Doctors’ registration fees to rise by maximum of £7

In line with inflation, the General Medical Council’s (GMC) annual retention fees will rise by 1.7% from 1 April 2020. This represents a £7 increase for doctors registered with a licence to practise and £3 for newly qualified doctors.

The decision, made by the GMC’s Council, is in keeping with the organisation’s previous aim to limit fee increases in line with inflation.

Fees for provisional registration will increase marginally from £51 to £52, while registration fees for newly qualified doctors will rise from £153 to £156.

Newly qualified doctors continue to benefit from discounted fees for up to six years after qualifying. This follows extensive fee reductions introduced in 2017 - previously, newly qualified doctors started paying full fees after just one year.

The fee for full registration (with a licence to practise) will rise from £399 to £406.

Doctors earning £32,000 or less per annum will continue to receive a 50% discount on their registration fees. This is not available on those fees for newly qualified doctors that have already been discounted.

Currently, around 12,000 doctors receive income discount, and 43,000 newly qualified doctors benefit from reduced rates.

GMC Chief Executive Charlie Massey reiterated the GMC’s aim to limit fee increases where possible, at the same time continuing to provide a range of support for the profession. He said:

‘Next year we will continue to expand our support for doctors new to practice in the UK through the Welcome to UK practice (WtUKP) programme. These free workshops offer practical guidance about ethical scenarios doctors may encounter, and the chance to connect with other doctors coming from abroad.

‘Through the rollout of our Professional behaviours and patient safety programme, we will continue to champion cultural change by giving doctors the tools to tackle unprofessional behaviours. Building on this year’s research into leadership cultures and wellbeing, we will work collaboratively with others to implement positive and compassionate workplace culture across health systems.

‘Our ‘Local first’ project will also be piloted in 2020. This looks to fairly and transparently address fitness to practise concerns at a local level, avoiding unnecessary escalation to our regulatory processes where appropriate.

‘This programme of work is underpinned by plans to strengthen our liaison services across all four nations, allowing us to better understand local conditions and target our efforts and approaches to reflect local needs.’

Full breakdown of all fees

*Please note that the majority of the CESR / CEGPR application fee is shared with medical royal colleges or faculties who evaluate individual applications.