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If you wish to practise medicine in New Zealand you must first gain registration from us. To do this, you must show us that you are qualified, competent and fit for registration.
We register more than 1500 new doctors each year and there are over 16,000 registered doctors practising in New Zealand. More than 40 percent have trained overseas, coming from more than 100 countries.
Use the links below to find out about getting registered to practise here. We recommend you start with ‘how to register’ for an overview. -
The Chair of Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | The Medical Council of New Zealand, Dr Curtis Walker, reinforced today the technical and complex process required when thoroughly reviewing a doctor’s overseas qualifications, training and experience.
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The International Association of Medical Regulatory Authorities (IAMRA) signed a historic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) today with the World Health Organization in a ceremony in Geneva.
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This dashboard page contains information around new registrations - registrations granted where the doctor was not already on the medical register.
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This dashboard page contains information around changes over time in the number and demographics of registered doctors - doctors on the register with a current practising certificate.
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This dashboard page contains information around international medical graduates, doctors who obtained their primary medical qualification outside of New Zealand.
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To practise in New Zealand, you must first gain registration from us. This ensures you are competent and fit to practise.
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Doctors and physician associates get sick too, and when they do it's important that their illness doesn't interfere with their ability to practise safely. A doctor or physician associate must always be able to practise without putting patients or the public at risk.
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This dashboard page contains information around doctors with a vocational scope of practice including breakdowns by age, gender, and ethnicity.
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Every doctor in New Zealand must be registered to practise medicine. If you are not eligible for registration under any other pathway, you must sit and pass the NZREX Clinical, our registration examination.
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All physician associates applying for registration in New Zealand must have key documents verified from their primary source. Council uses the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates’ (ECFMG) Credential Verification for Health Professionals (CVHP) service to do this.
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This page covers where you can get advice and support if you're thinking about making a notification.
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Faster, easier registration for overseas-trained doctors to enter Aotearoa New Zealand’s medical workforce
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This dashboard page contains information around how long doctors remain in New Zealand after their initial registration.
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Council is pleased to publish its revised statement on Treating yourself and those close to you (previously Providing care to yourself and those close to you), in effect from 14 October 2024.
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If you are thinking about practising medicine in New Zealand, there are many things to consider. This page provides an introduction to medical registration, the healthcare system, getting a job and settling in the country.
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This dashboard page contains information around registered doctors, those who are on the register and hold a current practising certificate. You can also view the same data for past quarters.
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Our Health Committee acts for Council when health problems affect a doctor’s ability to practise safely. Referrals come from doctors themselves, or worried colleagues. We ensure patients are protected while the doctor gets appropriate help.
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This area of our site contains detailed information about the medical workforce in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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A notification around concerns about your health is different from one about conduct, and our approach to dealing with it is non-judgmental and focuses on your rehabilitation and the safety of patients and people you come into contact with.
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This page outlines the registration process for physician associates including information on what you need to provide, what you can expect and how long it will take.
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The Medical Council has today launched Torohia – Medical Training Survey for New Zealand, a new survey designed with the profession, for the profession, to better understand doctors’ experience of postgraduate training.
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Regardless of your scope of practice, the basic process for registration as a doctor or physician associate in New Zealand is as outlined here.
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Tell us who you are so we can better direct your enquiry
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If a doctor or physician associate has an issue with their own health, wherever possible we try to help them to remain in practice while it is being resolved. That said, our primary objective is to protect the health and safety of the public - which may mean that the doctor or physician associate will be unable to practise safely, or will be limited in what they can do, until they are well enough to fully resume practice.
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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.
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Our registration application forms include a range of 'fitness for registration' questions. This page will help guide you should you need to make a declaration about any issues that might affect your fitness for registration.
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We serve Aotearoa New Zealand by protecting the health and safety of the public. We do this by setting and promoting standards for doctors and physician associates.
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Doctors who hold overseas qualifications and who want to apply for registration in Aotearoa New Zealand must have key documents verified from their primary source. Since November 2017, Council has required primary source verification using the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates’ Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (ECFMG’s EPIC) service, which is now accessed via the MyIntealth portal.
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You can apply to access the full medical register, but before you apply make sure you know what information the register holds. Whether your application is approved or not depends on what you want to do with the information.
