A clinic in a mountain town, the Rockies on your doorstep, and a winter you’ll be talking about for years.
Canada’s on a lot of vets’ lists, and if you’re 35 or under (30 for some countries), a working holiday visa means it doesn’t have to be a permanent move. You could start with a season or two and decide from there.
Getting there takes three approvals from three different bodies: a national exam board, a provincial regulator and Canada’s immigration department. Here’s how each one works for vets trained in the UK, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand.
Step one: the national exam
The CVMA’s National Examining Board issues the Certificate of Qualification (CQ) you’ll need. How many exams that takes depends on where you trained.
If your school is on the AVMA’s accredited list, you need to pass the NAVLE within five attempts. When we checked in October 2026, the list included:
- UK: RVC, Bristol, Nottingham, Liverpool, Glasgow and Edinburgh
- Ireland: UCD
- Australia: Murdoch, Sydney, Melbourne and Queensland
- New Zealand: Massey
If your school isn’t on it, you’ll sit three exams (the BCSE, NAVLE and CPE) within seven years of registering with the Board, or take one of the alternative pathways.
Step two: the province
A CQ makes you eligible, but your licence comes from the province you work in. Each provincial body sets its own rules, and some add a jurisprudence exam. Two examples:
- Alberta: the ABVMA offers a Temporary Registered Veterinarian licence to non-accredited graduates who’ve enrolled with the Board and passed the BCSE. It requires immediate supervision and runs 12 months at a time, up to 48 months.
- Quebec: the OMVQ requires French proficiency and a law and regulations exam, and says to allow 2 to 3 months once your file is complete.
Other provinces and territories have their own requirements, so check the one you’re aiming for.
Step three: the work permit
International Experience Canada (IEC), run by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), is the working holiday route.
It’s open to 18 to 35-year-olds (18 to 30 for some countries) from countries with a youth mobility agreement, and Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and the UK all have a Working Holiday category. Australia, Ireland and the UK also offer Young Professionals, which needs a job offer at a qualifying skill level.
The 2026 season has closed. Profiles that didn’t get an invitation are removed, so you’d create a new one when the pools reopen for 2027 (no date’s been published yet).
A permit isn’t a licence, either: the ABVMA, for example, also asks you to show you’re legally entitled to work in Canada. For employer-sponsored permits or permanent residence, speak to an immigration adviser.
Visa details correct as of November 2026.
Where the work is
The most recent national picture is the CVMA’s 2019 workforce study, published in 2020. Of 1,019 vets surveyed, 49% said their clinic was looking to hire, clinics more than 2 hours from an urban centre were more likely to be over 90% booked, and Quebec was the most stretched province.
That’s pre-COVID data, so for which provinces and practice types are hiring now, talk to us.
Where you could live
Canada’s big enough that the province you pick shapes the whole experience. Four to start with:
Alberta
Calgary for city life, or Canmore and Banff if you want the Rockies on your doorstep. There’s plenty of mixed, equine and farm work, no provincial sales tax, and the temporary licence route covered above.
British Columbia
Vancouver, Vancouver Island or the Okanagan valley, with the mildest winters in the country. City living costs more here, so it’s worth weighing pay against rent.
Ontario
Canada’s most populous province, so the widest choice of roles, from small animal practices in Toronto and Ottawa to farm work a couple of hours out.
Quebec
Montreal’s food, festivals and old town are a big draw, and it’s the most stretched province for vets. You’ll need French for your licence, though.
Not sure where fits? Tell us what you want from a season or a move and we’ll point you to the provinces worth a look.
How GVC helps
Talk to us early. GVC will check where you stand on the exam route before you book anything, map the provinces and practices that suit the caseload you want, and be straight with you about what a role pays against the cost of living.
With 20,000+ successful appointments across 25+ countries, we’ll help you find a role that fits your career, lifestyle and ambitions, whether that’s a season in the Rockies or a longer move.
Weighing Canada against other options? Our Ireland guide and New Zealand guide cover other international moves.
