Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates
Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates
To be eligible for ECFMG Certification, international medical students/graduates must submit an Application for ECFMG Certification. The Application for ECFMG Certification confirms their intent to pursue ECFMG Certification and collects detailed information about their medical education, including provision of their medical education credentials. As part of completing the Application for ECFMG Certification, applicants will also confirm their understanding of the purpose of the ECFMG Certification program and the requirements for ECFMG Certification. You should read the detailed instructions for the application in MyIntealth before you begin working on it. You must establish a MyIntealth account and meet our identity verification requirements before you can begin the Application for ECFMG Certification. For the current fee for submitting an Application for ECFMG Certification, see the Fees page of the ECFMG website.
As part of the Application for ECFMG Certification, you will be asked to confirm certain information in your record with us, including your name, date of birth, and gender. If this information does not match exactly the information on your current, unexpired passport, you must have the information in your record changed to reflect the information as it appears on your passport before you can complete the Application for ECFMG Certification. Instructions for how to correct this information will be provided at the time of application.
To complete the Application for ECFMG Certification, you will be required to provide detailed information on your medical education, including your medical education status (student or graduate), the school that issued or will issue your medical degree, attendance dates, degree title, graduation date/anticipated graduation date, other schools attended, and credits transferred to the medical school from which you graduated/will graduate, if applicable.
If you are an international medical school student at the time you submit the Application for ECFMG Certification, you will be required to provide detailed information on your medical education as described above. Students must provide transcript(s) to document transfer credits, if applicable, and these transcript(s) must be evaluated and verified by ECFMG before the Application for ECFMG Certification is accepted. Once the Application for ECFMG Certification is accepted, students can apply for examination.
As soon as you graduate and receive your final medical diploma, you must update your Application for ECFMG Certification and submit a copy of your final medical diploma. Additional documentation may be required, if applicable. See Medical Education Credentials for detailed information on the documentation that may be required as part of your application. Your re-submitted Application for ECFMG Certification will not be accepted until ECFMG receives primary-source verification of your diploma and transcript directly from the issuing institution.
Graduates must provide the final medical diploma and, if applicable, transcript(s) to document transfer credits, and the graduate’s medical education credentials must be verified and accepted by ECFMG before the Application for ECFMG Certification is accepted. Once the Application for ECFMG Certification is accepted, graduates can apply for examination.
The exact degree title of the final medical diploma you must have earned (and must provide) in order to be eligible for ECFMG Certification and the examinations required for certification are listed in the Reference Guide for Medical Education Credentials on the ECFMG website. If you have graduated and met all requirements for your medical diploma but your medical diploma has not yet been issued, a letter signed by an authorized official of your medical school must be submitted with your Application for ECFMG Certification. The letter you submit must be the original document and must be written on your medical school’s letterhead. The letter must include the following statement:
This is to confirm that [applicant name] has graduated and completed all requirements to receive the [degree title] degree from [medical school/university name]. The degree will be issued [month and year].
You must then submit a copy of your medical diploma to ECFMG as soon as your diploma is issued by updating your Application for ECFMG Certification.
When ECFMG sends your final medical diploma for verification, we will request your medical school to provide a copy of your final medical school transcript. Your Application for ECFMG Certification cannot be accepted until ECFMG receives primary-source verification of your diploma and transcript directly from the issuing institution. See Medical Education Credentials.
All documents that are not in English must be accompanied by an official English translation that meets ECFMG’s translation requirements. See English Translations in Medical Education Credentials.
You can use MyIntealth to confirm the status of an Application for ECFMG Certification.
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[Last update: August 18, 2025]
