Doctor take-home pay in Canada after tax, 2026
Very few Canadian physicians draw a salary. Most bill the provincial health plan as independent fee-for-service practitioners and cover their own practice costs out of what comes back. That single arrangement changes how take-home pay has to be calculated, and it opens a tax route almost no other profession can use.
Net pay at each stage of a medical career, 2026
Residents draw a salary under provincial agreements such as PARO in Ontario. Practising physicians bill gross clinical payments and then subtract practice overhead, with whatever remains becoming personal taxable income, and the figures below already account for typical overhead by specialty. Deducted are federal income tax, CPP at 5.95% up to the YMPE and EI at 1.66% up to the ceiling, with provincial tax excluded.
| Stage / Specialty | Taxable Income | Monthly Net (federal only) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resident, PGY-1 | C$68,000 | C$4,610/mo | 18.7% |
| Resident, PGY-5 (Chief) | C$80,000 | C$5,414/mo | 18.8% |
| Family Medicine (after ~30% overhead) | C$196,000 | C$12,748/mo | 21.9% |
| General Surgery (after ~25% overhead) | C$332,250 | C$20,490/mo | 26.0% |
| Ophthalmology (after ~35% overhead) | C$377,000 | C$22,988/mo | 26.8% |
| Diagnostic Radiology (after ~20% overhead) | C$448,800 | C$26,997/mo | 27.8% |
Practising physician figures apply typical overhead to CIHI's average gross clinical payments by specialty, where family medicine grosses roughly C$280,000, general surgery C$443,000, ophthalmology C$580,000 and diagnostic radiology C$561,000. Real overhead varies with the clinic model and the province, and provincial tax is excluded. Source: CIHI National Physician Database 2025-26 and the PARO/PAIRO resident scales.
The medical professional corporation, a lever few others have
Since most Canadian physicians are unincorporated business owners rather than employees, every province permits them to incorporate as a Medical Professional Corporation. Nothing else in a Canadian medical career carries comparable financial weight, and no salaried profession has the option at all.
- Active business income earned inside an MPC is taxed at the small business rate - roughly 11-13% combined federal/provincial on the first C$500,000 of active income, versus personal marginal rates that exceed 50% at the top provincial brackets
- A physician can pay themselves a modest salary or dividend to cover living expenses, and leave the remainder inside the corporation, deferring the gap between the small business rate and their personal marginal rate until they actually withdraw the funds
- Retained earnings inside the MPC can be invested, effectively letting the doctor invest with pre-personal-tax dollars - a meaningful compounding advantage over decades
- The trade-off: incorporation carries real accounting and legal setup costs (typically C$2,000-C$5,000/year in ongoing compliance), and withdrawing large amounts later still triggers personal tax
Consider a family physician billing C$280,000 gross who incorporates and personally draws only C$120,000. The remaining C$160,000 or so after overhead can be deferred at the small business rate rather than meeting their marginal rate, which routinely means a five-figure deferral each year. Practically every specialist netting above roughly C$150,000 takes accounting advice about incorporating, and most have done it by mid-career.
Ontario, Alberta and Quebec: where the after-tax gap opens widest
For high-earning physicians the provincial layer matters enormously. Alberta's largely flat structure and the absence of any provincial health premium make it consistently the best province for take-home, while Quebec's higher rates and additional health contribution make it the worst on identical billings. Ontario sits between them, though anyone practising there also pays the Ontario Health Premium, worth up to roughly C$900 a year and buried inside the tax return rather than appearing as a payroll deduction, which makes it easy to overlook when comparing provinces on paper.
Where Canadian physicians fall on the pay range
| Percentile | Taxable Income | Monthly Net (federal only) |
|---|---|---|
| P25 (residents) | ~C$68,000-C$80,000 | ~C$4,610-C$5,410/mo |
| P50 Median (family medicine) | ~C$196,000 | ~C$12,750/mo |
| P75 (general surgery) | ~C$332,000 | ~C$20,490/mo |
| P90 (radiology / ophthalmology) | ~C$377,000-C$449,000 | ~C$22,990-C$27,000/mo |
Provincial tax is excluded and unincorporated practice assumed throughout. Anyone who incorporates and leaves earnings inside a Medical Professional Corporation will see a materially different personal figure. Source: CIHI National Physician Database, 2025-26.
Frequently asked questions
A PGY-1 resident on C$68,000 keeps around C$4,610 a month federally. A family physician left with C$196,000 taxable after typical overhead keeps about C$12,748, and a general surgeon at C$332,250 roughly C$20,490. Provincial tax is excluded and all three assume unincorporated practice.
A Medical Professional Corporation lets active business income be taxed at the small business rate, roughly 11% to 13% combined, instead of personal marginal rates that pass 50% at the top bracket. A physician can draw a modest personal income and leave the remainder inside the corporation, deferring tax and investing with dollars that have not yet met personal rates. Most salaried professions have no access to that compounding advantage at all.
Alberta generally comes out strongest, with no provincial health premium and comparatively favourable provincial tax on high incomes. Quebec is usually weakest on the same gross billings because provincial rates run higher. Ontario sits between the two and adds the Ontario Health Premium, worth up to roughly C$900 a year and appearing as a separate line on the provincial return.
In specialties such as general surgery and radiology, Canadian gross billings land close to American equivalents once overhead is deducted, though somewhat under them, with a Canadian general surgeon's taxable figure near C$332,000 against roughly $402,000 gross for an American counterpart. Both sit meaningfully above NHS consultant pay. What Canada offers is a simpler single-payer billing system without the private insurance administration American physicians deal with daily.