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What is a pathway for a Canadian trained Doc to practice in the USA?


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If someone does med school in Canada and does a specialist residency like Ortho and can't find a job because of the horrible job market for surgeons. Can they do an American fellowship and practice in the USA? From my understanding the US accepts Canadian accreditation but what is the visa situation like? Is it hard to get a visa to go practice in the USA? Also what is the path to go about doing that?

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  • 2 months later...

Briefly, US fellowship on an H1b or J-1 (requires USMLE).  Then job on A SIMILAR visa -- with concerns about ability to transfer and possible requirement to leave the country for 1-2 years at visa expiration (3-6years with conditional annual renewal required as of this year).  Ultimately, you need your employer to sponsor you for permanent residency which right now has anual caps and--at best--a processing time of 3-5 years during which time you may not be allowed to stay in the US.

At the end it's possible with a moderate to high level of difficulty and adds a good deal of uncertainty and limits your opportunities. Obtaining a visa requires participation/costs from your employer so expect to be restricted both in opportunities and mobility--there are technical issues that limit locations to academic centers mostly. 

The US Visa process is very very broken do expect long delays which may create gaps in practice. Gaps in practice may ultimately tank your whole career. 

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