WES Response to Ontario Government on Policy Change Regarding Eligibility for International Medical Graduate (IMG) Residency Training Positions

Oct 10, 2025

Canada needs more health care providers. In Ontario, over 2.5 million individuals don’t have a family doctor, with acute shortages in rural and northern regions. Every Ontarian should have access to a qualified physician and a health care team.

One key part of the solution is to have a coherent set of pathways so that internationally trained doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals who have immigrated to Canada can demonstrate their competency, qualify for a license, and fully contribute their skills and experience to our health care system.

To date, the Ontario government has made important strides towards expanded access to licensure for both Canadian trained and internationally trained physicians by:

· Expanding the number of medical schools and increasing the number of residency training positions

· Launching Practice Ready Ontario, enabling some eligible and experienced internationally trained physicians to complete a three-month assessment to demonstrate competency to practice here in Ontario rather than repeating unnecessary residency training

However, the policy announcement this week on limiting access to residency training for international medical graduates (IMGs) misses the mark and undermines existing efforts to expand access to licensure for this group of Ontarians.

It limits eligibility for designated IMG training positions to those who completed at least two years of high school in Ontario before studying medicine abroad.

This interpretation of who is an Ontarian excludes immigrant physicians in Ontario who are permanent residents, or Canadian citizens, from a fair chance to compete for the designated IMG residency positions. Our health care system loses out on the chance to benefit from their much-needed skills and experience.

Other provinces that have implemented similar medical residency policies have taken more inclusive approaches. For example, New Brunswick allows IMGs with a “proven connection” to the province—defined as having lived there for at least six months—to apply.

We call on the Ontario government to reconsider and to ensure fair access for internationally trained physicians, including those invited through Canada’s immigration system, who have made Ontario their home, and who are seeking to contribute their skills to serve patients in Ontario.

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