Incentives
Canada Student Loan Forgiveness – Did You Know?
Family medicine residents working in an under-served, rural, or remote community in Canada may be eligible for the Government of Canada’s Canada Student Loan Forgiveness for Family Doctors and Nurses program.
- As a resident or family doctor, if you complete at least 400 hours total of in-person service over a 12 month period, you may be eligible for up to $8,000 in loan forgiveness for that year. You could receive up to $60,000 in Canada Student Loan forgiveness over a maximum of five years ($8,000 in year 1, $10,000 in year 2, $12,000 in year 3, $14,000 in year 4 and $16,000 in year 5).
- Your five years of service do not have to be consecutive. If you have a Canada Student Loan balance at the end of each year of service in an eligible community, you can qualify for loan forgiveness for five years.
- For more information about the program, eligibility criteria and application details please view the Government of Canada’s website. To determine if a community qualifies under this program, use the Postal Code Lookup Tool. Find a postal code on the Canada Post website.
Ministry of Health incentives for Northern and Rural work
Recruitment and retention to Northern and Rural sites:
• The Northern and Rural Recruitment and Retention Initiative (NRRRI): The objective of the NRRRI is to attract physicians to establish a full-time practice in eligible underserviced communities.
• The NRRRI offers taxable financial recruitment incentives to each eligible physician who establishes a full-time practice in an eligible community of the province. The grants range between $84,718 and $124,730 paid over a four-year period. The financial recruitment incentives will be awarded based on eligibility criteria and considerations related to total NRRRI budget allocations.
• Retention beyond 4 years: The Northern Physician Retention Initiative (NPRI) was established as an initiative under the 2000 Ontario Medical Association (OMA) Framework Agreement to enable eligible physicians in northern Ontario to receive the equivalent of a $7,460.95 retention incentive paid at the end of each fiscal year in which they continue to practice full-time in northern Ontario
• The Community Assessment Visit Program promotes the relocation/recruitment of health care professionals to eligible rural and Northern Ontario communities and provide reimbursement for travel and accommodation expenses incurred by health care professionals and their spouse within Ontario for purposes of assessing practice opportunities in an eligible community of the province.
• The Northern and Rural Recruitment and Retention Initiative (NRRRI): The objective of the NRRRI is to attract physicians to establish a full-time practice in eligible underserviced communities.
• The NRRRI offers taxable financial recruitment incentives to each eligible physician who establishes a full-time practice in an eligible community of the province. The grants range between $84,718 and $124,730 paid over a four-year period. The financial recruitment incentives will be awarded based on eligibility criteria and considerations related to total NRRRI budget allocations.
• Retention beyond 4 years: The Northern Physician Retention Initiative (NPRI) was established as an initiative under the 2000 Ontario Medical Association (OMA) Framework Agreement to enable eligible physicians in northern Ontario to receive the equivalent of a $7,460.95 retention incentive paid at the end of each fiscal year in which they continue to practice full-time in northern Ontario
• The Community Assessment Visit Program promotes the relocation/recruitment of health care professionals to eligible rural and Northern Ontario communities and provide reimbursement for travel and accommodation expenses incurred by health care professionals and their spouse within Ontario for purposes of assessing practice opportunities in an eligible community of the province.