives you the opportunity to make oral observations at the committee meeting where your file will be examined. The Request Committee’s decision will be sent to you by registered mail within 30 days of the date of the decision. It is final and may not be appealed. 

Meeting of the Committee on Admission to Practice every 5 to 6 weeks approximately

If you are dissatisfied with the processing of your application, you may file a complaint with an independent government body: the Commissioner for Admission to Professions. This recourse also applies to your dealings with third-party organizations involved in the process.

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Step 4 – Provide proof of French language proficiency

You must provide proof of French language proficiency (this link provides information about the examination, French courses and exemption criteria):

1. Pass the French examination administered by the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF). If you fail the examination, you must take it again every year before you renew your restrictive permit (sponsored professor)
   OR
2. Secondary school certificate or other certificate as stipulated in the exemption criteria. 

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Step 5 – Administrative formalities once the restrictive permit (sponsored professor) has been issued

If the CAP has resolved to issue you a restrictive permit (sponsored professor), you will be asked to:

• participate, before the restrictive permit is issued, in the educational activity on the legal, ethical and organizational aspects of medical practice in Quebec (ALDO-Quebec). Information is available about registration and locations;
• complete the Update of medical activities and Declarations form through the Collège’s Online services. Please note that a bill for the applicable fee will be added to your file for the issue of the restrictive permit. You may pay the fee from your personal page on the portal of the Collège’s website.

Acknowledgment of receipt of the application: 24 to 48 hours Issuance of the permit within 24 to 48 hours when the file is complete (all the required conditions are met)

Once you have received your permit to practice, you must take out professional liability insurance (in French only) and complete your first registration on the Roll of the Order. To do so, you must complete the online form First registration on the Roll of the Order on the Collège's secure site.

Processing of the first registration on the Roll of the Order and transmission to the RAMQ on the business day following receipt of the completed form

For information, write to: permisfqc@cmq.org.

To contact the Roll of the Order, write to: tableau@cmq.org.

For information about your RAMQ file, please call: 1 800 463-4776. 

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Telemedicine is important for you as well. Learn more in the Telemedicine section.

• Restrictive permit – Quebec-France MRA – Practice Ready Assessment (PRA)
• Restrictive permit – Sponsored professor
• Restrictive permit – Clinician – Practice Ready Assessment (PRA)
• Restrictive permit – Adaptation or assessment periods – PRA
• Converting a restrictive permit