Regulating doctors, ensuring good medical practice

General information about registration and licensing

This page is for doctors, employers, contracting authorities and members of the public and gives general information about doctors' registration and licence to practise.

Important notice: Licence to practise

Under UK law, all doctors who practise medicine in the UK must be registered with the GMC and hold a licence to practise. For more detailed information please see our licensing pages.

Important notice: pre-employment checks

Employers and contracting authorities have a duty to make vital pre-employment checks on a doctor's registration and licence to practise status with the GMC. Read more about the vital pre-employment checks in our guidance on Employing a doctor.


Contents

  1.  1.  Why register?
  2.  2.  Who can register?
  3.  3.  Types of registration
  4.  4.  How to register
  5.  5.  Approved practice settings (APS)
  6.  6.  English language testing
  7.  7.  Locums
  8.  8.  Timescale for processing applications
  9.  9.  Registration fees
  10. 10. Employing a doctor

1. Why register?

You need to be both registered with us and hold a licence to practise if you wish to practise medicine in the UK.

The activities that require GMC registration with a licence to practise include:

  • working as a doctor in the National Health Service (NHS) or in private practice
  • prescribing drugs, the sale of which is restricted by law   
  • signing certificates required for statutory purposes (death certificates, etc.)

For more information about this please see our complete list of the legal privileges and duties of doctors with registration and a licence to practise where held.

2. Who can register?

The process for obtaining registration with a licence to practise generally depends:

  • on the country where a doctor has obtained their primary medical qualification
  • on their nationality
  • and on the nature and extent of their postgraduate experience.

3. Types of registration

As well as a doctor ensuring they hold a licence to practise, they must ensure that their registration is appropriate for the type of post or practice that they will be undertaking. Doctors, employers and members of the public can check the type of registration that a doctor has, whether they have a licence to practise, and the date from which it is effective, on the List of Registered Medical Practitioners.

It is up to a doctor to ensure they hold the correct type of registration and up to employers to ensure they only employ those holding registration with a licence to practise that is suitable for the post they are undertaking.

There are four main types of registration. The assessment processes are different for each type and also each group of doctors who are making an application. Doctors wishing to make an application should see our Applications guidance. Please see below for an explanation of the different types of registration referred to.

Provisional registration

Provisional registration with a licence to practise only allows doctors to participate in programmes for provisionally registered doctors. This means that they can only practise in approved Foundation Year 1 posts. Successful completion of such posts is marked by a Certificate of Experience. Most doctors complete this within 12 months.

The law does not allow provisionally registered doctors to undertake any other type of post. That exclusion applies to service posts at F1 level and regardless of whether the post is substantive or locum. Provisionally registered doctors may only undertake locum appointments for training (LAT) posts where the Foundation School has been involved in the recruitment of the doctor to that post, the post is part of a programme and leads to the award of a Certificate of Experience.

Provisional registration is available to doctors with the following nationality, rights and qualifications

  • UK medical graduates who have completed their medical degree at a UK University recognised in the Medical Act 1983 
  • International medical graduates who have an acceptable primary medical qualification and who have passed the PLAB test but who have not completed an internship    
  • Nationals from the EEA, Switzerland and other countries with EC rights who qualified outside of the EEA and Switzerland    
  • Nationals from the EEA, Switzerland and doctors who have EC rights who qualified at EEA or Swiss medical schools    

Doctors who have qualified in an EEA member state can apply to do their practical training (internship) in the UK if the practical training counts towards a medical degree which requires this for compliance with Directive 2005/36/EC (pdf).

Full registration

You need full registration with a licence to practise for unsupervised medical practice in the NHS or private practice in the UK. Generally speaking, doctors who have undertaken a satisfactory period of experience under provisional registration may apply for full registration. Some doctors qualifying from outside the UK may be eligible to apply directly for full registration.

EEA and Swiss nationals and other doctors with EC rights who graduated at EEA or Swiss medical schools

Only doctors holding all the titles of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications in medicine listed in Annex V of the Directive 2005/36/EC will benefit fully from EU legislation on mutual recognition.

Nationals from the EEA, Switzerland and other doctors with EC rights who qualified outside of the EEA and Switzerland

Doctors applying through this route must have undergone medical training and acquired clinical experience, over a period acceptable to the General Council, which has provided them with a foundation for future practice as a fully registered medical practitioner which is at least as good as the foundation provided by an acceptable programme for provisionally registered doctors.

International Medical Graduates (IMGs) who have completed an internship

IMGs applying for full registration must hold an acceptable primary medical qualification and will be required to submit evidence that they have satisfactorily completed either F1 training in the UK or a period of clinical experience that provides an acceptable foundation for future practice as a fully registered medical practitioner.

In addition, they will be required to demonstrate their medical knowledge and skills in one of the following ways:

  1. i. A pass in the PLAB test 
  2. ii. Sponsorship 
  3. iii. Possession of an acceptable postgraduate qualification 
  4. iv. Eligibility for entry on the Specialist or GP Register

IMGs new to full registration and taking up a new job (except for those eligible for entry on the Specialist or GP Register) will be required to work initially in an approved practice setting (opens in new window). 

IMGs who meet the criteria for full registration will not be eligible for provisional registration.

Specialist registration

The GMC maintains a Specialist Register. Since 1 January 1997 it has been a legal requirement that, to take up a consultant post (other than a locum consultant appointment) in a medical or surgical specialty in the NHS a doctor must be included on the Specialist Register.