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The Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal (The Tribunal) has asked us to publish a summary of its recent decisions. You can access the full decision on their website at the links provided.
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If you are planning on leaving New Zealand to practise in another country, its medical regulator may ask you for a certificate of professional status (COPS) from us. Your registration is not affected by your decision to practise overseas but you must ensure that we hold current contact details for you.
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Letter from Mr Andrew Connolly to the Resident Doctors Association (RDA) and the 20 District Health Boards regarding continued industrial action.
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If you have concerns about the care you received, or about a doctor or physician associate's behaviour or professionalism, you can notify either the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC) or the Medical Council of New Zealand (Council). We work closely together, but our roles are different.
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If you're not working away from New Zealand but are just taking a break from medical practice, this page outlines what you need to do.
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You are eligible for a 50 percent refund of your practising certificate fee if your medical income (including any tax) in New Zealand or overseas is NZ$20,000 or less.
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You can request to withdraw from a particular sitting of the NZREX Clinical, or request to transfer to another sitting. This policy sets out the process for applicants to transfer or withdraw from the NZREX Clinical and the associated fee or refund for each process.
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This form outlines the additional information that will be required by the RNZCGP so it can provide us with advice on your application for vocational registration in general practice.
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Vocational registration is a form of permanent, specialist registration which allows you to work independently in New Zealand.
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These standards will come into effect on 1 July 2022. The standards outline the standards vocational training providers need to meet in order to be accredited to provide vocational medical training and recertification programmes. We have made revisions to update recertification, cultural safety, health equity and specialist assessment of IMG content.
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Our principal function is to protect you by ensuring that doctors and physician associates are competent and fit to practise. We do this by setting standards of clinical and cultural competence and ethical conduct.
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VOC1 (specialist) registration is for doctors who hold an approved New Zealand / Australasian postgraduate qualification and already hold registration in the General scope of practice.
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The Council offers two clinical supervision courses for clinical supervisors and prevocational educational supervisors. The courses supplement training that supervisors receive from training providers and medical colleges. Courses are available to all supervisors through the ePort platform.
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There are two key scopes of practice for physician associates:
Physician Associate Provisional scope of practice (for first period of registration).
Physician Associate General scope of practice (for physician associates who have completed the provisional period) . -
Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand is committed to meeting Aotearoa New Zealand's healthcare demands by enabling highly qualified international and locally trained doctors to join the workforce through flexible and efficient registration pathways.
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Vaccination is a crucial part of the New Zealand public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Health practitioners can help to protect themselves, their patients, and the wider community by getting their COVID-19 vaccination.
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This page contains a full list of our forms including application, report and referee forms, as well as checklists and the current fees payable.
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Find out how to keep us up to date with changes to your information including your name, employment, and addresses.
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1982 to 30 June 1983
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1983 to 30 June 1984
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1986 to 30 June 1987
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1987 to 30 June 1988
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1989 to 30 June 1990
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1992 to 30 June 1993
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1994 to 30 June 1995
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1997 to 30 June 1998
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2002 to 30 June 2003
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2005 to 30 June 2006
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2012 to 30 June 2013
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2013 to 30 June 2014
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2016
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2020
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Council, in partnership with Te Ohu Rata o Aotearoa (Te ORA), jointly hosted a highly successful symposium on cultural competence, partnership and health equity on 25 June 2019. The theme of the symposium was Mahia te mahi, hei painga mō te iwi, Getting the job done for the wellbeing of the people. The event aimed to investigate ways of working together to improve cultural safety in order to work towards eliminating health inequities. This booklet brings together the presentations and whakaaro shared at the symposium.
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1984 to 30 June 1985
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1985 to 30 June 1986
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1988 to 30 June 1989
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1990 to 30 June 1991
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1991 to 30 June 1992
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1993 to 30 June 1994
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1995 to 30 June 1996
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1996 to 30 June 1997
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1998 to 30 June 1999
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2000 to 30 June 2001
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2001 to 30 June 2002
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2003 to 30 June 2004
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2004 to 30 June 2005
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2006 to 30 June 2007
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2007 to 30 June 2008
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2011
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2011 to 30 June 2012
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2016 to 30 June 2017
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025.
