Legal requirements around registration

  1. Summary
  2. Checking the register of PAs and AAs
  3. GMC reference numbers
  1. PA/AA identity checks
  2. Legal requirements around registration

From 16 December 2024, PAs and AAs will be able to apply to join our register. Both existing and newly- qualified professionals will need to demonstrate they meet our standards and requirements for registration before we will register them.

The legislation that introduced regulation of PAs and AAs includes a two-year transition period before the PA and AA titles become protected. This means that PAs and AAs can continue to legally practise in the UK without being on the GMC’s register of PAs and AAs until 16 December 2026. Before that date, it’s up to individual employers whether they make GMC registration a requirement for the PAs and AAs they employ.

We encourage all PAs and AAs to join our register as soon as they can after regulation starts because this provides assurance for patients, colleagues and employers.

Previous PA/AA identity checks