Postgraduate Training License
A United States, Canadian, and international graduate from a Board-approved medical school who has not already completed 36 months of accredited training, does not hold a physician’s and surgeon’s license, passed all required examinations, and is accepted in an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) accredited postgraduate training program in California must obtain a Postgraduate Training License (PTL) within 180 days of enrollment.
The postgraduate training license may be valid for up to 39 months if the resident is enrolled in an ACGME-accredited residency program in California. This allows the resident to complete the 36 months of required training for licensure and grants the resident 90 days to obtain the physician’s and surgeon’s license while they continue their training. If the physician’s and surgeon’s license is not issued by the end of the 90-day grace period, all clinical services in California must cease.
License Requirements
To be eligible for a training license in California, you must have received all of your medical school education and graduated from a medical school recognized by the Board.
You must disclose an SSN, ITIN, or FEIN prior to the issuance of a license.
As an applicant, you personally are responsible for all information disclosed on
your application including any responses that may have been completed
on your behalf by others. An application may be denied based upon omission, falsification
or misrepresentation of any item or response on the application or any attachment.
The Medical Board of California considers violations of an ethical nature to be
a serious breach of professional conduct.
Direct Online Certification Submission (DOCS)
The Direct Online Certification Submission (DOCS) service is a secure, fast, and reliable online document delivery system that
allows medical schools and postgraduate training programs to submit certain primary-source licensing documents to the Board.
DOCS will accept verification forms, official transcripts, certified diplomas, letters of explanation, and more.
Apply Online
You may answer the application questions and pay the application fee online using our BreEZe online services system. If you do not have an SSN or ITIN, you will be required to submit your application and fees by mail. To complete the application process, the following items will need to be submitted to the Board. Contact the appropriate program or organization to proceed with items you are not responsible for submitting.
You must submit:
The certification/examination organization must submit:
The medical school(s) attended must submit:
The training program(s) must submit:
The state or Canadian province licensing authority must submit:
- Licensing verification from each state or Canadian province, if applicable
Note: Verification of temporary, training, or provisional license(s) is not required.
Apply by Mail
You may submit your application and application fees directly to the Board by mailing them both to: Medical Board of California, 2005 Evergreen Street, Sacramento, CA 95815. Please make check or money order payable to the Medical Board of California. To complete the application process the following items will need to be submitted to the Board. Contact the appropriate program or organization to proceed with items you are not responsible for submitting.
You must submit:
The certification/examination organization must submit:
The medical school(s) attended must submit:
The training program(s) must submit, if applicable:
The state or Canadian province licensing authority must submit:
- Licensing verification from each state or Canadian province, if applicable
Note: Verification of temporary, training, or provisional license(s) is not required.
Other Forms and Information