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 1999 to 30 June 2000
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Council's annual report for the year from 1 July 2009 to 30 June 2010
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RNZCGP accreditation report relating to the visit from 18 to 21 March 2024
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The purpose of this statement is to protect the public from advertising that is false, misleading or deceptive, and to
provide guidance to doctors about the advertising of health-related products and services. -
Read about our past performance. Our annual reports include detailed information and statistics about our activities for the twelve months from 1 July of a year to 30 June of the following year.
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This gazette notice lists the fees payable from 1 July 2025.
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Did you know over 70% of doctors registered in the past year were trained overseas — bringing skills from 63 countries to Aotearoa. But to truly strengthen our health system, it’s not just about recruitment — it’s about supporting doctors to stay.
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This gazette notice lists the fees payable from 1 July 2026.
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In this edition | This month we share the latest on physician associate regulation, highlight key discussions from our Annual Conference, invite your feedback on two open consultations, and provide an early look at responses to the Torohia survey.
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Whether you're Māori or non-Māori, you are welcome to visit a Māori health provider. What makes their care different from a non-Māori health provider is the kaupapa (principle) and delivery framework, which is distinctively Māori.
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You can apply for registration through this pathway if you have a primary medical degree from the UK or Ireland and have completed your internship within the UK or Ireland.
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We are seeking stakeholder feedback on the Medical Council of New Zealand’s (Council) proposal to gazette changes to its existing fees and disciplinary levy, to be effective from 1 July 2022.
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From today, 1 October 2026 physician associates are a regulated health profession in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Medical Council Chair Dr Rachelle Love responds to the final report from the Abuse in State Care Royal Commission Inquiry.
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All international medical graduates (IMGs) registered in a provisional general, provisional vocational and special purpose scope of practice must be supervised. This is to support their practice while they become familiar with the New Zealand health system and the expected standard of medical practice.
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Half of the APC (practising fee and disciplinary levy) will be refunded to doctors earning $20,000 or less per annum from the practice of medicine in New Zealand or overseas.
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To apply for registration as a medical practitioner in New Zealand, or to sit the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical), you must have a recognised primary medical qualification from a university medical school listed on the World Directory of Medical Schools.
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In this issue of Medical Council News, we look at outcomes and initiatives from the Council’s planning day, our discussion paper Better Data – the benefits to the profession and the public, Council’s revised Statement on advertising, doctors’ responsibilities around aviation safety and the need to provide more detail on medical certificates.
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Sport and exercise medicine is the medical care of the exercising individual, including the assessment and management of patients with musculoskeletal injuries and medical problems arising from sporting activity. Sport and exercise physicians possess expertise in general medicine, orthopaedics and rehabilitation, plus allied sport sciences including nutrition, biomechanics, exercise physiology and sports psychology.
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We have approximately 95 staff, including our Chief Executive and senior managers whose activities are overseen by a Council of 12 people who are a mix of doctors and laypeople. Our Chair is Dr Kenneth (Ken) Clark. Joan Simeon is our Manukura (Chief Executive) Officer.
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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand (Council) invites feedback on proposed practising certificate (PC) fees, disciplinary levies, and other fees to take effect from 1 July 2026.
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List of our fees effective from 1 July 2026
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We've drafted these standards to align with new recertification requirements. They will be effective from 1 July 2022. Before this time, providers will need to show evidence they are progressing towards implementing these requirements.
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NZREX Clinical - Application to withdraw from an examination
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Media Release | Medical Council to regulate the Physician Associate profession
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Application for change of scope from provisional vocational to vocational (ex-provisional)
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The Medical Council of New Zealand has two new members. The Hon Matt Doocey, Associate Minister of Health, made the appointments, which are effective from 1 July 2024 for a three-year term. The Minister also reappointed two current members for further terms. These four appointments follow the election by the profession, earlier this year.
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We recognise Taiwanese medical schools so that graduates from these schools have the opportunity to undertake NZREX Clinical. We must ensure we only register fully qualified doctors. However, the exclusion of Taiwanese medical schools from WDOMS is due to political factors and not the standard of those schools. The ECFMG has approved graduates of these schools to undertake the prerequisite examination - USMLE Steps 1 and 2.
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Earlier this year we sought feedback on the draft statement on Treating yourself and those close to you. A wide range of submissions was received from key stakeholders across the profession and some common themes emerged. Council has revised this statement taking into account your feedback.
