Doctors’ registration fees to rise by maximum of £9
The General Medical Council’s (GMC) full registration fees are set to rise by £3 for newly-qualified doctors and £9 for all other doctors next year.
The change will apply from 1 April 2019, and is in line with inflation.
The decision, made on 12 December by the GMC’s Council, follows last year’s fee reduction and a commitment by the GMC to limit any fee increases in line with inflation, avoiding large one-off increases in future years. Prior to the reductions last year the 2017 fee for full registration was £425.
The fee for full registration will rise from £390 to £399.
Fees for provisional registration will go from £50 to £51, while registration fees for newly qualified doctors will rise from £150 to £153.
Newly-qualified doctors will still benefit from discounted registration fees for up to six years, in line with the fee slashes that were introduced last year. Previously, newly qualified doctors started paying full registration fees after just one year.
The GMC will also continue offering a 50% fee discount for doctors whose income is below £32,000 in 2019. This is not available on those fees for newly qualified doctors that have already been discounted.
GMC Chief Executive Charlie Massey said the decision to keep increases in line with inflation and retain discounts for newly-qualified doctors was a mark of the organisation’s commitment to alleviate pressure on doctors new to medical practice and the wider medical profession where possible. He said:
"Keeping fees in line with inflation will allow us to continue important work of supporting doctors, at a time when pressures are greater than ever. We will continue a number of projects which have been set up to improve support for doctors working in pressured environments."
Charlie Massey
GMC Chief Executive
‘We will be rolling out human factors training to fitness to practise decision makers, case examiners and clinical experts, so that the role systems and workplaces play in events is fully and evenly evaluated in assessing context following serious failings.
'We are also increasing our work with doctors on the ground and intend to expand our Welcome to UK 2 Practice programme for newly registered doctors from overseas to explore some of the ethical issues they are likely to encounter in their careers.’
All of these changes will take effect from doctors’ registration and renewal dates from 1 April 2019 onwards.
Full breakdown of all fees
|
|
2018 £ |
2019 £ |
|---|---|---|
|
Newly qualified doctors |
|
|
|
Provisional registration |
50 |
51 |
|
Full registration (year 1) |
150 |
153 |
|
Annual retention fee (years 2 to 5) |
150 |
153 |
|
Other doctors |
|
|
|
Full registration |
390 |
399 |
|
Annual retention fee with a licence |
390 |
399 |
|
Annual retention fee without a licence |
140 |
143 |
|
Other fees |
|
|
|
PLAB test – part 1 |
230 |
235 |
|
PLAB test – part 2 |
840 |
860 |
|
Certificate of completion of training |
420 |
430 |
|
Certificate of eligibility for specialist registration |
1,600 |
1,640 |
|
Certificate of eligibility for GP registration |
1,600 |
1,640 |
|
Certificate of GP acquired rights |
295 |
300 |
Rates for full registration – comparison
|
1 April 2016 to 31 March 2018 |
From 1 April 2018 |
From 1 April 2019 |
|---|---|---|
|
£425 |
£390 |
£399
|
Rates for newly qualified doctors – comparison
Provision registration
|
1 April 2016 to 31 March 2018 |
From 1 April 2018 |
From 1 April 2019 |
|---|---|---|
|
£90 |
£50 |
£51 |
First year of full registration
|
1 April 2016 to 31 March 2018 |
From 1 April 2018 |
From 1 April 2019 |
|---|---|---|
|
£200 |
£150 |
£153 |
Annual retention fee for the next four payments*
|
1 April 2016 to 31 March 2018 |
From 1 April 2018 |
From 1 April 2019 |
|---|---|---|
|
£425 each year |
£150 each year |
£153 each year |
*For doctors who join the register without holding provisional registration first – the lower annual retention fee is available for up to five years from obtaining a primary medical qualification.
