Medicine Professional Corporation Ontario: CPSO Guide 2026

A medicine professional corporation Ontario physicians commonly set up for tax planning — accessing the small business deduction and deferring personally taxed income — is more than a standard incorporation. It is a two-step structure: first you incorporate under Ontario's Business Corporations Act (OBCA) through the Ontario Business Registry, and then the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) must issue the corporation a certificate of authorization before a single patient can be billed through it.

Physicians and their advisors call it a medical professional corporation; CPSO and the regulation call it a medicine professional corporation, and the legal name must use the College's wording exactly. Same entity, and the naming rule below is where the difference actually bites.

The rules sit in the OBCA and O. Reg. 665/05 (Health Profession Corporations), and CPSO applies them strictly — especially the corporate name format. This guide covers both steps, the family shareholder rules unique to physicians and dentists, and the two renewal tracks that keep the corporation alive. It describes the tax angles factually only; the numbers for your own practice belong with your accountant.

Key facts at a glance

Item	Ontario rule
Governing legislation	Business Corporations Act (Ontario) + O. Reg. 665/05 (Health Profession Corporations)
Corporate registry	Ontario Business Registry (ServiceOntario)
Regulator & required authorization	CPSO — certificate of authorization
Naming rule	"[Surname] Medicine Professional Corporation" — surname of a physician shareholder as it appears on the CPSO register, optional given names/initials, no other words. French form: "Medecine Societe Professionnelle"
Who may hold voting shares	CPSO-registered physicians only
Family shareholders allowed?	Yes — spouse, child or parent of a voting physician shareholder may hold non-voting shares
Registry filing fee	$300 (articles of incorporation)
Regulator fee	$400 application / $175 annual renewal
Renewal cycle	CPSO certificate renews on its own issue-date anniversary each year; registry annual return within 6 months of fiscal year-end

How to set up a medical professional corporation in Ontario

The full sequence, in order:

1. Choose a compliant name — the surname of a CPSO-member shareholder exactly as it appears on the College register, optionally with given names or initials, ending in "Medicine Professional Corporation" and nothing else.
2. Order an Ontario-biased NUANS report — a professional corporation cannot be a numbered company.
3. Prepare articles restricting the business to the practice of medicine and restricting shares per O. Reg. 665/05, so the corporation reaches CPSO already compliant.
4. File articles of incorporation at the Ontario Business Registry — $300, processed immediately online.
5. Obtain a Corporation Profile Report — CPSO requires one with the application, and it does not need to be certified.
6. Apply through the CPSO Member Portal, "Corporations" tab, disclosing all physician and family shareholders, with the certificate of incorporation and the $400 non-refundable fee.
7. Allow two to three weeks. Once the certificate of authorization issues, the corporation may practise medicine and bill OHIP through its own accounts.
8. Renew both tracks annually — the certificate on its own issue-date anniversary ($175), and the registry annual return within six months of fiscal year-end.

Step 3 is where most physician incorporations go wrong, and fixing it later means paying for articles of amendment. The two sections below cover each track in full.

Step 1: Incorporate at the registry

Every medicine professional corporation begins as an ordinary OBCA corporation filed through the Ontario Business Registry. The government fee for articles of incorporation is $300, processed immediately online; because a professional corporation cannot be a numbered company, you will also need an Ontario-biased NUANS name search report for the proposed name.

The name is where most physician incorporations go wrong. Under O. Reg. 665/05 the name must contain the surname of one or more shareholders who are CPSO members as it appears on the College register, may add given names or initials, must indicate the profession, and must end with "Professional Corporation" — and nothing else. CPSO's own examples are "Smith Medicine Professional Corporation" and "John (or J.) Smith Medicine Professional Corporation". Adding a clinic brand, a specialty or the word "Dr." takes the name offside, and CPSO advises confirming the articles — particularly the name — meet certificate of authorization requirements before filing with the Ministry. Fixing it afterwards means paying for articles of amendment.

Your articles should also restrict the corporation's business to the practice of medicine and activities related or ancillary to it, and restrict shares in line with the regulation, so the corporation arrives at CPSO already compliant.

Step 2: Get your CPSO certificate of authorization

Applications are made online through the CPSO Member Portal — log in, open the "Corporations" tab, and complete the application. You must be a registered CPSO member when you apply. According to CPSO's incorporation pages, the application requires:

• the completed portal application, with all physician and family shareholders disclosed;
• a copy of the certificate of incorporation (an uncertified copy is acceptable);
• a certificate of amendment if the articles have changed since incorporation; and
• the $400 non-refundable application fee, paid online.

CPSO indicates a completed application takes roughly two to three weeks to process, for both new and renewal certificates.

The application also requires a Corporation Profile Report for the corporation. It does not need to be certified, and CPSO tells physicians they may obtain one either by contacting the Ministry directly or by "using any online websites that provide the service to generate the report" — which is exactly what we do. If yours has expired ahead of a renewal, we can pull a current one same-day through a professional corporation profile report, along with a certificate of status or certified copies if a lender, hospital or billing arrangement asks for them.

Once the certificate of authorization is issued, the corporation may practise medicine and bill OHIP through its own accounts.

