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Licensing pathway

Getting licensed in Pakistan

Pakistani nationals who studied medicine abroad must pass both steps of the National Registration Examination (NRE) and complete a one-year house job under provisional registration before the Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC) grants full registration. Since 2025, only graduates of ECFMG-recognised schools may sit the NRE.

The regulator is again the Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC, pmdc.pk). The PM&DC Act, 2022, published in the Gazette in January 2023, repealed the Pakistan Medical Commission Act 2020 and reconstituted the Council. Under the Act, Pakistani graduates of foreign medical schools must pass the NRE before full registration. The National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS) runs the exam at least twice a year in two steps: a computer-based theory paper and an OSCE-style Clinical Skills Examination. Everyone also needs provisional registration and a one-year structured house job in a PM&DC-approved hospital, and a full registration certificate is the licence to practise. Since 2025 the Council has tightened the foreign-graduate rules. Only graduates of ECFMG-recognised schools may sit the NRE. Graduates of schools PM&DC has not recognised receive provisional registration only after qualifying in the NRE. No foreign graduate may do a house job, clinical training or an observership without provisional registration.

Checked against official sources on 17 October 2026Licensing bodyPakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)

Main route

Foreign graduate (Pakistani national): NRE, provisional registration, house job, full registration

Who it is for: Pakistani nationals (and Pakistan Origin Card holders) with a primary medical degree from a foreign school who want to practise in Pakistan.

  1. Step 1

    Check that your medical school is ECFMG-recognised

    PM&DC lets only graduates of foreign schools recognised by the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) sit the NRE, alongside recognition by the regulator in the school's country. It points candidates to ecfmg.org to check. Whether PM&DC itself recognises your school decides whether you can get provisional registration before the NRE.

    Run by
    Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)

    Where people get stuck

    • PM&DC withdrew its old list of foreign institutions in September 2025 and is rebuilding recognition school by school.
    • Graduates of schools in Afghanistan are currently ineligible because those schools are not ECFMG-recognised, and PM&DC says it will grant no exemptions.
    • Students who began studying abroad under earlier rules find the requirements have changed since.

    What it opens up

    • Eligibility to register for the NRE
    SourcesPM&DC public notice, 8 Sep 2025 (foreign graduates)PM&DC public notice, 22 Oct 2025 (foreign graduates)PM&DC Notification 1220, 31 Jul 2026 (NRE eligibility)
    Pakistan

  2. Step 2

    Register on the PM&DC portals

    Licensing applications go through PM&DC's online portal, and the NRE has its own registration portal (nre.pmdc.pk), where you sign in with your email and CNIC. Each sitting has a registration window. PM&DC also tells students going abroad to register online at srf.pmdc.pk so they are eligible later for provisional registration and the NRE.

    Run by
    Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)

    Where people get stuck

    • Registration windows are short and are sometimes extended or reopened at short notice.
    • Payments can sit as pending, and the FAQ says to contact the IT help desk if that lasts more than 48 hours.

    What it opens up

    • Booking a seat for NRE Step I
    SourcesPM&DC NRE registration portalPM&DC FAQsPM&DC public notice, 14 May 2026 (students seeking admission abroad)
    Pakistan

  3. Step 3

    Pass NRE Step I (theory)

    Step I is a computer-based paper of 200 multiple-choice questions, mostly clinical sciences with the rest applied basic sciences, set at the level of a Pakistani MBBS. NUMS sets and marks it, and it is held in Islamabad/Rawalpindi, Lahore, Karachi and Peshawar. The pass mark is 60% with no negative marking, and a Step I pass stays valid for five years.

    Run by
    National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS) for PM&DC
    Timing
    The 2025 theory paper lasted 3 hours 30 minutes. In 2026, Step I was held on 17 May, and the second sitting moved from 11 October to 8 November 2026.

    Where people get stuck

    • Dates have been moved at short notice.
    • The syllabus follows Pakistan's MBBS curriculum, which may differ from what you studied abroad.
    • There is no limit on attempts, but each attempt needs a new registration and fee.