The only exceptions are doctors who held a consultant post (other than a locum consultant post) in oral and maxillo-facial surgery in the NHS immediately before 1 January 1997.

It is not possible to be entered on the Specialist Register without also holding full registration.

See our information about the Specialist Register. 

GP registration

Since 1 April 2006, all doctors working in general practice in the health service in the UK - other than doctors in training such as GP Registrars - are required to be on the GP Register.

It is not possible to be entered on the GP Register without also holding full registration.

See our information about the GP Register. 

4. How to register

To apply for registration with a licence to practise, you will need to complete an application, pay a fee, provide evidence of your identity, qualifications, and good standing and attend an identity check.

The application requirements are different for each registration with a licence to practise route. You can find detailed guidance on how to make your application, specific to your circumstances, in our applications section.

We may independently verify some or all of your documents.

We may also seek advice from a panel of experts about whether or not to grant your application.

You should not assume that your application has or will be granted. Before taking up any employment you must check with us that you are registered with a licence to practise and that you hold the appropriate type of registration for your post. If we grant your application we will send you a certificate to confirm your registration and a letter confirming you have been granted a licence to practise. Your name and details will appear on our online Register List of Registered Medical Practitioners (opens in a new window).

5. Approved practice settings (APS) 

An approved practice setting (APS) is one which has systems for the effective management of doctors, systems for identifying and acting upon concerns about doctors’ fitness to practise, systems to support the provision of relevant training or continuing professional development, and systems for providing regulatory assurance. This will also help ensure that, in the small number of cases where problems arise, there are systems in place which are capable of detecting them early. For more information please see our guidance on approved practice settings.

The following doctors are required to work in an APS for a minimum of 12 months after being granted registration with a licence to practise for the first time or after returning to UK practice after a prolonged period of absence:

  • UK graduates
  • International medical graduates (IMGs) (except for those eligible for entry in the Specialist or GP Register)

In addition, we also advise EEA doctors restored to the Register after prolonged absence from UK practice to work initially in an APS.

If you are employing or contracting with newly fully registered and licensed UK graduates or IMGs (except for those eligible for entry in the Specialist Register or GP Register), you will need to ensure that your organisation is an approved practice setting. Organisations which are currently approved practice settings are listed here.

Please note that all Primary Care organisations (Primary Care Trusts in England, Area Health Boards in Scotland, Local Health Boards in Wales and Health and Social Services Boards or Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland) are automatically granted APS status, but only for the purpose of undertaking managed training; that is Foundation Programme training, or training as a GP Registrar. They are therefore not included in our online list of APS.

All other doctors whose primary care organisations employ or contract with them as GPs need to be on the GP Register. Doctors on the GP Register are not required to work in an approved practice setting.

If you have any queries about an organisation’s APS status, or wish to apply for APS status on behalf of your organisation, please contact aps@gmc-uk.org.

You can see which organisations currently hold APS status on our list of approved practice settings page.

6. English language testing

Department of Health and NHS Employers guidance on international medical recruitment make it clear that doctors recruited to work in the UK must be proficient in English so that they can communicate effectively with patients and with all those individuals involved in their care.

All International Medical Graduates who apply for provisional or full registration with a licence to practise must satisfy the GMC that they have the necessary knowledge of English. They are accordingly required to obtain satisfactory scores in each of the four academic modules (speaking, listening, writing and reading) of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test administered by the British Council. The only exceptions, under European law, are:

  • Nationals of Member States of the European Economic Area (EEA) other than the UK. 
  • Swiss nationals who since 1 June 2002 benefit under European law.
  • Any individual with European Community rights (opens in a new window).

For further details about the IELTS test please read our guidance on English language proficiency.

We also recommend that you comply with the guidance issued by the Department of Health at http://www.dh.gov.uk/, and by NHS Employers at http://www.nhsemployers.org/.

7. Locums

The Department of Health has issued guidance on the employment of locum doctors which can be found on their website at http://www.dh.gov.uk/.

8. Timescales for processing applications

We aim to process an application as quickly as possible. If we are not able to grant an application within five working days of the date we receive it we will let the doctor know what further information we need. During our busy periods, January/February and July/August each year, it can take us longer to process applications. It helps us greatly if doctors can submit their application as early as possible.

In some cases, we may need to refer doctors' applications to a Registration Panel for advice. If a doctor's application is not successful, we will give the reasons in writing together with advice on the next steps they can take.

You can find out more information about how doctors should register in our before you apply guidance.

9. Registration fees

Doctors with full registration (or who hold provisional registration for more than two years) must pay an annual fee to maintain their registration. The fee is due on the anniversary date on which they were granted full registration. The fee differs depending of whether a doctor holds a licence to practice or not. If a doctor does not pay their annual retention fee we may remove their name from the Register. If this happens and the doctor wishes to restore their name to the Register, they will be required to pay a restoration fee in addition to the registration fee. When they have paid their annual retention fee we send them a letter of confirmation.

Neither the due date of an annual retention fee nor the letter of confirmation provides evidence that a doctor is registered. For full details see our fees page.

10. Employing a doctor

The GMC has a dedicated service to help employers and contracting authorities make pre-employment checks.

For more detailed information on the checks you need to make when employing a doctor, please see our employing a doctor page.

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