CaRMS 2027 Timeline for IMGs: Every R-1 Date and Deadline

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

The short answer: To take part as an IMG you must, among other things, have written and passed the NAC Examination and the MCCQE (formerly MCCQE Part I), with some provincial exceptions (CaRMS eligibility criteria).

26 November 2026, 12:00 noon ET: applications and all required documents submitted and assigned to programs. File review starts five minutes later.

18 February 2027, 15:00 ET: rank order list deadline. CaRMS calls it firm.

2 March 2027, 12:00 noon ET: Match Day for the first iteration.

20 April 2027, 12:00 noon ET: Match Day for the second iteration.

The 2027 CaRMS R-1 Main Residency Match is already running. CaRMS Online opened on 9 September 2026, program selection opens on 15 October, and the deadline that matters most, submitting and assigning your applications and documents, is 26 November 2026 at 12:00 noon ET. For an international medical graduate (IMG), most of the work that decides whether you meet that deadline happens weeks before it.

This CaRMS 2027 timeline guide puts every R-1 date in one place, for both iterations, and adds what an IMG needs to have done by each one. Every date below comes from the CaRMS applicant timelines, read on 4 October 2026. CaRMS says its dates are subject to change, so check the first-iteration timeline before you act on any of them.

First Iteration Dates in the CaRMS 2027 Timeline

From the CaRMS R-1 first-iteration applicant timeline. Times are Eastern.

Two lines in the CaRMS 2027 timeline need particular attention from IMGs.

Interviews. The national interview period is for current-year Canadian graduates interviewing out of town. CaRMS says interviews for IMGs “are coordinated separately with no specific national interview period”, and programs schedule them directly. Do not assume your interviews fall between 16 January and 7 February.

Late documents. Anything submitted or assigned after 12:00 noon on 26 November is time-stamped late, and CaRMS warns that “some programs will not review late applications or documents”. The program description is where each program says whether it will.

Second Iteration Dates in the CaRMS 2027 Timeline

From the CaRMS R-1 second-iteration applicant timeline. Times are Eastern.

The second iteration in the CaRMS 2027 timeline matters more to IMGs than to anyone else. The first iteration is only open to applicants with no previous RCPSC, CFPC or ACGME accredited postgraduate training in Canada or the U.S. (CaRMS counts preliminary training in the U.S. as accredited training here, and notes that some exceptions may apply). If you have that training, the second iteration is the one you can enter. It is also where unmatched first-iteration applicants go: the gap between Match Day on 2 March and the second-iteration application deadline on 16 March is two weeks.

What CaRMS asks of an IMG

The CaRMS eligibility criteria for IMGs, in summary:

• Be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada (CaRMS notes that some exceptions may apply).
• Have obtained, or be in the process of obtaining, a medical degree by 1 July of the match year from a school listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools and recognized in Canada (U.S. allopathic graduates on or after 1 July 2025 and U.S. osteopathic graduates are also in this group).
• Have written and passed the NAC Examination and the MCCQE. Some provinces may allow exceptions to either exam; CaRMS points to its summary of MCC examination requirements.
• Have your Medical Identification Number for Canada (MINC) and enter it in your application.
• For British Columbia, Alberta or Quebec, complete that province’s assessment before you can apply through CaRMS.

Provinces and programs can add their own rules: language proficiency, the Casper test, return-of-service and others. CaRMS’s own advice is to read the provincial criteria and the program descriptions for every place you apply.

Working Backwards From 26 November in the CaRMS 2027 Timeline

To work backwards through the CaRMS 2027 timeline, this is the order an IMG’s file usually comes together in. It is a planning sketch, not a CaRMS rule.

1. Exam results first. CaRMS accepts MCC exam results only as transfers from physiciansapply.ca (CaRMS summary of MCC examination requirements), so aim to have your MCCQE and NAC results there before file review opens. The MCC says that whenever you sit the extended August to October 2026 MCCQE session, you “will receive your result in time for the 2027 CaRMS R-1 Main Residency Match” (MCC: MCCQE results). Results for the first batch (exams from 19 August to 11 September 2026) came out on 1 October 2026 (MCC news). The NAC is tighter: the MCC lists results for the September 2026 session as “Late November 2026” (MCC NAC scheduling page), close to the 26 November deadline. If your NAC result may arrive after file review opens, check each program description for whether it will review your file.
2. References early. The referee deadline (25 November, 21:00) sits fifteen hours before the application deadline. A referee who is late costs you a document; ask in October, not November.
3. Translation by the cut-offs. If you want your MSPR or references translated through the CaRMS-facilitated translation service, request it through CaRMS Online by 17:00 ET on 21 October (MSPR) or 5 November (references).
4. Program selection from 15 October. Read each program description before you assign documents. That is where you find the program’s own requirements and whether it reviews late files.
5. Submit before the morning of the 26th. File review opens at 12:05. Nothing is gained by submitting at 11:59.

Not sure which pathway fits your training?

On 24 September 2026 the MCC announced a free Licensure Pathway Navigation Service for internationally trained physicians (MCC news): a one-time, one-on-one virtual consultation of about 60 minutes with a licensure navigation specialist, in English or French. It is a pilot with a limited number of consultations, and to qualify you must meet criteria tied to your physiciansapply.ca account, source verification, language proficiency and postgraduate training. The MCC says decisions rest with the responsible programs and medical regulatory authorities, so treat the consultation as orientation, not approval.

If you are writing exams for 2028 instead

If your MCCQE or NAC will not be done in time for this match, the plan shifts a year. Our posts on MCCQE exam dates for 2027 and NAC OSCE dates for 2027 set out the sessions, and how an IMG gets licensed in Canada shows where CaRMS sits in the whole sequence. If you are still at medical school abroad, writing the MCCQE before you graduate explains the 15-month rule. To add Canadian clinical experience before you apply, check the visiting elective dates for 2027 at each school.

FAQ

What Is the Application Deadline in the CaRMS 2027 Timeline?

26 November 2026 at 12:00 noon ET for the first iteration, and 16 March 2027 at 12:00 noon ET for the second (CaRMS first-iteration and second-iteration timelines).

When is CaRMS Match Day 2027?

2 March 2027 at 12:00 noon ET for the first iteration, and 20 April 2027 at 12:00 noon ET for the second.

Do IMGs need both the MCCQE and the NAC for CaRMS?

CaRMS’s basic eligibility for IMGs lists both, but notes that some provinces may allow exceptions to either exam. Check the summary of MCC examination requirements for each province you are applying to.

Can I enter the first iteration if I have done residency elsewhere?

Not if it was RCPSC, CFPC or ACGME accredited postgraduate training in Canada or the U.S., including U.S. preliminary training. CaRMS directs those applicants to the second iteration, with some exceptions.

Are IMG interviews in the national interview period?

No. CaRMS says IMG interviews are coordinated separately, with no specific national interview period; programs schedule them directly.

When do September 2026 NAC results come out?

The MCC lists “Late November 2026” for the September 2026 NAC session (MCC NAC scheduling). That is close to CaRMS’s 26 November 2026 application deadline, so read each program’s description on late documents before you rely on it.

Where the MCCQE fits

For most IMGs, the MCCQE is the exam that has to be passed before anything on this page applies. It has 230 multiple-choice questions in two sections of 115 (MCC: the MCCQE). mccQbank has 2,400+ bilingual MCCQE practice questions written for that format. Try 30 free questions in mccQbank.