Understand licensing and registration

Registration and credentialing are different things

Registration or licensure is granted by a medical regulator and allows you to practise medicine in a jurisdiction, sometimes with limits. Credentialing or privileging is the host hospital's decision about what you may do within its walls, based on your qualifications, references and registration. A programme can only offer clinical participation that both of these permit.

What to find out

1. Which regulator governs the place where you will train, and what categories of registration exist (full, provisional, limited, training or visiting registration)?
2. Which category applies to a fellow or visitor, and what does it allow?
3. What evidence is required: primary medical degree, specialist qualification, certificates of good standing, references, English or local language results, identity documents?
4. Which documents must be verified at source or officially translated?
5. How long does each step take, and which steps depend on a job offer or sponsor?
6. What fees apply, and are they one-off or annual?

Ask the programme the right questions

• Does the programme sponsor or support registration, and who handles it?
• What registration or permission has the most recent international fellow held?
• Which activities are possible under that registration (assisting, performing, on-call, outpatient)?
• What credentialing steps does the host require, and when must they be finished?
• Is there an alternative role, such as observer or research fellow, if full registration is not available in time?

Programme profiles on this site list registration under applicant checks when the host publishes it, and show it as unknown when it does not.

Plan for lead times

Registration is often among the slowest parts of the process. Start collecting documents, certificates of good standing and verification requests as soon as you have a realistic shortlist, and keep copies in a form you can send quickly. Certificates and language results can expire, so check their validity against your expected start date. See the timeline guide.

Keep the source of truth official

Rules change. Confirm every requirement on the regulator's own website and in writing from the host, and record the date you checked. Do not rely on forum posts or summaries from other applicants for requirements that affect your right to practise.

Related guides

• Check visa and work rights
• International applicant guide
• Clinical fellowship, observership or research?