OTCAS Application 2026-27: Dates, Fees and Verification

Dates are from Liaison's cycle calendar and Academic Update page.

Waivers are limited and first come, first served. “Each fee waiver covers only the initial application fee”, so you pay $71 for each added program. You need a filed 2025 Form 1040 with adjusted gross income below the Low Income Level, or to be listed as a dependent on one. The level is $31,920 for a family of 1, $43,280 for 2, $66,000 for 4, and rises $11,360 per person.

Request it before you submit. Processing can take up to 10 business days, you cannot submit while it is pending, and once approved you must submit within 14 days, weekends and holidays included. Contact customer service at 617-612-2860 before you submit a fee waiver request to determine if waivers are still available.

Biographic and contact details, citizenship, race and ethnicity, military status, languages and any academic infraction. If you were ever disciplined or placed on probation, you describe the incident, charge, dates and consequence and add a reflection.

High school, colleges, Transcript Entry or PTE, OTCAS course subjects and tests such as the GRE or TOEFL.

Evaluations, observation hours, experiences, achievements, licenses, documents including your personal statement, and the release statement.

Each program's details, questions, documents and prerequisites. Some programs require an extra essay or a Kira Talent video assessment.

The Documents section asks you to upload an essay answering: “Explain how your lived experiences (e.g., personal, professional, cultural, etc.) have influenced your interest in pursuing OT.” It goes to all your programs, so do not tailor it to one, and it cannot be changed after you submit. The help center does not state a length in that article, so check the upload page and your programs. Your programs may also ask for their own essay.

Liaison lists Employment, Extracurricular Activities, Healthcare Experience, Internships and Clinical Experiences, Research, Teaching Experience, Volunteer and Leadership Experience. It recommends focusing on the last 10 years and college level and above. If a job fits two categories, enter it in both and split the hours, since you cannot repeat hours between types.

This is our own format, not an OTCAS form. Keep one line per visit in a spreadsheet: Facility, setting, supervising OT and license if known, dates, paid or volunteer, hours completed, hours planned, diagnoses and patients you saw, and one sentence on what you learned. The last column becomes your interview material.

PTE specialists type your completed coursework for $85 (1 to 3 transcripts), $110 (4 to 6) or $160 (7 or more). Waivers and coupons do not apply, and the fee is non-refundable. You still enter planned, in-progress and foreign courses. Entry can take up to 10 business days, then you approve it before verification starts. Tests are listed in Academic History.

Check whether each program wants the GRE. If yours does, the OTCAS GRE code differs per program and from the school's regular code. Self-report your score with your ETS registration number and enter your date of birth so scores match. They post every 2 to 3 business days after ETS processing.

Liaison lists a college left out, all courses under one term, missing or wrong prefixes and course numbers, missing courses (often labs, PE, withdrawals, test credits and repeats), vague titles, unconverted credits, terms out of order and information that consistently does not match your transcripts. Misspellings, capitalization and up to 4 occasional errors do not trigger it.

Fix each item and click Re-Submit. There is no extra payment. Verification typically resumes within five business days of returning to Complete. Your submission date stays the same, but your complete date changes, so ask your programs whether that matters.

The window runs December 11, 2026 to February 12, 2027 at 11:59 PM ET, and you need at least one program Verified by February 12. You can update grades only once, so wait for final fall grades. Change the term to Completed in Transcript Entry, click Submit My Updates, then send new transcripts after the confirmation email. Verification can take up to 10 more business days. Ask your programs whether they require it.

It opened July 16, 2026 and closes July 7, 2027 at 11:59 PM ET. Final processing ends July 13, 2027. Your programs can set earlier deadlines, which you can see under Add Program.

Liaison lists $172 for the first program and $71 for each additional one, so five programs come to $456. Some programs add a supplemental fee. Fees are not refunded once you submit.

You need a filed 2025 federal Form 1040 with adjusted gross income below the Low Income Level for your family size, or to be listed as a dependent on one. The level starts at $31,920 for one person. Request it before you submit. Waivers are limited, cover only the first $172 and need you to submit within 14 days of approval.

Liaison says you must request at least 3 and may request up to 5. Your programs may set rules on who writes them, so check before listing anyone, because completed evaluations cannot be removed or replaced.

No. OTCAS records them but does not verify them or check whether you met a program's minimum. Some programs want them verified by the OT you shadowed, so check Program Materials or ask each program.

Up to 10 business days once your status is Complete, according to Liaison. Transcripts can take up to five business days to post first, and PTE or an Undelivered application adds time.

No. OTCAS includes all repeated courses in its GPA calculations, regardless of a school's or state's forgiveness policy.

Once, through Academic Update, from December 11, 2026 to February 12, 2027 at 11:59 PM ET. You need at least one program Verified by February 12, 2027. Wait for final grades, submit your updates, then send new transcripts after the confirmation email.