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Council is reviewing the core ethical standards it sets for the profession, ensuring the standards reflect both patient expectations and the realities of clinical practice. As part of this work, we have sought feedback from patients and doctors and have now released two reports that reflect their views.
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From November 2014, Council reviewed and implemented significant changes to prevocational medical training requirements for doctors in Aotearoa New Zealand. The changes aim to improve patient safety and the performance of doctors through provision of high-quality learning.
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Council is proposing to extend the provisional vocational assessment period from 18 to 24 months. This will enable a specific cohort of specialist IMGs who may not otherwise meet the standard, to gain provisional vocational registration and complete discrete training to address identified
deficiencies in their qualifications, training and experience. -
Council collects workforce data from doctors as part of the renewal of practising certificates.
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Council is seeking feedback on a proposed change to its processes. Specifically, in relation to advice obtained from medical colleges regarding an international medical graduate’s (IMG) application for registration in a provisional vocational scope of practice.
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In August 2021, Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa |Medical Council of New Zealand, underwent a full performance review that showed compliance to our obligations under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (HPCAA).
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This page contains a full list of our forms including application, report and referee forms, as well as checklists and the current fees payable, for physician associates.
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Between accreditation cycles, the Council monitors prevocational medical training and Aotearoa New Zealand vocational medical training and recertification providers through progress and annual reporting. For medical schools and Australasian vocational training and recertification providers (medical colleges) monitoring is led by the Australian Medical Council, in partnership with the Council.
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It is important that we understand the composition and changes in our medical workforce, so that good planning decisions can be made. This pack brings together the key data that matters most.
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Report on our progress with strategic directions and initiatives for the 12 month period from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019.
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This dashboard page contains information around Māori and Pacific Peoples doctors in the medical workforce including breakdowns by age, gender, and work role.
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Council's strategic plan sets out our key strategic goals, the outcomes that flow down from our goals, and how we can achieve these outcomes.
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The Council regularly asks for feedback from doctors, the public and other stakeholders on a variety of issues affecting public health and safety.
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This page outlines how the process of renewing your practising certificate works and what to do if your certificate is about to expire and you haven't heard from us.
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You cannot work outside the requirements of your scope of practice and any requirements set by Council specific to you. These are shown on your practising certificate. If you are registered within a provisional general, provisional vocational or a special purpose scope of practice, you need our approval of any change to your employment, supervision, position or location.
Once we've received and approved your variation application we will issue you a new practising certificate. -
Otolaryngology, head and neck surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of the ears, nose, throat, and related structures of the head and neck. This includes cancer of the head and neck (excluding the eye and the brain), disorders of the salivary glands and thyroid gland, disorders of hearing, balance, swallowing, speech, snoring/sleep apnoea and aspects of facial plastic surgery.
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Report on our progress with strategic directions and initiatives for the 12 month period from 1 July 2016 to 30 June 2017
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Report on our progress with strategic directions and initiatives for the 12 month period from 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018
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This pathway is for New Zealand and Australian medical graduates wanting to register within the Provisional General scope of practice to complete their internship.
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If you have concerns about a registered doctor or a physician associate, you can refer the matter to the Council.
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How you apply for a practising certificate will depend on whether or not you are already registered in New Zealand, if you have worked in New Zealand before, and how long it has been since you last practised. If you already hold a practising certificate, please see our page on renewing your practising certificate instead.
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Plastic and reconstructive surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients requiring the restoration, correction or improvement in the shape and appearance of the body structures that are defective or damaged at birth or by injury, disease, growth or development. It includes all aspects of cosmetic surgery.
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At its first meeting for 2024, Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | The Medical Council of New Zealand elected Dr Rachelle Love as its new Chair and re-elected Mr Simon Watt as Deputy Chair.
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We are seeking your feedback on the draft Professional standards for PAs. These draft standards propose the principles and values of good PA practice and the professional standards expected of PAs working in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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There are two medical schools in Aotearoa New Zealand. Council recognises the primary medical training qualifications from both Aotearoa New Zealand and Australian medical schools.
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Application for vocational registration if you don't hold an approved postgraduate medical qualification from New Zealand or Australia.
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This page contains important information on approved qualifications, the information to include with your application, and other things that may affect your application for registration in a vocational scope.
