GMC registration and a license to practice is the ultimate thing you need to work as a doctor in the UK. How to get GMC registration? There are different ways you can get GMC registration:

  1. Passing the PLAB/UKMLA Exams
  2. Obtaining any acceptable post-graduate qualification
  3. Sponsored by a GMC approved sponsor

We will discuss all of these routes, with special attention to step-by-step guidance on how to apply for GMC registration online after passing PLAB 2.

Please note there is another way an International Medical Graduate (IMG) can obtain GMC registration, which is via taking registration exam of other countries, like USMLE, MCCQE and AMC. Please check this article – GMC Registration via USMLE, MCCQE, or AMC.

Passing the PLAB/UKMLA exams

This is by far the most taken route by International Medical graduates, especially newly qualified doctors. If you want an overview of how to become a doctor in the UK via this PLAB/UKMLA route, please check this out, Planning your PLAB journey.

If you have just completed PLAB/UKMLA 2 and looking out for how the GMC registration process works, you’re in the right place. Congratulations! Your hard work and determination has paid off. Now, let’s proceed.

How to apply for GMC registration

The steps of the whole application process is outlined below:

  1. Submit an application online from your GMC Online account.

You would find it in the “My registration > My Applications” tab.

  1. Make the payment

After successfully filling up the online part which is discussed below step-by-step, you would be able to make the payment.

  1. Getting an email from GMC asking for documents based on your online application (in selected case)

You can upload the necessary documents now while you are applying for your GMC registration. They might ask for further documents if they feel it necessary via email to you.

  1. Waiting for GMC’s final approval of the application and invitation to book an ID check date

If you are applying via the PLAB/UKMLA route, there is NO ID CHECK appointment. But if you are applying via PG degree, Sponsorship route- you will have to book and attend ID check in the UK.

  1. Attending an ID check (NOT for PLAB/UKMLA route)

You can book an ID check from the “My appointments” tab in your GMC online account. Based on this ID check appointment, you can even apply for a visitor visa if you don’t have a visa to attend on that date.

  1. Getting the hard copy of GMC registration

Even though the hard copy doesn’t matter, some might cherish it. GMC sends it to the address you provide during your ID check, You will be in the GMC online medical register, thus verifiable, on the very day your ID check is done. 

I hope you have already read about Evidences needed for GMC registration application, to get an idea on what documents you need to send after you make the application.

Steps of making the online application

It all starts from the root, your GMC online account. After having your results of PLAB/UKMLA 2 published there, you can submit an application right then.

  • Go to “My Registration” > “My Application”.
  • Continue with Application.
  • You’ll see “IMG2” pathway of applying after passing PLAB/UKMLA 2. Click Apply.
  • No to the EC right. (Yes, if it applies. Check here further for EC rights in GMC)
  • No for specialist / GP register. (you will be applying for these after you have sufficient training or CCT/CESR in the UK)
  • If you’ve completed an internship? Yes.
  • Then input your internship details. It’s better to divide into specialties here or as it shows in your internship completion certificate.
  • Then they check your name. Don’t overlook that NO to other names. It will take you to the next page after you confirm that the details aren’t different.
  • The next one, “Your Recent Professional Experience”, is pretty challenging and a lot of applicants have trouble filling the information correctly according to how the website wants it. In this section whenever anything that is marked required but not relevant, e.g hours of work during your vacation- you write “Not Applicable” or “N/A”. You can’t leave any required field blank.
  • Here’s how to tackle it:
    • Go back 5 years from the present date. Your first entry should start from that date. (Instead of choosing from the calendar every time, you can simply type the dates in dd/mm/yyyy format)
    • I was a medical student on that date. If that’s the case for you too then the first entry’s ending date is when you obtained your PMQ and you were studying there in your medical college as a medical student.
    • Be very thorough in stating everything you did over the last five years, even to the dates. Like if your last entry’s ending date was 12/07/2016, next entry’s starting date should be 13/07/2016.
    • You mention your internship here as one continuous year (if it was). No need to divide it into separate specialties (You can write the names of the specialties separated by commas)
    • You enter all your employment or attachment history.
    • Your last entry’s ending date should the date you selected in the beginning.
Remember, don’t feel reluctant to mention a professional experience, just because you think it will be a hassle to gather evidence for that.  If you do that, you are technically violating the core guidance of Good Medical Practice on honesty and integrity.  If found, you may be banned from applying for GMC registration.
  • Next page is your “Registration and licensing history”. After you choose the country, the page will reload to give you the option to choose the medical regulatory authority of that country. You fill it up as it applies to your case.
  • Now starts their long interrogation about your “Fitness to Practice” and in most cases, I hope, all the answers are NO. I read through all the questions, and I suggest you do that too.
  • Finally, the declaration page appears. You check the box and proceed to payment.

I hope you already know how much you’ll have to pay. If you don’t, please check this page of GMC Fees.

You will receive a detailed email of which papers to send to GMC with elaborate instructions required to complete your further registration process upon confirmation of your payment.

Check this post to know further about evidences needed for GMC registration and how to obtain them.

Obtaining acceptable PG Qualification

Please look here, acceptable postgraduate qualification, to see if your post-graduate qualification is accepted by GMC, for you to apply for registration and license to practice without taking the PLAB/UKMLA exams.

If your degree is there, your next steps will be:

  • Getting the required score in IELTS/OET
  • Opening a GMC online account
    How to open GMC online account might help.
  • Verifying your PGQ and PMQ verified by EPIC.
    Take a look here for further instruction about the process. EPIC for GMC registration.
  • Making an online application from your GMC online account.
    Just as outlined above.
  • Waiting for approval of your application
  • Attending an ID check

Few doctors who meet up the stringent criteria for being sponsored can get GMC registration by this pathway. Widely known is the Medical Training Initiative (MTI). Read the post for further information and guidance.

USMLE, MCCQE, and AMC for GMC registration

It is a newer route of obtaining GMC registration for International Medical Graduates (IMGs). Please check this article for further detail – GMC Registration via USMLE, MCCQE, or AMC.

Wrapping up

To conclude, GMC will try to complete/close your application within three months. If you are stuck with any forms or evidences, the first place you can seek help is from themselves. If you call them, they are really helpful and ready to guide you in your application process every step of the way. And another big advice, honesty is the best policy! Do not lie or submit falsified documents. Maybe what you have “heard” or you are worried about is nothing to worry about at all. Ask them!

Congratulations again.