    What it opens up

    • Eligibility for NRE Step II (Clinical Skills Examination)
    SourcesPM&DC NRE Standards, Structure and Syllabus 2024 (Medical)PM&DC press release, 15 Jan 2026 (NRE is a standard examination)PM&DC public notice, 5 Oct 2026 (NRE Step-I rescheduled)PM&DC press release, 1 Jun 2025 (NRE-I 2025)
    Pakistan

  4. Step 4

    Pass NRE Step II (Clinical Skills Examination)

    Step II is an OSCE-style exam of essential general-practice skills across the main clinical disciplines. You need 60% overall and must pass all three mandatory stations. You must pass it within five years of passing Step I, and after three failed Step II attempts in a row you must sit the whole NRE again.

    Run by
    National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS) for PM&DC
    Timing
    In 2024, PM&DC described the exam as 20 stations over 3 hours 30 minutes. The 2026 schedule listed a second Step II session for late November and early December 2026.

    Where people get stuck

    • Failing a single mandatory station fails the whole Step II, even with a good overall score.
    • Little hands-on clinical exposure during some overseas programmes.
    • Step II dates depend on Step I results and have been rescheduled before.

    What it opens up

    • PM&DC registration certificates, starting with provisional registration if you do not already hold it
    SourcesPM&DC NRE Standards, Structure and Syllabus 2024 (Medical)PM&DC press release, Jun 2024 (NRE Step 2 CSE)PM&DC public notice on the 2026 NRE schedule
    Pakistan

  5. Step 5

    Get provisional registration

    Provisional registration is what allows supervised training before full registration. For graduates of foreign schools that PM&DC does not recognise, the Council says it will grant provisional registration only after they qualify in the NRE. You apply on the PM&DC portal, and no foreign graduate may start a house job, internship, clinical training or observership in Pakistan without it.

    Run by
    Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)
    Fee
    Rs. 10,000 for foreign graduates (PM&DC FAQs and Registration Regulations 2023, checked 2026-10-17)

    Where people get stuck

    • Official PM&DC documents describe the order of provisional registration and the NRE differently (see uncertain).
    • Hospitals are told to stop any house job or clinical attachment by a foreign graduate who has no provisional registration.

    What it opens up

    • Starting a house job in a PM&DC-approved hospital
    SourcesPM&DC press release, 14 Sep 2025 (foreign graduate NRE)PM&DC notice, 18 Dec 2025 (mandatory provisional registration)PM&DC FAQs
    Pakistan

  6. Step 6

    Complete a one-year house job

    Full registration requires a one-year, full-time house job after provisional registration, in a PM&DC-approved hospital. It is three months each of internal medicine, allied medicine, general surgery and allied surgery, and a Basic Life Support course is mandatory. Clinical work done as part of your degree abroad, or any house job before provisional registration, does not count. A one-year house job, internship or residency done abroad after provisional registration, in a hospital approved by that country's regulator, is accepted.

    Run by
    PM&DC-approved teaching and stand-alone hospitals

    Where people get stuck

    • Finding a paid house-job slot: colleges must create slots for their own graduates, and other hospitals take outside graduates only as capacity allows.
    • Rotations under three months in a module are not counted.
    • The hospital must send your completion certificate to PM&DC within ten days of the house job ending, so it is worth checking that this has happened.

    What it opens up

    • Eligibility for full registration (together with passing the NRE)
    SourcesPM&DC Registration Regulations 2023PM&DC FAQs (house job)PM&DC letter, Apr 2026 (provisional licence required for house job)
    Pakistan

  7. Step 7

    Apply for full registration and keep it renewed

    Once you have passed both NRE steps and completed the house job, you apply for full (permanent) registration. A valid registration certificate is the licence to practise medicine in Pakistan. Registration must be renewed, and in August 2026 PM&DC told all doctors to renew their certificates within six months.

    Run by
    Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)
    Fee
    Permanent registration Rs. 4,000 (listed for 2 years); renewal with basic qualification Rs. 10,000 (listed for 5 years) (PM&DC Registration Regulations 2023 fee schedule, checked 2026-10-17)

    Where people get stuck

    • Late renewal adds late and extension fees.
    • The fee schedule in the 2023 regulations may have been revised; check the portal before paying.