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Psychiatry involves the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of patients with psychological, emotional, or cognitive problems resulting from psychiatric disorders, physical disorders or any other cause.
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The Medical Council of New Zealand, in partnership with Te Ohu Rata O Aotearoa (Te ORA), has released an independent research report outlining findings on the current state of cultural safety and health equity delivered by doctors in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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You can apply for this pathway if you have passed the Australian Medical Council examinations and are registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).
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This report presents the results of the 2026 workforce survey. Key findings include 21,097 practising doctors, a 2.8% rise from last year. Over half are women, and representation of Māori (5.8%) and Pacific (2.8%) doctors is growing.
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These current standards set out the principles and values that define good medical practice for doctors only. They outline what we expect from doctors in all aspects of their professional behaviour.
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These current standards set out the principles and values that define good medical practice for doctors only. They outline what we expect from doctors in all aspects of their professional behaviour.
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The Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal (the Tribunal) hears and determines disciplinary proceedings brought against health practitioners, including doctors. The Tribunal is independent and is completely separate from Council.
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We sometimes require that a doctor has a chaperone present to observe their consultations with patients. We do this to mitigate risk to the patient where there are concerns that the doctor poses a risk of harm or serious risk of harm to the public. This is different from when a chaperone is present as a matter of good medical practice.
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We are seeking stakeholder feedback on the Medical Council of New Zealand’s (Council) proposal to gazette changes to its existing fees and disciplinary levy, to be effective from 1 July 2021.
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Manatū Hauora | Ministry of Health is the agency responsible for the proposal and consultation on the regulation of physician associates under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. The Medical Council made a submission during the Ministry’s consultation on the proposal in December 2023 (as did a number of other organisations) and is awaiting the Ministry’s release of the outcome. The Medical Council cannot advise on when this information will be released by the Ministry.
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This pathway is for New Zealand and Australian medical graduates who have successfully completed their internship in Australia and want to register within the General scope of practice.
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A Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) is an investigatory body appointed by the Council. Its purpose is to investigate matters and concerns referred to it by the Council about a registered doctor. Although a PCC is appointed by the Council, it is separate from the Council, and regulates its own procedures.
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If you hold an approved postgraduate medical qualification from the UK, Ireland or Australia and intend to work as a specialist in Aotearoa New Zealand in an approved area of medicine, you can apply via the VOC4 fast-track pathway.
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You can apply for registration through this pathway if you hold a qualification accredited for licensure in the United States of America for registration as a physician associate.
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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand is inviting feedback on proposals for how PAs should be regulated in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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New Zealand’s medical workforce has grown to 21,097 practising doctors, with the latest Medical Council workforce report also showing changes in who makes up the profession, where doctors are working and how long they stay in New Zealand.
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As part of ongoing work to ensure that registration policies are fit for purpose and enabling, Council is reviewing its orientation, induction and supervision guide. The current guide has been in place for several years. With the evolving nature of supervision, now is an appropriate time to review and revise it.
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We sometimes require that a doctor has a chaperone present to observe their consultations with patients. We do this to mitigate risk to the patient where there are concerns that the doctor poses a risk of harm or serious risk of harm to the public. This is different from when a chaperone is present as a matter of good medical practice.
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This statement outlines Council's expectations of doctors who perform cosmetic procedures. These include standards relating to training, skill and expertise, advertising and obtaining consent from the patient.
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In this edition I Consultation on the regulation of Physician Associates (PAs) closes 16 February 2026, our data dashborad has been updated and we share the results from the recent Torohia – Medical Training Survey.
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This consultation document is seeking stakeholder feedback on the Medical Council of New Zealand’s (Council) proposal to gazette an increase to the practising certificate (PC) fee and disciplinary levy, to be effective from 1 September 2020.
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In the May 2016 issue of Medical Council News we looked at doctors providing care to themselves and those close to them, informed consent, and guidance from the Pharmacy Council on effective prescription writing for safe collaborative patient management.
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Rehabilitation medicine is the medical care of patients in relation to the prevention and reduction of disability and handicap arising from impairments, and the management of patients with disabilities from a physical, psychosocial and vocational viewpoint.
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Council is pleased to announce that from 1 November 2024, international medical graduates (IMGs) with an approved postgraduate medical qualification, intending to practise in Aotearoa New Zealand in an approved area of medicine, can apply for specialist registration via a new fast-track registration pathway.
