Getting licensed in Ireland

Main route

PRES route to General Division registration

Who it is for: Doctors who qualified outside the EU/EEA and do not qualify for a PRES exemption through a recognised internship, a recognised higher qualification or PLAB 2.

1. 1

   Step 1

   Check which division and route you are eligible for

   Use the Medical Council's eligibility chart to see which division and route you should apply under. Non-EU/EEA graduates usually aim for the General Division, through either PRES or an exemption route. Graduates of non-EU/EEA schools cannot apply for Irish intern posts or internship registration.

   Run by

   Medical Council of Ireland

   Where people get stuck

   • Application fees are not refunded, so applying under the wrong route or without every document wastes the fee.
   • Using the Irish intern year as a way in is closed to non-EU/EEA graduates, which surprises some applicants.

   What it opens up

   • Choosing the right route: PRES, Certificate of Experience, Higher Qualification, PLAB 2 or Supervised

   SourcesMedical Council: First Time Registration ApplicationsMedical Council: General Registration – Non EU/EEA Trained DoctorsMedical Council: Internship RegistrationMedical Council: Registration Applications FAQs

   Ireland
2. 2

   Step 2

   Get your medical degree verified through EPIC before applying

   Your basic medical degree must be uploaded to ECFMG's EPIC service and verified before you submit your Medical Council application. Your school must also appear in the World Directory of Medical Schools.

   Run by

   ECFMG, a division of Intealth (EPIC)

   Where people get stuck

   • The Council says an application sent before the EPIC documents can be viewed counts as incomplete: it is closed and the fee is lost.
   • How long verification takes depends on how quickly your medical school responds.

   What it opens up

   • Submitting a complete PRES-route application

   SourcesMedical Council: What is the PRES Level 2? (documents to verify in EPIC)Medical Council: Registration Applications FAQs (EPIC documentation)

   Ireland
3. 3

   Step 3

   Meet the English language requirement

   Unless you are exempt, you need IELTS Academic (7.0 overall, at least 6.5 in each module), OET Medicine (grade B in each module), or Cambridge C1 Advanced at C1 or C2, taken within the last two years. The Council verifies certificates directly with the test provider.

   Run by

   Medical Council of Ireland (sets the standard)

   Where people get stuck

   • The Council does not accept IELTS Online, IELTS Indicator or OET@Home, even though the UK GMC accepts some of these.
   • The certificate must be within two years of both your application and your registration date, so a long PRES journey can outlast it.
   • Studying in English is not enough on its own. Both your degree and your internship must have been completed in English in a country on the Council's list.

   What it opens up

   • The English evidence the Council requires on your application

   SourcesMedical Council: English Language

   Ireland
4. 4

   Step 4

   Apply online to the Medical Council through the PRES route

   Create a Doctors Portal account and start a General Division application, choosing the PRES route sub-option. Upload a notarised copy of your passport and your English evidence. Arrange a Certificate of Good Standing, dated within the last three months, to be sent directly to the Council by every regulator you were registered with in the past five years. Your assessor then tells you whether you are eligible for PRES Level 2 or Level 3.

   Run by

   Medical Council of Ireland

   Fee

   EUR 451 first-time application fee for the General/Trainee Specialist Division (Medical Council fees page, checked 2026-10-17). The fee is not refundable.

   Where people get stuck

   • Your application does not join the assessment queue until every document on the PRES checklist can be seen by the Council.
   • Copies must be notarised or attested by one of the types of official the Council lists, and badly stamped or wrongly certified copies are rejected, so check the list before getting documents certified.
   • You need a certificate of good standing from every regulator you have been registered with in the past five years, even if you never worked there, and it must still be valid when your registration is activated.

   What it opens up

   • An eligibility email from the Council to book PRES Level 2, or to go straight to Level 3 if you hold an accepted alternative exam

   SourcesMedical Council: Pre-Registration Examination System (PRES)Medical Council: What is the PRES Level 2?Medical Council: FeesMedical Council: Registration Applications FAQs

   Ireland
5. 5

   Step 5

   Pass PRES Level 2 (or hold an accepted alternative)

   PRES Level 2 is a three-hour, scenario-based multiple-choice exam of clinical knowledge across obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics, psychiatry, surgery, and medicine/general practice. You don't need to sit it if you have one of the accepted alternatives: PLAB 1 (valid for two years from the exam date, from 31 March 2025), USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK (within seven years), MCCQE Part 1, or the AMC MCQ. The 2026 sittings are in Dublin and Dubai.

   Run by

   Medical Council of Ireland

   Timing

   About three hours on the day. Results come by email roughly six weeks after the exam. Candidates are usually allowed two years or three attempts to pass.

   Fee

   EUR 352 (Medical Council fees page, checked 2026-10-17).

   Where people get stuck

   • Places are limited and given out first come, first served, and only to candidates the Council has already confirmed as eligible.
   • If you don't withdraw before the deadline, or don't turn up, you lose the full fee, and you can't move to another date or venue.
   • The window is usually two years or three attempts, so you need to plan your preparation well.

