Eligibility criteria

If the applicant does not meet all these criteria or does not provide the relevant documents in the format required by the GMC when applying for registration, the GMC will not grant registration regardless of any recommendation made by the RCR.

Potential applicants should visit the GMC website for further information on IMG GMC applications with sponsorship. Applicants cannot start a registration application without proof of proficiency in English.

You'll need to have your primary medical qualification (and acceptable postgraduate qualification, if you have one) independently verified before the GMC can grant your registration with a license to practise. Please read about what this will mean for you.

Minimum requirements are:

• An acceptable primary medical qualification 
• Completion of at least one year in an internship/House Doctor post
• Completion of at least three years of full-time equivalent postgraduate training, including one year’s internship and at least one year in the specialty in which the doctor intends to work
• Engagement in medical practice for a minimum of three years from the last five years, including the 12 months immediately preceding the date of your application for GMC registration (you should also remain in active clinical practice throughout the application process). Please note that observerships are not recognised as medical practice by the GMC and so you would need to ensure you have been in active medical practice for at least 12 months from the date of any observerships before submitting an application.
• A letter of good standing from the local medical regulatory authority from no older than three months
• Evidence of proficiency in English by meeting the GMC’s requirements  in the IELTS or OET exam
• Attendance at an identity check in person on arrival in the UK (registration not confirmed until this is completed).

• Evidence of having met all GMC requirements as set out above
• Evidence of having completed at least 30 months of clinical radiology/clinical oncology training outside the UK/EEA
• Evidence of the offer of a suitable post in the UK for no more than two years and no less than six months
• Evidence that the post encompasses a period of higher specialty training as set out in the current RCR specialty training curriculum
• Evidence of appropriate funding e.g. NHS salary or scholarship
• Confirmation from the UK employer that the post in the UK is in a GMC Approved Practice Setting (APS)

We will not offer sponsorship if:

• If the applicant is currently living in the UK or EEA, or is a national or citizen of an EEA country or Switzerland
• If the applicant has completed less than 30 months of clinical radiology/clinical oncology training outside the UK/EEA
• If the applicant has failed any part of the PLAB test without a subsequent pass in that part
• If the applicant has not secured suitable funding for the post (applicants cannot self-fund)
• If the applicant has completed an observership within the last 12 months
• If there is no evidence of the offer of a suitable post in the UK - it cannot be core oncology/core radiology and we do not offer sponsorship for research posts, LAS posts, specialty doctor posts, or locum consultant posts

The applicant must also check that they can meet all the requirements for a Tier 5 visa. The applicant must be in their home country to apply for the visa. The applicant should allow up to three weeks for a decision on the visa and the process may require the applicant to temporarily relinquish their passport.  The rules governing the Tier 5 visa means that following its expiry, there may be restrictions on granting future visas. 

Please refer to Tier 5 Overview and application.