After registration

This guidance has been written for doctors and sets out the information you need to know once you have been registered.

1. MyGMC

If you hold registration with us, or if you have previously held registration or applied to take the PLAB test, you will have a GMC reference number.

This means that you can use our secure web portal, MyGMC (opens in a new window), to manage your registration.

You can use MyGMC to apply for different types of registration, pay your fees, update your contact details and apply to relinquish your registration.

If you have a GMC reference number, but do not have a PIN and password, contact us, and we will issue them to you.

2. Maintaining your registration

In order to maintain your registration with us, you need to keep your contact details up-to-date and pay your annual retention fee.

You can find out how to update your contact details and change your name on the register in our guidance on updating your details.

If you have full registration you must pay an annual registration fee in order to maintain your registration. The annual registration fee is due on the anniversary of the date on which you were granted full registration.

If you hold provisional registration you must pay a provisional registration fee for the first two years of your registration. From the second anniversary of your provisional registration onwards you must pay an annual retention fee.

We recommend that you pay your annual retention fee by Direct Debit.

If you decide not to pay by direct debit we will send you a notice in advance of the date the payment is due.

If you do not pay your annual registration fee, we will remove your name from the register.
For more information about fees, how to pay by Direct Debit, other ways to pay, and current fee levels, please see our guidance on fees (opens in a new window).

3. Applying to be released from an approved practice setting

If you are currently working in an approved practice setting and want to apply for release, please see our guidance on applying to be released from an approved practice setting (opens in a new window) for details of what you need to do.

4. Relinquishing your registration (voluntary erasure)

You can apply to have your name erased from the register if you are not engaged in medical practice or in other work that requires you to be registered.

The main advantages of voluntary erasure are that you will avoid paying annual registration fees if you have full or provisional registration during periods when you do not need to be registered and you will not be charged a restoration fee if you subsequently apply to have your name restored to the register.

If you propose to apply for voluntary erasure while holding a contract of employment as a medical practitioner in the United Kingdom you are advised to discuss the matter with your employing authority.

You should not assume that your name has been removed from the register until you have received a letter from us confirming this.

There is no fee for removing your name from the register. You may be entitled to a refund of any complete unused quarters remaining until your next registration renewal date.

Please see our guidance on voluntary erasure (opens in a new window) for  information about how to apply.

5. Restoring your registration

If you have voluntarily relinquished your registration (voluntary erasure), or have been erased after failing to pay or failing to maintain an effective registered address, you may apply for restoration to the register.

If you applied to voluntarily relinquish your registration, there is no fee for restoration. If you were erased for failing to pay or failing to maintain an effective registered address, then you will have to pay the restoration fee.

For more information about fees, please read our fees guidance (opens in a new window).

When you apply for restoration, you must attend one of our offices for an identity check before we restore your name to the register. For information about pre-registration identification checks please read our guidance on identity checks (opens in a new window).

6. Certified copies of an entry

If you lose your registration certificate or you are planning to work overseas, contact us and we will provide evidence of your registration. Please note that we will only send these to your registered address, or to another registration authority. There is no charge for this service.

7. Certificates of Good Standing (CGS)

The GMC can issue a Certificate of Good Standing (CGS) if you intend to work overseas in the near future. You should check the position with the relevant overseas authorities. The CGS shows that no fitness to practise proceedings under the Medical Act 1983 are at present in progress or contemplated. A CGS will not be issued if there is a current or intended investigation in relation to your fitness to practise or if there are any current or past sanctions on your registration.

We will only send the CGS to another appropriate body – eg healthcare regulator or employer. There is no charge for a CGS. We process requests for a CGS as quickly as possible, usually within one day, but at some times of the year we can become extremely busy and delays are possible. It is therefore wise to allow as much time as possible for the CGS to be delivered. If we have your email address or contact numbers we will contact you to let you know when we have processed your CGS.

Certificates of good standing issued by the GMC are only valid for a period of three months from date of issue.

To obtain a Certificate of Good Standing complete the online form (opens in a new window).

8. Insurance and Professional Indemnity

In the performance of all your professional duties, you should abide by the principles set out in Good Medical Practice (opens in a new window). Even so, you could become the subject of a complaint or an allegation of negligence during the course of your professional employment. The protection that comes from employment in the NHS is by no means sufficient to cover all situations in which you may find yourself.

There are professional organisations which undertake to protect, support and safeguard the character and interests of registered medical and dental practitioners in the United Kingdom, and elsewhere. Members receive advice and assistance on legal, ethical and other problems arising from the practice of their profession, including problems that may arise with the GMC itself as the result of allegations of failure to abide by the principles set out in Good Medical Practice.Members may also receive indemnity for damages and costs arising from judicial decisions or settlements out of court and in medico-legal cases undertaken on their behalf, notably accusations of professional negligence.

Further information about the benefits of membership can be obtained direct from the organisations concerned.

Their addresses are:
Medical Defence Union Limited
230 Blackfriars Road
London SE1 8PJ
Tel: 020 7202 1500
Web: www.the-mdu.com

Medical Protection Society
33 Cavendish Square
London W1N 0PS
Tel: 020 7637 0541
Web: www.mps.org.uk

Medical and Dental Defence Union of Scotland
Mackintosh House
120 Blythswood Street
Glasgow G2 4EA
Tel: 0141 221 5858
Web: www.mddus.com