National Medical Commission
The National Medical Commission, following the gazette released on 8th August 2019. The National Medical Commission (NMC) has been constituted by an act of Parliament known as the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 which came into force on 25.9.2020 by gazette notification dated 24.9.2020. The Board of Governors in supersession of the Medical Council of India constituted under section 3A of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 stands dissolved thereafter.
Some of the many functions of NMC are listed as:
(a) lay down policies for maintaining high quality and high standards in medical education and make necessary regulations on this behalf;
(b) lay down policies for regulating medical institutions, medical researchers, and medical professionals and make necessary regulations on this behalf;
(c) assess the requirements in healthcare, including human resources for health and healthcare infrastructure, and develop a road map for meeting such needs; etc
Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations 2023
After releasing a draft notification proposing the drastic change for the Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) released in April 2021, NMC received severe uproar from various stakeholders. NMC took note of all these concerns and issued the Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate (FMGL) Regulations on 18th Nov 2021.
For the students planning to study MBBS abroad, the guidelines ensured that all foreign medical graduates could practice in India once after receiving the permanent registrations after qualifying for the Indian medical licensing exam & its related procedures.
| The notice read as: “No foreign medical graduate shall practice medicine in India unless he is granted permanent registration in accordance with the provisions of these regulations.” |
To be eligible to apply for permanent registrations by the FMGs, they are required to fulfill the below criteria:
- The total course duration of MBBS in the chosen university abroad should be at least for 54 months, along with an internship period of a minimum of 12 months in the same medical institutions.
- The students should have studied in the university with English as the official medium of instruction.
- The students must have studied the subjects like Community Medicine, General Medicine, Psychiatry, Paediatrics, General Surgery, Anaesthesia, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Otorhinolaryngology, Ophthalmology, Dermatology, Emergency or Casualty services, lab services, and their sub-specialties.
| The notice read as: No foreign medical graduate shall be granted permanent registration unless he has– (a) (i) undergone a course leading to a foreign medical degree with a minimum duration of fifty-four months; (ii) Undergone an internship for a minimum duration of twelve months in the same foreign medical institution; (iii) Received a foreign medical degree with the medium of instructions in English; and (iv) studied the mandatory subjects specified in the Schedule-I; (b) registered with the respective professional regulatory body or otherwise, competent to grant a license to practice medicine in their respective jurisdiction of the country in which the medical degree is awarded and at par with the license to practice medicine given to a citizen of that country; (c) undergone supervised internship in India for a minimum term of twelve months, after applying for the same to the Commission; and (d) has cleared the National Exit Test or such other mandated test or tests conducted by the Commission. |
The duration and course details for the Foreign Medical Graduates are as follows:
- The students must have undergone theoretical, practical, and clinical training which should be equivalent to the MBBS course in India.
- The students must have completed 12 months of compulsory internship from the same institution where they have completed their other parts of the course.
| The gazette states: Any person who pursues a foreign medical degree should have undergone a course of theory, practical and clinical training equivalent to a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) in India; and Should have completed an internship of twelve months in addition to such course referred to in clause (a),in the same foreign institution where the primary medical qualification has been obtained, along with hands-on training in clinical subjects including but not limited to Community Medicine, General Medicine, Psychiatry, Paediatrics, General Surgery, Anaesthesia, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Otorhinolaryngology, Ophthalmology, Dermatology, Emergency or Casualty services, lab services, and their sub-specialties. It further adds as: The course and internship or clinical clerkship shall commensurate with the MBBS course of India in accordance with the Regulations on Graduate Medical Education, 1997 and subsequent amendments thereto, and shall include the subjects mentioned therein as are duly recognized by the Commission under sub-section (2) of section 61 of the Act; The course curriculum shall be made available for review by appropriate authorities, and if necessary, in the website of the institution or university where the course is being pursued at the time of joining the course. Regarding the course duration of the gazette reads: “The entire course, training, and internship or clerkship shall be done outside India in the same foreign medical institution throughout the course of study and no part of medical training and internship shall be done in India or in any country other than the country from where the primary medical qualification is obtained.” |
The gazette emphasizes that the student must complete all the parts of the curriculum including the internship/ clinical rotation which must be completed within 10 years from the date of enrollment.
| “The total duration of the foreign medical graduation course shall be completed within ten years from the date of joining the course.” |
Points to Be Noted!
- The minimum course duration studied by the applicant in the medical university abroad should be 54 months (4.5 years)
- A course of theory, practical and clinical training equivalent to a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) in India; and an internship of twelve months in addition to the course, in the same foreign institution where the primary medical qualification has been obtained.
- The entire course, training, and internship or clerkship shall be done outside India in the same foreign medical institution throughout the course of study. No part of it should be done anywhere else.
Which Countries fulfill NMC Guidelines for Studying MBBS Abroad
| Country | Duration of Course | Degree Awarded | Medium of Instruction | NMC Guideline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nepal | 4.5+1 Year of Internship | MBBS | English | Not Clear |
| China | 5+1 Year of Internship | MBBS | English | No |
| Bangladesh | 5+1 Year of Internship | MBBS | English | Yes |
| Kazakhstan | 5+1 Year of Internship | MBBS | English | Yes |
| Kyrgyzstan | 5+1 Year of Internship | MBBS | English | Yes |
| Uzbekistan | 5+1 Year of Internship | MBBS | English | Yes |
| Russia | 6-Years Incl Internship | MD | English / Bilingual | Yes |
| Georgia | 6-Years Incl Internship | MD | English | Yes |
| Armenia | 6-Years Incl Internship | MD | English | Yes |
| Egypt | 6-Years Incl Internship | MD | English | Yes |
| Poland | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | Yes |
| Belarus | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | Yes |
| Romania | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | Yes |
| Slovakia | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | Yes |
| Bosnia | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | |
| Lithuania | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | |
| Serbia | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | |
| Croatia | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | |
| Moldova | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | |
| Hungary | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | |
| Czech Republic | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | |
| Latvia | 6-Year Incl Internship | MD | English | |
| USA via Caribbean | 4/5 Years | MD | English | No |
| Malaysia | 5-years, No Internship for Foreign Nationals | MBBS | English | No |
| Mauritius | 5-Year, No Internship for Foreign Nationals | MBBS | English | No |
| Philippines | 2 Yrs BS+ 4.5 MD +1 Year Internship | MD | English | No |