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Certificates of professional status (COPS) are documents used by professional regulators to share information about whether a health practitioner is in good standing. Doctors or physician associates applying for registration, restoration or returning from practising outside New Zealand need to provide us with certificates of professional status.
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In August 2021, Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand, underwent a full performance review that showed compliance to our obligations under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (HPCAA). This independent report documents the findings from the review.
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This statement outlines what cultural safety means and why it is important. The document reflects the evolution of thinking away from the cultural competence of doctors – that is acquiring skills and knowledge of other cultures – towards self-reflection of a doctor’s own attitudes and biases that may affect the cultural safety of patients. Council requires doctors to meet these cultural safety standards.
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Sexual health medicine is concerned with sexual relations, including freedom from sexually transmissible infections (STIs), unplanned pregnancy, coercion and physical and psychological sexual discomfort. Its practice encompasses a wide range of factors that contribute to STIs, sexual assault, sexual dysfunction and fertility.
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Rural hospital medicine is determined by its social context, the rural environment, the demands of which include professional and geographic isolation, limited resources and special cultural and sociological factors. It is invariable practised at a distance from comprehensive specialist medical and surgical services and investigations.
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This report presents the results of our 2025 workforce survey. Key findings include 20,530 practising doctors, a 2.6% rise from last year. Nearly half are women (49.6%), and representation of Māori (5.5%) and Pacific (2.7%) doctors is growing among younger doctors. International medical graduates continue to play a vital role, especially outside the main centres.
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In this issue of MC News, Dr Rachelle Love introduces a new series of feature profile articles from interviews with our Council members, and we confirm the practising fee and disciplinary levy for the year commencing 1 July 2024.
Other key features include our consultation on Treating yourself and those close to you, a recent Coroner's report and the importance of refraining from amending clinical notes after being notified of a patient's death. -
We are pleased to announce that we are increasing capacity to sit the NZREX Clinical across 2025, and plan to be able to examine up to 180 candidates over the course of 2025.
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The principal function of the Medical Council of New Zealand is to protect the health and safety of the public by ensuring that doctors and physician associates are competent and fit to practise. We do this by setting standards of clinical and cultural competence and ethical conduct.
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Our policies set out the rules and criteria we use to make decisions on applications for registration. These policies will also be referenced on the pages that provide detail on how to apply for registration.
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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | Medical Council of New Zealand’s latest quarterly workforce data shows that women now make up slightly more than half of practising doctors in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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This page contains forms relating to recertification programmes requirements and professional development.
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This page contains the latest Medical Council notices published in the Gazette for Scopes of Practice, prescribed qualifications and Fees.
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There are two special purpose scopes of practice which enable us to react to emergencies and unpredictable situations or disasters and pandemics. The specific requirements and length of registration depend on the event, and are determined by the Council when required.
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All doctors and physician associates coming to New Zealand to practise for the first time must attend a registration meeting and be able to produce the information we have asked for.
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Medical Council News is our official newsletter. Published and distributed to the profession regularly, the newsletter contains a summary of the most important recent news as well as articles on topics likely to be of interest to doctors and physician associates.
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In our second year as a Toitū carbonreduce certified organisation under ISO 14064-1:2018 and Toitū requirements, Council focused on supporting the implementation of the Environmental Sustainability Strategy and strengthening the accuracy and completeness of emissions reporting.
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Musculoskeletal medicine involves the diagnosis and treatment (or referral) of patients with neuro-musculoskeletal dysfunction, disorders and diseases, most of whom present with acute or chronic pain problems.
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If you want to work as a specialist in New Zealand, hold the approved New Zealand/Australasian postgraduate qualification, but do not already hold general registration, you can apply down the VOC2 pathway.
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This dashboard page contains further information around the distribution of doctors within New Zealand.
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The Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (HPCAA) requires us to specify the scopes of practice within which doctors are permitted to practice, and to describe and define the boundaries of each.
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A recent change to the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 sets a new requirement on all health profession regulators, including the Medical Council. We are now required to publish a policy setting out on when we might make public in some way, information about an order or direction made by us about a doctor.
