Provisional vocational registration

If you, as an international medical graduate (IMG), apply for vocational registration and your application is successful, you will have to complete a provisional vocational registration period. You'll work under supervision for this period, during which we make sure you're competent to practise independently in your chosen field of medicine.

What is the purpose of provisional vocational registration?

Before you can obtain vocational registration in New Zealand you must undertake a period of practice in the provisional vocational scope of practice.

During this provisional vocational registration period, a specialist who practises in the same area of medicine as you, will supervise you. We may also assess you separately, so that we're satisfied that you are able to practise independently as a specialist.

During this supervision and assessment period, your supervisor and employer will support and guide you, as you adjust to your new workplace and the New Zealand health system.

We will decide how long you need to work under provisional vocational registration before being eligible to obtain vocational registration. The maximum period is 18 months.

Two types of provisional vocational registration

Depending on how we assess your application, we will choose one of two options - or pathways- for you to work under provisional vocational registration, as you work towards getting vocational registration. These are:

  • provisional vocational (supervision)
  • provisional vocational (assessment)

Provisional vocational (supervision)

We will grant you provisional vocational registration, and require a period of satisfactory supervised practice before granting vocational registration, if we think you:

  • have qualifications, training and experience equivalent to that of a New Zealand vocationally-trained doctor registered in the same vocational scope of practice
  • will be able to achieve full registration in a vocational scope of practice within 18 months of obtaining provisional registration.

To be granted vocational registration, you will have to:

  • complete 6-12 months of satisfactory supervised practice
  • enrol in the relevant College or association continuing professional development programme.

Provisional vocational (assessment)

We will grant you provisional vocational registration and require a period of satisfactory supervised practice and a successful assessment before granting vocational registration assessment, if we decide you:

  • have qualifications, training and experience as satisfactory as that of a New Zealand vocationally-trained doctor registered in the same vocational scope of practice
  • will be able to achieve full registration in a vocational scope of practice within 18 months of obtaining provisional registration.

You will have to:

  • complete 12-18 months of supervised practice to a satisfactory level
  • enrol in the relevant College or association continuing professional development programme
  • complete a form of assessment.

Forms of assessment

If we register you down the 'assessment' pathway, you may have to complete one or more of the following:

  • a vocational practice assessment (VPA)
  • the College examination
  • a period of practice at a tertiary centre
  • a logbook which the VEAB will review at the end of the assessment period
  • continuing medical education courses recommended by the VEAB
  • other forms of assessment, with evidence showing how an assessment is relevant to qualifications, training and experience.

We will tell you at the time that you are granted provisional vocational registration what the assessment requirements are, including if you have to undergo a VPA.

Vocational practice assessment

The vocational practice assessment (VPA) will take generally place once you have completed 12-18 months of satisfactory supervised practice. It is a one-day workplace assessment, during which you will be visited by two assessors (specialists in the same area of medicine).

The purpose of the VPA is to assess your competence by confirming that you are:

  • practising at the level of a doctor holding the New Zealand/Australasian postgraduate qualification
  • practising at the level of a doctor registered in the same vocational scope of practice
  • competent to practise independently and unsupervised in the relevant vocational scope of practice.

The assessors will interview you and your colleagues, review your records and observe your practice. They will prepare a report for Council, which will be use to assess whether you have at the required standard to obtain vocational registration.

Vocational registration

Once you have completed all of the requirements for vocational registration, you will need to apply for a change of your registration from provisional vocational to vocational. You'll need to provide evidence that you have completed all requirements. We'll grant you vocational registration once we consider that you have completed all requirements to a satisfactory standard.

Policies

The following policies related to vocational registration: