Switzerland – Evidence of qualifications

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

Below is information about

Medical regulatory authority

Swiss Federal Office of Public Health
Office fédéral de la santé publique
Bundesamt für Gesundheit
Bureau of Medical Exams
Section examens des professions médicales
Sektion Medizinalprüfungen
Sägestrasse 65
CH-3003 Bern
Tel: 0011 41 31 322 9483
Fax: 001141 31 323 0009
E-Mail: info@bag.admin.ch
URL: www.admin.ch/bag

Full registration

You will need to hold a Titulaire du diplôme de médicin/ Eidgenössische diplomiertier Arzt/ titolare di diploma federale di medico (federal diploma of doctor) awarded by the Swiss Département Fedéral de l'Interéieur.

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.

You will need to hold a Spécialiste/ Facharzt/ Specialista (specialist qualification) awarded by the Swiss Département Fedéral de l'Interéieur.

If your Spécialiste/ Facharzt/ Specialista (specialist qualification) was awarded before 1 June 2002, 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 Swiss Département Fedéral de l'Interéieur confirming that the training leading to the award of your specialist qualification 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 Swiss Département Fedéral de l'Interéieur or the medical regulatory authority of the country where you are now working confirming that you have been practising in the specialty in which your certificate of medical specialisation was awarded for the period required by Article  23.1 of Directive 2005/36/EC.

If the title of your Swiss specialist qualification is not as described above, or if the specialty in which it was awarded is not the same as that listed in Annex V of the European Medical Directive 2005/36/EC, you will also need to hold:

A letter from the Swiss Département Fedéral de l'Interéieur, confirming that the training leading to the award of your specialist qualification meets the standards laid down in Articles 25, 26 and 27 as appropriate of Directive 2005/36/EC, and that your specialist qualification is treated by Switzerland 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 certificate of specific training for general medical practice awarded by the Swiss Département Fedéral de l'Interéieur If the certificate 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 Swiss Département Fedéral de l'Interéieur which confirms that your training meets those standards.

OR

A certificate of acquired rights for general medical practice awarded by the Swiss Département Fedéral de l'Interéieur. The certificate must state that it was issued 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.