France – Evidence of qualifications

This page is to explain what evidence of qualifications doctors who qualified in France need to supply to support their registration application.

Below is information about

Medical regulatory authority

Ministere de la Santé et des Solidarités
8 Avenue de Séur
75350 Paris 07 SP
France
Tel: + 33 1 40 56 5067
Fax: +33 1 40 56 5354

Provisional registration

You will need to hold:

A Certificat de synthèse clinique et therapeutique awarded by the Unité de Formation et Recherche which confirms that you have passed the examinations and completed the course of studies for the deuxième cycle d'études (second cycle of studies).

Full registration

If you have previously held provisional registration you will need to hold:

A Diplôme d'État de docteur en medécine (State diploma of doctor of medicine), or a Certificat de reception au doctorat (certificate of having received the State diploma) awarded by your Unité de Formation et Recherche.

OR

A letter from the Dean of your university confirming that your University diploma was awarded following completion of the same training course as that laid down for the award of a State diploma of doctor of medicine.

To apply for full registration if you have previously held provisional registration andcompleted your internship in the UK you will need to hold:

A Certificate of Experience form completed by an authorised officer of your UK medical school or deanery. Please contact us to obtain a blank Certificate of Experience form that you will need to pass to your medical school or deanery to be completed.  

Please note that you cannot apply using the UK on-line registration method through MyGMC.

Note: If you are granted full registration in the UK, your primary medical qualification may not be automatically recognised in another EEA member state. You can check by contacting the medical regulatory authority in the country in which you wish to obtain registration.

If you have not previously held provisional registration you will need to hold:

A Diplôme d'État de docteur en medécine (State diploma of doctor of medicine), or a Certificat de reception au doctorat (certificate of having received the State diploma) awarded by your Unité de Formation et Recherche.

OR

A letter from the Director of your university confirming that your University diploma was awarded following completion of the same training course as that laid down for the award of a State diploma of doctor of medicine.

Specialist register

To hold specialist registration you must also hold full registration.

Your specialty must be listed in Annex V of the Directive 2005/36/EC by the country that awarded it and have a corresponding entry for the United Kingdom.

If you want to apply for specialist registration and you do not already hold full registration, you should apply for full and specialist registration at the same time.

If you qualified before 1984 you will need to hold:

A Certificat d'études spéciales de médecine (CES - certificate of specialist studies in medicine) issued by your French University.

OR

An equivalent certificate drawn up under a decree by the Minister of Education for France.

OR

A certificate of qualified specialist drawn up by the Council of the Ordre des Médecins.

If you qualified after 1984 you must hold:

A Diplôme d'études spécialisées de médecine (DES - diploma of specialised studies in medicine) awarded by your French University.

OR

A Diplôme d'études spécialisées complémentaire (DESC - diploma of complementary specialised studies) awarded by your French University. Please note that not all DESC are directive compliant. Please contact us to find out whether your DESC is acceptable for inclusion on the specialist register.

If your French specialist certificate was awarded before 20 December 1976, or if you began your training leading to the award of that certificate before that date , you will need to hold either:

A letter from the Ministere de la Santé et des Solidarités, (Ministry of Health and Solidarity) confirming that the training leading to the award of your specialist certificate meets the standards laid down in Articles 25, 26 and 27 as appropriate of Directive 2005/36/EC.

OR

If your specialist training does not meet those standards you will need to hold a letter from the Ministere de la Santé et des Solidarités, (Ministry of Health and Solidarity) or the medical regulatory authority in the country where you are now working which confirms that you have been practising in the specialty in which your specialist certificate was awarded for the period required by Article 23.1 of Directive 2005/36/EC.

If the title of your French specialist certificate is not mentioned above or the specialty in which it is awarded is not the same as that specialty listed in Annex V of Directive 2005/36/EC we will also need to hold a letter from the Ministere de la Santé et des Solidarités, (Ministry of Health and Solidarity) confirming that your training leading to the award of the specialist certificate meets the standards laid down in Articles 25, 26 and 27 as appropriate of Directive 2005/36/EC and that the specialty is treated in law by France as a certificate of medical specialisation in the relevant speciality as set out in Annex V of Directive 2005/36/EC.

If you are not eligible to enter the specialist register via the criteria outlined (above) you can apply to the Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board (PMETB) to be assessed via the Article 14 equivalence route. Doctors applying via the Article 14 route will be required to demonstrate that their specialist qualifications, knowledge and experience gained are equivalent to that of a doctor completing a UK specialist training programme in your specialty. For further guidance, including application forms and a list of frequently answered questions, please visit the PMETB website. Please note that PMETB cannot accept CVs/resumes in isolation.

GP register

To hold GP registration you must also hold full registration.

If you want to apply for GP registration and you do not already hold full registration, you should apply for full and GP registration at the same time.

You will need to hold either:

A Qualification en médecine générale(qualification in general medicine ) awarded by a French University. If the Diploma does not clearly state that your training for general medical practice meets the standards laid down in Article 28 of Directive 2005/36/EC you will need to hold a letter from the Ministere des Solidarités, de la Santé et de la Famille. (Ministry of Solidarity, Health and Family) specifically stating the compliancy of the training.

OR

A certificate of acquired rights for general medical practice awarded by the Ministere des Solidarités, de la Santé et de la Famille. (Ministry of Solidarity, Health and Family). The certificate must state that it was awarded to you in accordance with Article 30(1) of Directive 2005/36/EC.

If you are not eligible to enter the GP register via the criteria outlined (above) you can apply to PMETB via the Article 11 equivalence route. Doctors who apply using this method will have their training, qualifications and experience compared against the standard required for doctors completing a UK General Practice training programme. Successful applicants will be given a statement confirming their eligibility for entry to the GP Register and hence eligible to work as a GP in the UK. For further information and to request an Article 11 application pack, please visit the PMETB website. Please note that PMETB is unable to accept CVs/resumes in isolation and cannot process applications that are not made through the correct channels.