The College is able to sponsor well-qualified and highly recommended doctors for registration with the General Medical Council. Sponsorship is a privilege, not an entitlement, and applicants should be aware that the College considers that the main route to UK registration for the vast majority of overseas doctors remains the PLAB test.
The Royal College of Physicians and the General Medical Council have an agreement on the criteria a doctor must fulfil in order to be eligible for the ISS. Specifically you must:
- have relevant qualifications and experience
- have been offered a clinical training post in the UK in an approved practice setting
- have no rights of residence in the UK/EU/EEA/Switzerland
- have achieved the required IELTS score (minimum of 7.0 overall, with 7.0 in speaking and a minimum of 6.0 in reading, writing and listening) or be exempt from IELTS
For a full list of the criteria and further information see the ISS pages
Please note that the ISS replaced the Overseas Doctors Training Scheme (ODTS) in 2000.
Initial enquirers regarding ISS will be referred to the ISS section on this website. Please ensure that you have read and fulfil the criteria before contacting the International Office.