Specialty practice
Specialty practice
Registration in the full – specialty class permits a registrant to practise specialty medicine within the scope of their education, qualifications and experience. A registrant in the full class is responsible and accountable for their medical practice.
Requirements
To be eligible for registration and licensure in the full – specialty class, an applicant must:
- have a medical degree from a medical school listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools which includes a Canadian sponsor note
- meet the College’s English language proficiency requirements
- have Canadian citizenship, be a permanent resident or be legally able to live and work in British Columbia
- have obtained Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) certification
- be a licentiate of the Medical Council of Canada (LMCC) or have successfully completed licensing examinations in a non-Canadian jurisdiction acceptable to the Registration Committee
How to apply
Registration is a multi-step process that takes an average of six to eight weeks.
Applications are addressed based on the order in which they are received and the intended start date.
Applicants who meet the requirements for registration and licensure in the full – specialty class should complete an Application for Medical Registration (AMR) through physiciansapply.ca no more than three months prior to their intended start date.
The AMR is downloaded directly to the College’s database for review.
Once College staff confirms that the applicant meets the eligibility requirements, the applicant will be assigned a file manager.
The file manager will email the secondary application package to the applicant.
Applicants who hold an active full unrestricted licence in another Canadian jurisdiction may be eligible for a fast-tracked secondary application package.
The applicant submits to the College a fully completed secondary application along with all required documentation.
The file manager will review the completed application to ensure that no additional follow-up is required.
If no additional follow-up is required, the file manager will submit the applicant file for a final review and approval. The review process can take up to one week.
Once the application is reviewed and approved, the applicant will be directed to pay licensure fees. Following the payment of fees, a licence will be issued within three business days.
Maintaining the licence
Ongoing registration and licensure in the full – specialty class is maintained by
- satisfactory completion of the annual licence renewal form,
- online payment of the annual licence renewal fee as detailed in Schedule A of the College Bylaws,
- payment of any other outstanding fine, fee, penalty fee, debt, levy or costs owed to the College,
- ongoing compliance with continuing competency requirements,
- ongoing professional liability coverage or protection, and
- provision of certificates of professional conduct, where applicable.
The annual licence renewal process is accessed through the registrant portal. Registrants will be notified by email of the licence renewal process in late December or early January each year.
Penalties and fines
Registrants must complete the annual licensure process by March 1 to avoid a $500 penalty. The penalty increases by $100 increments each month until the process is completed.
Failure to complete the annual licensure process will also result in the suspension of a registrant’s licence on April 1. The licence will be reinstated when the annual licence renewal form is completed to the satisfaction of the College, and online payment of all outstanding fees and penalties are made.
Renew the licence by March 1 each year
Registrants cannot practise medicine, prescribe or charge for services rendered without being registered with the College.
For more information about the requirements for registration and licensure, refer to:
- section 20 of the Health Professions Act
- section 2 of the College Bylaws
- College registration policies