International membership

Sharing best practice for a better future. Join our diverse professional family of over 55,000 GPs worldwide.

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We support each other to maintain the highest standards in patient care. We facilitate sharing knowledge and experience for every step in a lifetime of general practice, throughout your clinical career and beyond. Becoming an RCGP international member is also an opportunity to support our important work improving family medicine around the world.

Who is international membership for?

International membership is available to family doctors who have completed MRCGP[INT] accredited assessments.

Successful completion of the MRCGP[INT] exam will enable you to use post-nominals MRCGP[INT]. You can enjoy the comprehensive membership benefits associated with the grade, including joining the IMG group on the RCGP forum.

We have two options of membership for our international GPs. If you are practicing overseas and have passed the MRCGP[INT] you can apply for international membership.

Are you a medical student, GP trainee or family doctor based outside the UK, but you've not passed the MAP or MRCGP assessment? You can apply to become an international affiliate member.

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Renew your membership

MRCGP[INT] International membership

Passing an MRCGP[INT] accredited assessment makes you eligible to apply for an RCGP international membership. Use the post-nominals MRCGP[INT] after your name for as long as you remain a member.

Accredited assessments meet the rigorous standards which are set and accredited by the RCGP. However, they do not confer holders of this qualification any right to practice as a GP in the UK.

The curriculum on which MRCGP[INT] accredited assessments are based, is unique to the country it was developed for. Therefore, it is different from the MRCGP curriculum in the UK.

Successful completion of the assessment, and registering as an international member will enable you to be included in our membership directory. You will get to enjoy the comprehensive membership benefits associated with the grade.

Becoming an RCGP international member demonstrates your commitment to achieving the highest standards in primary care. It is also an opportunity to support our important work improving family medicine around the world.

Register as an international member now

Each MRCGP[INT] accredited assessment is suitable for those candidates who plan to work in the country in which they sit the assessment. They are locally developed to reflect local epidemiology, burden of disease, and medical practices.

How to sit an MRCGP[INT] assessment in your country

Suitable applicants should fulfil the following criteria:

  • Successfully complete the Postgraduate Diploma in Family Medicine of the University of Nicosia
  • Have 5 years of clinical practice in primary care, or have completed a structured specialty training scheme of at least 3 years before sitting the exam

Candidates who successfully complete the Applied Knowledge Test (AKT), Workplace Based Assessment (WPBA) and Simulated Surgery (SS) will become entitled to RCGP international membership.

To learn more, visit the University of Nicosia Medical School website.

Contact

Dr Despo Ierodiakonou
Co-ordinator of the postgraduate Family Medicine Programme

University of Nicosia Medical School
Email: admissions@med.unic.ac.cy

Suitable applicants should fulfil the following criteria:

  • Have been eligible to practice as an independent (unsupervised) GP or Family Physician for at least three years
  • OR are undertaking vocational training for general practice and have successfully completed three years of training

Visit the MRCGP[INT] Dubai exam website

Contact

Office of the General Coordinator
PgME Office (old Rashid Library Building)
Ground Floor
Dubai Academic Health Corporation
Dubai, United Arab Emirates Email: RDManlucu@dha.gov.ae

We are delighted to announce that the Centre for the Development of Family Medicine in Kosovo has received MRCGP[INT] Accreditation.

Suitable applicants should fulfil the following criteria:

  • Enrolled in the Residency Programme in Family Medicine at the Centre for the Development of Family Medicine of Kosovo
  • Candidates must successfully complete all elements of the exit assessment: AKT, CSA and WPBA

Contact

Dr Albana Sahiti Morina
Acting Head of Primary Health Care
Centre for the Development of Family Medicine in Kosovo
Pristina, Kosovo
Email: albanasahiti-morina@hotmail.com

Suitable applicants should fulfil the following criteria:

  • Enrolled on the Kuwait Institute of Medical Specialisation (KIMS) Family Medicine Specialty Training Programme
  • Candidates must complete a number of requirements each year to be eligible to sit the exam at the end of each residency year.

Learn more about the KIMS Family Medicine Specialty Training Programme

Contact

Dr. Samia Al-Musallam
Director of the family Medicine Residency Programme
Kuwait Institute of Medical Specialisations
Email: info@kims.org.kw

Suitable applicants should fulfill the following criteria:

  • Have completed the Malta College of Family Doctors (MCFD) Family Medicine Vocational Training Programme – only doctors from MCFD are eligible to sit this exam

Find out more about the Malta College of Family Doctors

Contact

Professor Pierre Mallia
President of the Malta College of Family Doctors
Email: president@mcfd.org.mt

Suitable applicants should have competed a year's internship as well as fulfil one of the following criteria:

  • Candidate should have certification of completion of a structured two years training course or a two-year diploma in Family Medicine accredited by the South Asia Region MRCGP[INT] Board.
  • Candidate should have certification of completion of an accredited one-year training programme or one-year diploma in Family Medicine. They also need an additional two years clinical experience. This should consist of either two years in Family Medicine or a minimum of one year in Family Medicine. This should also include a further year in a specialty/-ies allied to Family Medicine/General Practice that are certified by the local accrediting organisation and approved by the regional MRCGP[INT] Board.
  • Candidate should have minimum of five years' clinical experience. Of these, a minimum of three years should be in Family Medicine/General Practice. The other years should be in specialty/-ies allied to Family Medicine/General Practice, certified by the local accrediting organisation and approved by the regional MRCGP[INT] Board.

Learn more about MRCGP[INT] South Asia.

Contact information for South Asia Board regional offices

South Asia MRCGP[INT] accredited exams are run in the following areas:

  • India: Chennai (Indian Medical Association)
  • Pakistan: Lahore (Noor Hospital) and Karachi (College of Family Medicine Pakistan)
  • Sri Lanka: Colombo (College of General Practitioners of Sri Lanka)
  • Bangladesh: Dhaka (Bangladesh Medical College)

Contact

Waseem Hameed
South Asia Board
Karachi, Pakistan
Email: mrcgp.southasia@hotmail.com or mrcgp.southasia@yahoo.com

MRCGP [INT] Brunei assessment update

The RCGP is now offering MRCGP [INT] Brunei candidates, who have passed either the AKT or the OSCE, the option to complete their MRCGP [INT] assessment. This means they can be given the MRCGP [INT] qualification. This is done in cooperation with the MRCGP [INT] South Asia Board.

For further details and registration instructions, please refer to MRCGP [INT] Brunei Assessment update (PDF file, 385 KB).

Affiliate membership

The RCGP offers international affiliate membership. This provides comprehensive support and resources to medical students, GP trainees and family doctors based outside the UK.

How to become an international affiliate member

Register as an international affiliate member now

FRCGP[INT] Fellowship of the RCGP

RCGP Fellowship is the highest level of membership. It's awarded in recognition of a significant contribution to medicine in general, and to general practice and family medicine in particular. Members are eligible for International Fellowship or FRCGP[INT]. This is equivalent to UK Fellowship in status and recognition, as our UK members are eligible for UK Fellowship.

UK and international Fellowships must meet the same requirements. The international Fellowship application or nomination process is different, as it is reviewed by the International Faculty Fellowship Committee (IFFC).

Qualifying for international Fellowship:

  • Five years continuous 'membership in good standing'
  • Evidencing a significant contribution to:
    • the health and welfare of the community
    • the science or practice of general practice or family medicine
    • the aims of RCGP, or any organisation which benefits general practice or family medicine.

There’s always someone you can ask

Find out more with our FAQs or call our friendly Member Services team on +44 (0)20 3188 7766.

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