The General Medical Council (GMC) is the regulatory body that maintains the official register of medical practitioners within the UK. In order to practise as a medical practitioner in the UK, you must be registered with the GMC.
Overseas doctors of all grades and specialties are welcome to register with the GMC. Holding a licence allows you to treat patients and prescribe medicine.
To join the UK medical register, you must complete a five-step process:
To find out what evidence you need to provide to support your application, consult the GMC website.
For qualifications obtained from an EEA country or Switzerland, click here.
Verification is carried out by the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) through their online system – known as the Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (EPIC) service. ECFMG will verify the qualification is genuine by checking this directly with your awarding institution.
Doctors relocating to the UK are required to prove that they are proficient in speaking and understanding the English language. This can be verified by passing one of the following exams:
Alternative methods of verifying your English language proficiency include:
Primary Medical Qualification – If your primary medical qualification was taught solely in English and you obtained it within the last two years. . For more information, click here.
Employer Reference – If you have worked in a country where English is the native language for the last two years. For more information, click here.
Using your UK job offer - For more information, click here.
You'll need to provide us with details of all your postgraduate medical experience, non-medical experience and certain other activities for the last five years or since you graduated.
Application for full registration with a licence to practise for doctors in the UK is £406.
A fixed-term discount for newly qualified doctors is available, with an application for full registration with a licence to practise costing £156.
It is worth noting that a discount is available for doctors whose gross annual worldwide income from all sources is below a specified income threshold. For further information, click here.
If you meet the specified GMC requirements and you have successfully collated all of your documentation, you will be ready to apply for your GMC Registration.
For additional information on the documents required to complete your registration, consult the GMC website before making your application.
If you are missing anything documentation, the GMC will give you the opportunity to provide them with evidence rather than denying your application.
If your application has been successful, you will receive an email from the GMC inviting you to an ID check.
