Foundation Programme year 1 - page 2 of 10

The next step after completing your undergraduate degree will be to undertake an acceptable programme for provisionally registered doctors, which in the UK is Foundation Programme year 1 (F1).

During your F1 you are required to hold provisional registration with a licence to practise. This guidance will tell you how to apply for provisional registration with a licence to practise.

For more information about F1, such as delaying the start date of F1 or completing your F1 overseas, please see our F1 guidance (opens in a new window).

Provisional registration with a licence to practise is granted for the purpose of completing F1. Please note:

• The law does not allow provisionally registered doctors to undertake service posts.
• Provisionally registered doctors may only undertake locum appointments for training (LAT) posts where the foundation school has been involved in their recruitment to that post.

Once you are registered you have an obligation under Good Medical Practice to keep up to date with and adhere to the laws and codes of practice relevant to your work - paragraph 13 refers. This includes working within the scope of your registration and only undertaking posts that your registration allows. Serious or persistent failure to follow Good Medical Practice will put your registration at risk.

Retaining your provisional registration status

There is currently no time limit on the period you can hold provisional registration with a licence to practise. But if you do not move to full registration with a licence to practise, you will continue to be restricted to the type of employment that provisional registration with a licence to practise allows. Also, after your first two years of provisional registration with a licence to practise you will have to pay the full annual retention fee (see our Fees guidance (opens in a new window) for current fee levels) to maintain it.