   What it opens up

   • An eligibility email to sit PRES Level 3

   SourcesMedical Council: What is the PRES Level 2?Medical Council: PRES Level 2 Exam (dates, booking, results)Medical Council: Fees

   Ireland
6. 6

   Step 6

   Pass PRES Level 3 (clinical skills)

   PRES Level 3 tests communication, interpretation and practical skills in two parts: a written or computer-based interpretation exam, and a clinical exam in which you rotate through scenarios or skill stations. The 2026 sittings listed are all in Ireland, in Cork and Dublin. A PLAB 2 pass exempts you from PRES altogether, and you may sit PLAB 2 while you wait for a Level 3 place.

   Run by

   Medical Council of Ireland

   Timing

   Results come by email roughly six weeks after the exam.

   Fee

   EUR 1,500 (Medical Council fees page and PRES Level 3 page, checked 2026-10-17).

   Where people get stuck

   • You have to travel to Ireland and may need a visa, and places are limited and given out in order of priority and the time your form arrives.
   • If you don't withdraw by the date on the application form, you lose the fee.
   • The clinical stations expect Irish standards of communication and professional practice, based on the Council's Eight Domains of Good Professional Practice.

   What it opens up

   • An eligibility email for General Division registration, provided the rest of your application is complete

   SourcesMedical Council: What is the PRES Level 3?Medical Council: PRES Level 3 Exam (dates, booking, results)Medical Council: Registration Rules and Exemptions (PLAB 2 FAQs)Medical Council: Fees

   Ireland
7. 7

   Step 7

   Activate your General Division registration

   Once you are declared eligible, pay the registration fee to be entered in the General Division. This lets you practise independently without supervision, but you cannot present yourself as a specialist. Registration runs from 1 July to 30 June and is renewed every year.

   Run by

   Medical Council of Ireland

   Fee

   Annual registration fee, for example EUR 616 for a full year for recently registered doctors (under three years) in the 2026/27 period (Medical Council fees page, checked 2026-10-17).

   Where people get stuck

   • Your certificate of good standing and English certificate must both still be valid when your registration is activated, so long delays can mean getting them again.
   • You pay an annual retention fee to stay on the register, and the Council is raising fees in 2026 and again in 2027.

   What it opens up

   • Applying for HSE and other hospital doctor (NCHD) posts
   • Automatic eligibility for the Trainee Specialist Division once you are in a recognised training post

   SourcesMedical Council: General Registration – Non EU/EEA Trained DoctorsMedical Council: FeesMedical Council: Registration Applications FAQs

   Ireland
8. 8

   Step 8

   Find an HSE post and get an employment permit

   HSE hospital doctor vacancies are listed on the HSE Career Hub, and each one comes with a job specification setting out its eligibility criteria. Non-EEA doctors need a job offer, an employment permit, and if required an entry visa, and must then register with immigration in Ireland. Medical practitioners are on Ireland's Critical Skills Occupations List. A Critical Skills Employment Permit needs a job offer of at least two years, and a General Employment Permit covers shorter contracts.

   Run by

   Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (employment permits)

   Fee

   Critical Skills Employment Permit processing fee EUR 1,000, with 90% refunded if the application fails (DETE page, checked 2026-10-17).

   Where people get stuck

   • You need registration, a job offer, a work permit and any visa all in place before you arrive in Ireland.
   • HSE recruitment uses competency-based applications and interviews that may be new to you.
   • On a first employment permit you must normally stay with the first employer for nine months before changing.

   What it opens up

   • Working as a doctor in the Irish public health service
   • Citizens Information says Critical Skills permit holders can apply for Stamp 4 permission (no permit needed to work) after 21 months

   SourcesHSE Career Hub: International RecruitmentHSE NDTP Medical Careers: Finding & applying for jobsHSE NDTP Medical Careers: Moving to Ireland (immigration requirements for trainee doctors)DETE: Critical Skills Employment PermitDETE: Critical Skills Occupations ListCitizens Information: Critical Skills Employment Permit

   Ireland
9. 9

   Step 9

   Move into the Trainee Specialist Division when you enter training

   Doctors on recognised training programmes work in posts allocated by the HSE together with the postgraduate training bodies. If you hold, or are eligible for, General registration, you are automatically eligible for the Trainee Specialist Division once your clinical site and training body record your training post in the HSE's DIME database. When the post ends, your registration goes back to the General Division.

   Run by

   Medical Council of Ireland

   Where people get stuck

   • The Council no longer issues individual eligibility emails for this division, so you give your training body your General registration certificate or General Division eligibility email instead.
   • To get the right division, both your clinical site and your training body must update DIME correctly.

   What it opens up

   • Structured specialist training in Ireland, leading towards Specialist Division registration

   SourcesMedical Council: Trainee Specialist RegistrationHSE Career Hub: Medicine pathway

   Ireland