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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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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. -
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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This pathway is for physician associates who have experience practising clinically in New Zealand.
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To practise as a doctor or physician associate in Aotearoa New Zealand you must be registered and have a practising certificate. There are various registration pathways, depending on your qualifications, training, experience, and whether you intend to work in Aotearoa New Zealand permanently or just for a short time for a specific purpose.
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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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We are now accepting applications via the new United Kingdom General Registrants pathway and the amended Examinations pathway.
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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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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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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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This dashboard page contains further information around the distribution of doctors within New Zealand.
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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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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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The Minister of Health has announced two new initiatives targeted at overseas doctors who have passed their New Zealand Registration Examination (NZREX) examination in the last five years, allowing them to apply for roles in New Zealand that will lead to full registration as a doctor.
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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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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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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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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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This dashboard page contains information around the distribution of doctors within New Zealand.
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Radiation oncology is the medical care and management of patients with cancer and other medical conditions through the conduct and supervision of radiation treatment, advice and provision of palliative and other supportive care, and advice and provision of other non-surgical cancer; advice and provision of other non-surgical cancer treatment including cytotoxic, hormonal and other drug therapies; participation in clinical trials and research related to cancer management.
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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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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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You can apply for registration through this pathway if you have recent experience in a comparable health system.
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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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This dashboard page contains information around doctors undertaking vocational training in New Zealand.
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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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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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Vocational registration is a form of permanent, specialist registration which allows you to work independently in New Zealand.
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Occupational medicine involves the study and practice of medicine related to the effects of work on health and health on work. It has clinical, preventive and population based aspects.
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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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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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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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The Medical Council of New Zealand (the Medical Council) welcomes the Government’s review of the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (HPCAA and the opportunity to respond to the consultation document Putting Patients First—modernising health workforce regulation.
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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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Urgent care medicine (formerly known as accident and medical practice) is the primary care of patients on an after-hours or non-appointment basis, where continuing medical care is not provided.
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Emergency medicine is a field of practice based on knowledge and skills required for the prevention, diagnosis and management of acute and urgent aspects of illness and injury affecting patients of all age groups with a full spectrum of undifferentiated physical and behavioural disorders.
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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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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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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 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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Pain medicine is the biopsychosocial assessment and management of persons with complex pain, especially when an underlying condition is not directly treatable. The scope of pain medicine supplements that of other medical disciplines, and utilises interdisciplinary skills to promote improved quality-of-life through improved physical, psychological and social function.
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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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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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This dashboard page contains information around doctors with a vocational scope of practice including breakdowns by age, gender, and ethnicity.
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The following key three areas of work were highlighted in our 2026 independent performance review:
1. Consumer input and transparency.
2. Contributing to a sustainable medical workforce.
3. Collaboration and relationships with others in the health sector.
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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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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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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 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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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 area of our site contains detailed information about the medical workforce in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Cardiothoracic surgery is the diagnosis and treatment (operative and non operative) of patients with disorders of structures within the chest including: the heart and vascular system, the lungs and trachea, the oesophagus, the diaphragm and chest wall. It includes the management of trauma and congenital and acquired disorders of these structures.
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Family planning and reproductive health is the treatment of and provision of health services for patients in relation to contraception, reproductive health and associated primary sexual health issues.
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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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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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Public health medicine is the epidemiological analysis of medicine concerned with the health and care of populations and population groups. It involves the assessment of health and health care needs, the development of policy and strategy, the promotion of health, the control and prevention of disease, and the organisation of services.
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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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From today, 1 October 2026 physician associates are a regulated health profession in Aotearoa 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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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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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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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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Faster, easier registration for overseas-trained doctors to enter Aotearoa New Zealand’s medical workforce
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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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If you have concerns about a registered doctor or a physician associate, you can refer the matter to the Council.
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The Medical Council of New Zealand |Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa today released the results of its 2025 Workforce Survey, showing continued growth, more diversity, and important shifts in the medical workforce.
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When you're applying for registration, we may ask you to provide a Statutory Declaration, or a copy of a document that you’re relying upon as part of your application.
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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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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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Whenever you use a health or disability service in New Zealand, you are protected by the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights (Code of Rights). The Code of Rights applies to both public and private facilities, and to both paid and unpaid services. It gives you as a patient, the right to be treated with respect, receive appropriate care, have proper communication, and be fully informed so you can make an informed choice.
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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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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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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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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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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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Find out how to keep us up to date with changes to your information including your name, employment, and addresses.
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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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Our consultation regarding the strengthening of the accreditation framework for prevocational medical training is now open. We invite your feedback.
