The general medical council is the regulatory body overseeing the registration/licensing and monitoring of doctors and overall health care in the UK. Registration followed by license is a mandatory requirement by law to practice medicine In the UK, be it, the local graduates or the international medical graduates.
The GMC registration and license application is done completely online, however, read this guide completely in order to know the details you have to put in your application and keep this information handy while you are filling the application.
Pre-requisites for applying for GMC registration and license
Most of you know the three main pathways that enable you to get GMC registration, we would not go in detail here as its been already discussed in our other guides.
- PLAB/UKMLA (Completing both 1 &2 )
- Recognized post-graduate qualification (e.g. MRCP/MRCS etc)
- Sponsorship via any UK Royal College
Prior to proceeding with the registration you must have gone through any of the above three routes.
If you would further like to assess which route you are eligible for or want to start your application process here is the GMC start guide which helps you select your appropriate route and start the application process.
Before you start the GMC registration application
Here is a list of documents you should have with you prior to starting the application.
- Valid Passport
- Valid Medical License with your home country medical regulator
- Request a Certificate of Good Standing from your current medical regulator to be sent to GMC
- Evidence of English Language competency (ILETS/OET with required band/grade)
- Primary Medical qualification verified by epic
- Evidence for eligibility e.g. Plab result or recognized post-graduate qualification or Certificate of sponsorship according to your route of eligibility.
Lets start with the registration
Now let’s head over to the application itself, GMC start guide go to this link and follow the guide to reach your appropriate application route, which will lead you to register for your GMC online account.
Provide your email address and your biodata and signup for the account, be sure to keep the spellings of your name and date of birth correct. Once you register for the GMC account you will receive you GMC number which will be used for any correspondence, but, this number itself doesn’t mean you have got the license just yet. In case you have given plab exam, you will already have your GMC account and can skip this part.
Once logged into your GMC online account go to applications section and start the application.
- Route: Select carefully the route you are applying plab/mrcp/sponsorship etc as is your case.
- If you are not a consultant with recognized qualification from US/Australia etc proceed with NO to applying for specialist/GP register.
- Once you have selected your correct application the form will ask for the following details
- Epic ID
- Internship/ Housejob details ( dates, rotation, hospital)
- Name details
- Professional experience for the last 5 years ( if there is a gap or break, mention that e.g study or marriage break)
- Details of medical regulators you are registered with ( e.g. name and licence number)
- Next comes some declarations e.g. regarding your health fitness and fitness to practice
- Sign off with the final declaration, pay fee and submit the application.
In respect to sponsorship route you will be required to create an account first on GMC and get the GMC ONLINE number, send this number to your sponsoring Royal College who will directly send the certificate of sponsorship to GMC. Once this is done you can apply for the registration and license to practice as mentioned above.
Regarding those who are applying on Post-graduate qualification route, be sure to get you qualification verified from EPIC prior to starting the application.
The current fee for applying for GMC registration and license is £166 in case you are a fresh graduate under 5 years’ time period since graduation. If more, the fee is £433
What Next after the online application
So you have completed the application and paid the fee, now head over to your email inbox and look for an email from GMC.
This is an acknowledgement mail from GMC and provides the information regarding documents required from you. Read this carefully and scan and make a single pdf of all the required documents and send it back with your GMC reference number in the subject. Usually the required documents are;
- Passport copy first page with image and details as well as the signature page)
- Primary Medical Qualification
- Certificate of Good standing ( this should be sent directly by your medical regulator and is valid for 3 months)
- OET/ ILETS certificate ( Also make sure you have given access to GMC to view results in your OET portal)
- Certificate of sponsorship/ Post- Graduate qualification etc depends upon your route.
Its important to read this email and make sure the documents you are sending are appropriate and acceptable to GMC (details would be present in your email), don’t send extra documents that are not asked as it may delay your application.
Once you have submitted the documents all you have to do is to wait and follow your mailbox. In case of any issues GMC will contact you and ask for any documents etc and once successful you will receive an email stating you have been granted license to practice and a soft copy of certificate will be sent to you and a hard copy will be mailed to your address shortly.
GMC ID verification GUIDE
One of the necessary and important step is the GMC ID verification, once your application is approved you are invited for a GMC ID check, ID check is the physical verification that you are indeed the person who is being given the license. Earlier you had to complete the GMC ID check via going physically to one of the GMC centers in UK along with your passport after making an appointment for the GMC. However, thankfully this step can be done at the comfort of your home simply via your mobile phone.
One you have been invited for the ID check, open the GMC online on your phone and headover to the ID check section, select online/virtual verification via digidentity. Now install the application, importantly use the GMC online link which will automatically lead you to the id verification process in the application itself. Filll in the details in digi identity app, you will be required to have your passport ready as the app will scan your passport +- your face and will submit the details to GMC.
The confirmation of ID check will be provided via email from GMC. This concluded the GMC online medical registration and licensing application.
Things to know about your GMC online portal
You have now successfully registered with GMC with a license to practice, however, its important to be familiar with licensing requirements and guidelines. This short section will provide a brief overview of the GMC account.
- Welcome to UK practice workshop: This is a free workshop designed to provide an interactive session for IMGS, regarding healthcare in UK and issues and challenges faced by fresh IMGS. This is completely free and can be attended online and you can ask any queries or questions you might have.
- Annual fee: This section deals with your annual fees, you can also set-up direct debit, i.e. link you bank account so that fees are automatically deducted after an year from your account.
- Revalidation: So once you have obtained a medical license you have to maintain it also via CME activities or further qualifications etc. If you are in working in the UK, every trust will have some designated person for your appraisal. You have to ask your trust and fill in the details of your designated person in the GMC account. The designated person will meet you every year and discuss your past year and send an appraisal report, these annual reports are required after 5 years when your revalidation is done by GMC. If you don’t have any designated body at the moment nonetheless you have to mention that so, in your account.
What if you are not present in UK; in that case you will have to get appraisal forms filled from your local supervisor or consultant each year, if all 5 years after getting a license you don’t move to the UK, you might have to sit an exam in order to revalidate your license.
- Personal details: Ensure your contact details are up to date once your change your address or contact number, so that GMC can contact you if needed.
Hope this guide clarifies the registration process, for any queries, write in the comment box below. We are not affiliated via any regulatory body/ authority hence information provided is for informational purpose only, fees, process and requirements might change time to time, for any specific query you will have to contact directly with your regulator, we will not be able to assist in this regard.
