2027 Match cycle · dates checked
2027 IMG Match Desk
Every date that governs an international applicant in this cycle, with the organisation that set it and the exact instant where one is stated. Two of these dates end eligibility if missed; most do not. The distinction is the point of the page.
Application cycle
| Date | State | Milestone | Authority |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLOSED | 2027 ERAS season began | AAMC | |
| CLOSED | ECFMG distributed IMG ERAS tokens The token is what lets an IMG open an ERAS application. Without it nothing else in the cycle starts. | ECFMG / Intealth | |
| OPEN | Applicants may begin submitting ERAS applications stated instant 09:00 ET 9:00 AM ET. Submitting on the first day confers no documented advantage; programs cannot see applications until 23 September. | AAMC | |
| OPEN | Residency programs may begin reviewing applications stated instant 09:00 ET 9:00 AM ET. This is the operative deadline for most applicants: signals assigned to applied programs cannot be edited after it. | AAMC | |
| OPEN | ECFMG-recommended last OET sitting for 2027 Match participation ECFMG recommends taking OET no later than the last available December 2026 test date; the exact last date depends on the test centre calendar A recommendation, not a rule. It exists because Pathway review needs the score before the January deadline. | ECFMG / Intealth | |
| OPEN | ECFMG Pathway application deadline for 2027 Match participation The single most consequential IMG date in the cycle. A Pathway application not filed by this date ends 2027 Match eligibility regardless of exam scores. | ECFMG / Intealth | |
| OPEN | NRMP rank order list entry opens early February; confirm the exact date against the NRMP calendar before relying on it | NRMP | |
to March 19, 2027 | OPEN | Match Week, including SOAP | NRMP |
| OPEN | 2027 ERAS season concludes | AAMC |
Immigration dates in this cycle
Kept in a separate table because these move by rulemaking and by court order, not by an organisation’s calendar. Each carries its instrument type.
| Date | Instrument | What it is | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| FINAL RULE | DHS fixed-period admission rule takes effect for F, J and I nonimmigrants Replaces duration-of-status admission with fixed-date admission. For J-1 physicians the I-94 becomes the controlling document; initial admission generally follows program length or four years, whichever is shorter; training longer than the admission period may require an Extension of Stay with USCIS or another lawful admission mechanism; a DS-2019 alone no longer automatically extends authorised stay. Intealth states DHS did not exempt J-1 physicians. The seven-year overall limit on physician clinical training sponsorship is unchanged. | EFFECTIVE PENDING | |
| PROPOSED RULE | Comments close on the proposed $103,265 fee for H-1B cap-subject petitions Proposed, not in force. By its terms it would apply to cap-subject petitions including advanced-degree-exemption petitions — which is why cap-exempt status becomes strategically significant if it is finalised. | OPEN FOR COMMENT | |
| LITIGATION | The $100,000 H-1B proclamation fee was vacated by a federal district court The district court vacated the policy on 8 June 2026; the government appealed; the First Circuit declined the government’s stay request on 24 July 2026. On that record the $100,000 requirement is not currently enforceable. Litigation continues, so this status is provisional and dated. | NOT CURRENTLY ENFORCEABLE |
Litigation status checked September 1, 2026. A vacated policy can be reinstated on appeal; a proposed fee can be finalised, modified or withdrawn. Full treatment: physician visas.
What this desk will not tell you
It will not say whether to submit on the first day. Applications are not visible to programmes until 23 September, and no published evidence establishes an advantage to submitting on 2 September rather than a week later with a stronger application. What is established is that a late document can hold an entire application, so the useful deadline discipline is upstream: letters, transcript, MSPE and the ECFMG status report.
It will not tell you how many programmes to apply to. Matched applicants in the NRMP data rank more programmes than unmatched applicants, and that association does not establish that applying more widely strengthens a weak application — the same underlying competitiveness drives both. What it does establish is the cost: fees scale steeply, and money spent on programmes whose visa policy or graduation-year screen already excludes you is simply lost. Verify before applying.
Registry: data/img-cycle.json. Official calendars remain authoritative: AAMC for ERAS, ECFMG/Intealth for Pathways and certification, NRMP for the Match.