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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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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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We may sometimes use terms you won't be familiar with. Find out here what they mean.
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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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Council collects workforce data from doctors as part of the renewal of practising certificates.
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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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List of our fees effective from 1 July 2026
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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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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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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | The Medical Council of New Zealand (Council) recently held an election to select four medical practitioner nominees and can now announce the results of this election.
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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 wish to apply for the NZREX Clinical, you must meet the requirements outlined in this Policy. You will also need to submit a recent photo in order to apply for the NZREX Clinical, this policy also outlines the requirements for the photo we need.
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The Medical Council of New Zealand is pleased to advise that at its recent meeting, Dr Kenneth Clark was elected Chair of Council. The Council also elected Ms Ming-Chun Wu Deputy Chair.
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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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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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Te Kōwhiringa o Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa 2024 | The Medical Council of New Zealand election 2024
Council elections are about building a strong Council that the public, government and medical profession can have confidence in. The opportunity to cast your vote for the election of four medical members to join the governance of the Medical Council is available starting Tuesday, 20 February 2024. -
It is Council’s role to accredit and monitor specialist training providers and to promote medical education training in Aotearoa New Zealand. Council assesses Aotearoa New Zealand-based vocational medical training and recertification providers against these standards.
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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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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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Where a doctor wishes to resume practice in New Zealand, but has not held a New Zealand practising certificate within the last 3 years, the doctor does not have an automatic entitlement to a practising certificate. Council must consider such applications on a case by case basis.
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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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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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Currently, there is no requirement for applicants for this examination to have had any clinical practice experience. This consultation seeks views on the merits of introducing a requirement that individuals applying to sit the NZREX must have had clinical practice experience and if so, then what that should be.
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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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This dashboard page contains information around new registrations - registrations granted where the doctor was not already on the medical register.
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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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The professional services a doctor can perform in New Zealand are defined by the scope of practice for which they are registered.
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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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Te Kaunihera Rata o Aotearoa | the Medical Council of New Zealand (the Council) considers it important that all interns have the knowledge and skills to manage and supervise resuscitation events and therefore we have a longstanding requirement that interns hold New Zealand Resuscitation Council (NZRC) CORE Advanced certification.
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This guide outlines why doctors may have conditions on their practice, how to find out if a doctor has conditions, and what some of the different types of conditions mean for you as a patient.
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Some pathways to registration require doctors to have completed their internship in a particular country. If you are applying for registration and did your internship somewhere else, this policy outlines how we will assess your suitability for registration.
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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. -
You can make a notification directly to the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC). The HDC's role is to promote and protect your rights as set out in the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights (The Code).
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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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Diagnostic and interventional radiology is the diagnosis and treatment of patients utilising imaging modalities, including general radiography, angiography, fluoroscopy, mammography, ultrasound, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, nuclear medicine and bone densitometry.
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In April 2025, the Minister of Health announced that PAs would be regulated in Aotearoa New Zealand, and that the Council would be the regulator of PAs. This responsibility is now set in legislation. Council is inviting feedback on proposals for how PAs should be regulated in Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Council is proud to have been one of the seven responsible authorities (RAs) that worked together to develop the Principles for Quality and Safe Prescribing Practice. Development of the Principles was a result of collaboration and partnership among RAs.
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If you are registered and practising in the provisional general scope as either a New Zealand or Australian medical graduate, or a doctor who has passed the NZ Registration Examination, you are required to complete prevocational medical training.
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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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Anaesthesia is the provision of anaesthetics, peri-operative care, intensive care and pain management to patients and can include the provision of resuscitation, retrieval/transportation (inter and intra hospital) and hyperbaric medicine to patients.
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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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When a physician associate first applies for registration in New Zealand, they will be registered in the Physician Associate Provisional scope of practice. There are multiple pathways to registration in the Physician Associate Provisional scope. Each of these has specific requirements you will need to satisfy to be eligible for registration. This section outlines the different pathways for each scope.
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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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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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Once a doctor successfully completes prevocational medical training and has received registration within a general scope of practice, a doctor is then eligible to enrol in a vocational medical training programme. Doctors undertaking this training are referred to as trainee doctors, and are usually employed as registrars.
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The Council and the Australian Medical Council (AMC) work together on accrediting the vocational medical training programmes offered by Australasian (joint Australian and New Zealand) vocational providers. If the applicant provider is seeking recognition in Australia (as an Australasian training provider), or if the scope is already recognised in Australia, stage 3 will be led by the AMC, with Council making a decision based on the AMC’s assessment.
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To ensure that you are continuing to maintain your competence to practise medicine, you must meet recertification programme requirements set by Council, including any minimum continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.