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Supervision is a registration requirement for all doctors registered in a provisional general, provisional vocational or special purpose scope of practice. Supervision supports a doctor’s practice and enables their performance to be assessed while they become familiar with the New Zealand health system and the expected standard of medical practice.
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This dashboard page breaks down new doctors by entry pathway (how they qualified for registration in New Zealand) by ethnicity, gender, age group, and the country of their primary medical qualification.
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This dashboard page contains information around the distribution of doctors within New Zealand.
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This dashboard page contains information around doctors undertaking vocational training in New Zealand.
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Council requires all doctors in PGY2, to satisfy the requirements of a programme ordered by Council under section 40 of the HPCAA.
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Paediatrics involves the assessment, diagnosis and management of infants, children and young people with disturbances of health, growth, behaviour and/or development. It also addresses the health status of this group through population assessments, intervention, education and research.
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Most international medical graduates (IMGs) registered within a provisional general, provisional vocational, or special purpose scope of practice will need to submit a supervision plan with their application. The Council will consider the proposed supervision plan as part of the application process.
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The special purpose teleradiology scope of practice enables doctors without the recognised New Zealand or Australasian qualification to provide teleradiology services for patients in New Zealand.
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Graduates of Aotearoa New Zealand and Australian accredited medical schools and doctors who have sat and passed an approved medical registration examination, including the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical) complete prevocational medical training.
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In some circumstances you can be restored to the medical register if your registration has been cancelled. This page outlines how to apply to be restored to the register.
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Special purpose research scope of practice is for doctors who come to New Zealand temporarily to undertake research. This special purpose scope is available for a maximum of two years and practise is restricted to research approved by a formally-constituted ethics committee in New Zealand.
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The Medical Council of New Zealand will protect and safeguard personal information and treat it with the utmost care, respect and discretion. This includes all personal information collected online.This privacy notice applies to personal information that we collect through this website: www.mcnz.org.nz
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Working relationships with our key stakeholders are at the heart of everything we do to protect public health and safety. This page describes Council's relationships with Aotearoa New Zealand medical schools, Medical Colleges, Te Aka Whai Ora | Māori Health Authority, Te Whatu Ora | Health New Zealand, the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC), and other organisations where we have established a memoranda of understanding (MoU).
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Neurosurgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of the central, peripheral and autonomic nervous system including their supportive structures and blood supply. This includes the skull, brain, meninges, spinal cord, spine and pituitary gland. It also includes the management of traumatic, neoplastic, infective, congenital and degenerative conditions of these structures and surgical pain management.
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The special purpose visiting expert scope of practice enables doctors to come to New Zealand to proctor, demonstrate, assist or teach a new or existing procedure to New Zealand practitioners for a maximum of one week.
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Graduates of Aotearoa New Zealand and Australian accredited medical schools and doctors who have sat and passed an approved medical registration examination, including the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical) complete prevocational medical training.
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This pathway is for physician associates who have experience practising clinically in New Zealand.
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You can apply for registration through this pathway if you have an overseas specialist qualification on our approved list, and have a job offer to work in New Zealand for 12 months or less.
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You can apply for registration through this pathway if you hold a qualification approved by the General Medical Council (GMC) for registration as a physician associate in the United Kingdom.
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You can apply for registration via this pathway if, within the last five years, you have passed either the New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX Clinical); or Part 1 and Part 2 of the Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board (PLAB) test.
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Any doctor or physician associate applying for registration in New Zealand must be fit for registration and fit to practise. It's a legal requirement on us to ensure they are. We determine this as part of our assessment of your application for registration.
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You can apply for registration through this pathway if you hold a qualification accredited for licensure in Canada for registration as a physician associate.
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You can apply for registration through this pathway if you have recent experience in a comparable health system.
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You can apply via this pathway if you have passed Part 1 and Part 2 of the Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board (PLAB) test administered by the General Medical Council (GMC), United Kingdom (UK); completed 12-months of satisfactory practice in the UK; and hold full general registration with the GMC.
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Special purpose postgraduate training registration is available for doctors looking to come to New Zealand on a temporary basis, to gain experience and skills to take back to their home or sponsor country.
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If you trained and qualified as a specialist outside of New Zealand and Australia and wish to work in New Zealand as a specialist you can apply based on overseas training and qualifications and we will assess your case on its merits.
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We may sometimes use terms you won't be familiar with. Find out here what they mean.