Shareholders, directors and restrictions

Voting shares must be legally and beneficially owned by physicians registered with CPSO. The physician-specific concession — shared only with dentists among Ontario's health professions — is that O. Reg. 665/05 lets family members of a voting physician shareholder hold non-voting shares, with "family member" defined as the shareholder's spouse, child or parent. CPSO confirms common-law spouses, step-children and step-parents qualify; parents-in-law do not. A trustee may also hold non-voting shares in trust for a voting shareholder's minor children. Holding companies, however, cannot own shares in a medicine professional corporation, which closes off the holdco structures some other professions use.

Directors and officers must be shareholders, which in practice means the physician(s). And the structure is actively supervised: CPSO must be notified through the Member Portal within 15 days of any change in shareholders, supported by a director's statutory declaration confirming continued compliance.

Keeping it alive: annual renewals

Two renewal tracks run in parallel, and both matter.

CPSO track. The certificate of authorization renews annually — $175, paid in the Member Portal. The renewal date is not a fixed calendar date: CPSO states plainly that "the renewal date is the same as the certificate's date of issue," and the actual date sits in your online CPSO profile. This is the single most-confused point on Ontario physician incorporation, because CPSO's other annual deadline — your own registration renewal, due June 1 — is a different filing entirely. One is you; one is the corporation.

Renewal is done in the portal under the "Corporations" tab, and your existing certificate stays valid while the renewal is processed (two to three weeks). If the corporation fails to renew or falls out of compliance, CPSO issues a notice that the certificate will be revoked in 60 days unless resolved — "no exceptions" — and without a certificate, practising through the corporation must stop.

Registry track. The corporation files its annual return through the Ontario Business Registry within six months of its fiscal year-end and must keep director, officer and registered-office information current. Persistent non-filing can lead to cancellation of the corporation itself.

Our professional corporation renewals guide covers both calendars and what to do if a certificate has already lapsed.

Why physicians incorporate

The attraction is mostly tax mechanics. Active practice income retained inside a Canadian-controlled private corporation is taxed at the small business rate rather than top personal marginal rates, creating a deferral for income you do not need personally this year. Paying yourself by salary, dividends, or a mix adds income-timing flexibility, and non-voting family shareholders can broaden planning options within the rules that apply after the tax-on-split-income regime. Incorporation does not reduce your professional liability — OBCA section 3.4 preserves it fully, and CPSO insurance obligations continue. Whether the structure is worth its running costs depends on your income and spending pattern: confirm the numbers with your accountant before incorporating.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a medicine professional corporation cost in Ontario?

Government and regulator fees total roughly $700 to start: $300 to file articles of incorporation at the Ontario Business Registry, plus CPSO's $400 non-refundable certificate of authorization application fee, plus a NUANS name report. Ongoing costs include CPSO's $175 annual renewal and your accounting fees. Professional service fees for drafting compliant articles are additional.

Do I need CPSO approval before incorporating?

No formal pre-approval — you incorporate first, then apply. But CPSO tells physicians to make sure the articles, especially the corporate name, meet certificate of authorization requirements before submitting them to the Ministry. If the name or share provisions are wrong, you will have to file articles of amendment before CPSO will issue the certificate.

Can my spouse own shares in my medicine professional corporation?

Yes — as non-voting shares only. O. Reg. 665/05 lets a spouse, child or parent of a voting physician shareholder hold non-voting shares, and CPSO confirms common-law spouses and step-relations qualify (parents-in-law do not). Voting shares must stay with CPSO-registered physicians, and holding companies cannot hold shares at all.

What is the deadline to renew a CPSO certificate of authorization?

On the anniversary of the certificate's issue date — not a fixed calendar date, and not the June 1 deadline for your own registration renewal. CPSO confirms "the renewal date is the same as the certificate's date of issue"; the exact date is in your CPSO online profile. The fee is $175 through the Member Portal. Miss it and the College issues a notice revoking the certificate in 60 days unless you bring the corporation back into compliance — after which the corporation cannot practise medicine.

What name can I give my medical corporation in Ontario?

The format is strict: your surname as registered with CPSO, optionally with given names or initials, followed by "Medicine Professional Corporation" — nothing more. "Smith Medicine Professional Corporation" and "J. Smith Medicine Professional Corporation" work; adding "Dr.", a clinic name or a specialty does not. Numbered names are prohibited for professional corporations.

How long does CPSO take to issue a certificate of authorization?

CPSO estimates roughly two to three weeks for a complete application submitted through the Member Portal with the copy of the certificate of incorporation, any certificate of amendment, full shareholder disclosure and the $400 fee. Incomplete applications or non-compliant articles are the usual causes of delay.

Incorporate your medicine professional corporation — free consultation

Two filings, one deadline-proof plan. In a free consultation, a Corporate Registry Services specialist maps both steps for your Ontario practice — the registry incorporation with regulator-compliant articles and naming, and the CPSO authorization that lets you practise through it — plus the annual renewals that keep both alive.

Book your free professional corporation consultation →

Related guides

• Professional Corporations in Canada: The Complete Guide
• Professional Corporations in Ontario: The Complete Guide
• Professional Corporation Renewals and Compliance
• Law Professional Corporation in Ontario (LSO)