AFMC Fees for Portal and Documents for Canadians Studying Abroad

Short answer: a Canadian studying abroad (CSA) pays the AFMC Student Portal‘s one-time, non-refundable international registration fee of $745 before a first application, then each host school’s international application and acceptance fees, plus any fees the school charges outside the portal. At the nine schools in our table, one elective costs from $1,426.32 (Manitoba, before its mandatory malpractice insurance) to $1,979 (NOSM) in fees alone, before travel and housing. Saskatchewan, which takes only some CSAs, costs more.

By Dr. Bilal Akil, MD — Emergency Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University · founder of mccQbank

AFMC fees, school by school

The table covers schools that accept international applicants, a route open to CSAs (each with its own eligibility rules). School fees are from the portal’s fees-by-school page, marked “Subject to change” and “Effective May 11, 2025”, checked against each school’s profile on 13 October 2026. “Total” adds the $745 registration fee, the school’s international application and acceptance fees, and the fixed fees it lists outside the portal.

Saskatchewan takes international students only if they are Saskatchewan students studying abroad (with a valid Saskatchewan health card) or nominated RCSI, LMU and IFMSA students. It lists $50 and $150 on the portal but also charges international students $600 a week after confirmation, plus a $100 registration with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan. A 2-week elective there comes to $2,245 with the registration fee.

The $745 is paid once, not per school. A second school adds only its own AFMC fees, so Ottawa plus McMaster comes to $2,439.89.

When AFMC fees are due

• Registration fee: the first of your AFMC fees, paid once, before you submit your first application. Creating an account is free, and AFMC notes that some fee exemptions apply.
• Application fee: when you apply. McMaster says its fee is due at submission and must be paid as part of the application.
• Acceptance fee: when you accept an offer. The portal’s student guide gives international students 7 days to accept; Toronto says you must accept and pay within seven days, and McMaster charges its second fee once an elective is confirmed and accepted.
• Fees outside the portal: paid separately. Saskatchewan invoices its weekly fee after confirmation, due before the elective begins; Toronto’s verification fee is paid directly to Synergy; NOSM sells its malpractice and UHIP cover through its own payment platform.To see when each school’s application window opens, check our 2027 visiting elective dates.

Documents most schools ask for

The AFMC Immunization and Testing Form

Applications must include the AFMC Student Portal Immunization and Testing Form, and AFMC says to use only the most recent version. You complete Section A (and Appendices A, B and D if they apply to you); a health care professional whose scope of practice includes immunization completes most of the rest. Close family members and postgraduate residents may not complete any part of it. You upload the form and its appendices as a single PDF. AFMC also notes that parental recall of earlier vaccines “is not acceptable as evidence of immunization”, so find your records early.

A police check

Schools disagree on which country’s check they want, so read each profile:

• Western: a current criminal record check from the country where you study, translated into English.
• Ottawa: a Police Vulnerable Sector Screening or the equivalent from your country of residence, no more than 12 months old and valid for the whole elective; processing can take 2 to 12 weeks.
• McMaster: a vulnerable sector check or equivalent from each country where you lived for more than six months in a row in the past five years, dated within 12 months of the elective’s end.
• Saskatchewan: a check from the jurisdiction where you attend medical school.
• NOSM: a police record check with a vulnerable sector check from Canada.
• Dalhousie: a police records check for service with the vulnerable sector, valid within 12 months of the end of the placement.

Health insurance

Your provincial health card can matter. Western accepts a provincial card as proof of coverage and asks for private coverage if it has expired. Ottawa exempts CSAs from its UHIP charge when they email proof of provincial coverage, and it does not accept international coverage. Toronto requires UHIP only for students without a valid Canadian health card; its profile puts the 2027 fee at about $66 a month, while the fees page lists $79. NOSM lists a $79 UHIP fee for CSAs.

Everything else

• Proof of citizenship or permanent residence: Western, Ottawa and NOSM all ask for it, because their CSA routes depend on it.
• N95 fit test: Western treats a fit test as valid for 2 years; Saskatchewan wants one within 24 months of the start date.
• CPR or BLS for health care providers: Ottawa (valid 12 months, with an in-person component) and Dalhousie.
• Letter of good standing: Dalhousie wants your program, its length and language, your current year and your expected graduation date (month and year); Western wants your student number, expected graduation year and confirmation that the program language is English.
• Language: Dalhousie lets CSAs upload a driver’s licence or passport as proof of language competence. McMaster asks every international student for proof of English: a school letter, IELTS 6.5 or TOEFL 86. UBC needs IELTS-Academic with 7 in each component unless the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC accepts that English was the main language of both your education and your patient care, for example through a letter your school emails to the College confirming at least 51%.

How to keep AFMC fees down

• Read every profile before paying any AFMC fees: the $745 buys access, not eligibility, and it does not guarantee a placement. To see which schools accept CSAs, read our guide to Visiting Electives in Canada for Canadians Studying Abroad.
• Time your police check so one certificate covers several electives where schools accept the same country’s check. Ottawa accepts one no more than 12 months old that stays valid for the whole elective, and Dalhousie wants one valid within 12 months of the placement’s end.
• Check the malpractice rules. Western, Dalhousie, Queen’s, UBC and McMaster build their cover into the acceptance fee, Toronto charges its own only if your school does not cover you, and Manitoba makes international students buy cover.
• Apply only for dates you can attend. The portal’s student guide says “All fees are Non-Refundable”, and Queen’s keeps its elective fee if you cancel a confirmed elective.

For the bigger picture of coming home, see our guide to returning to Canada after medical school abroad, and our guide to writing the MCCQE before you graduate covers the exam costs that come next.

If the MCCQE is part of your plan, practise in its format early. mccQbank has 2,400+ bilingual MCCQE questions in English and French. Try 30 free questions.

Frequently asked questions

Is the $745 AFMC registration fee refundable?

No. The portal calls it a one-time, non-refundable fee, and paying it does not guarantee a placement. You pay it before your first application; creating an account and browsing electives is free, so check eligibility first.

Do I need UHIP as a Canadian studying abroad?

It depends on the school and your provincial coverage. Ottawa waives the charge for CSAs who send proof of provincial coverage, Toronto requires UHIP only without a valid Canadian health card, and NOSM lists a $79 UHIP fee for CSAs.

Who can fill in the AFMC immunization form?

You complete Section A and any appendices that apply; a health care professional whose scope of practice includes immunization completes most of the rest. AFMC does not allow close family members or postgraduate residents to complete any part of it.