    What it opens up

    • Independent practice as a registered medical practitioner in Pakistan
    • Enrolling in postgraduate training and holding medical appointments
    • Requesting a certificate of good standing for work abroad
    SourcesPM&DC Act, 2022 (Gazette of Pakistan, 16 Jan 2023)PM&DC Registration Regulations 2023PM&DC press release, 11 Aug 2026 (renew registration)
    Pakistan

Official practice materials

Published by the exam bodies themselves. They show the real format and level, and they are the honest alternative to pirated question banks and "recalls". MedReady links to them; it never copies them.

NRE

Other recognised routes

Graduates of PM&DC-recognised foreign schools (house job before the NRE)Pakistani graduates of foreign schools that PM&DC has recognised under the 2022 Act.3 steps

  1. Step 1

    Get provisional registration once your degree is verified

    The Act and the 2023 regulations say a graduate of a foreign university recognised by the Council should get provisional registration for a house job within fourteen days of the awarding institution verifying the qualification.

    Run by
    Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)
    Fee
    Rs. 10,000 for foreign graduates (PM&DC FAQs, checked 2026-10-17)

    Where people get stuck

    • Few foreign schools may be recognised yet under PM&DC's new process.
    • Verification by your overseas university can be slow.

    What it opens up

    • Starting the house job before sitting the NRE
    SourcesPM&DC Act, 2022, section 18PM&DC public notice, 8 Sep 2025 (foreign graduates)
    Pakistan

  2. Step 2

    Complete the one-year house job

    The same structured one-year house job applies, in a PM&DC-approved hospital.

    Run by
    PM&DC-approved hospitals

    Where people get stuck

    • Securing a house-job slot as an outside graduate.
    • Any house-job time before provisional registration is not counted.

    What it opens up

    • Full registration once the NRE is also passed
    SourcesPM&DC Registration Regulations 2023
    Pakistan

  3. Step 3

    Pass both NRE steps before full registration

    Provisional registration does not remove the NRE requirement: you must pass it at any point before full registration is issued.

    Run by
    National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS) for PM&DC

    Where people get stuck

    • Preparing for the NRE while working full-time as a house officer.
    • Full registration is withheld until both NRE steps are passed, even after the house job is finished.

    What it opens up

    • Full registration
    SourcesPM&DC Registration Regulations 2023
    Pakistan
NRE exemption for recognised postgraduate qualificationsGraduates of PM&DC-recognised foreign schools who also hold a recognised postgraduate qualification and a valid foreign licence.2 steps

  1. Step 1

    Check that your postgraduate qualification qualifies

    The 2023 regulations exempt from the NRE a graduate of a PM&DC-recognised foreign school who holds a standard postgraduate qualification the Council recognises, such as MRCP, FRCS, American Board diplomate or fellow, or another recognised level III qualification. Such doctors may be issued a permanent licence if their foreign licence is valid and they are in good standing with the foreign regulator. A doctor licensed abroad without such a qualification still has to pass the NRE.

    Run by
    Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)

    Where people get stuck

    • The exemption depends on your undergraduate school being PM&DC-recognised, which is uncertain for many schools while recognition is rebuilt.
    • PM&DC keeps a list of recognised foreign postgraduate qualifications; check it before applying.

    What it opens up

    • Applying for permanent registration without the NRE
    SourcesPM&DC Registration Regulations 2023PM&DC recognised foreign PG qualifications (linked from pmdc.pk)
    Pakistan

  2. Step 2

    Apply for permanent registration and register the qualification

    You apply on the PM&DC portal for permanent registration with a foreign postgraduate qualification and register the qualification itself.

    Run by
    Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)
    Fee
    Permanent registration with foreign postgraduate qualification Rs. 5,000; registration of a foreign postgraduate qualification Rs. 6,000 (PM&DC Registration Regulations 2023, checked 2026-10-17)

    Where people get stuck

    • You need a current good standing certificate from your foreign regulator.
    • The fee schedule in the 2023 regulations may have been revised; check the portal before paying.

    What it opens up

    • Practice in Pakistan as a registered specialist
    SourcesPM&DC Registration Regulations 2023
    Pakistan
Foreign nationals: temporary registration for a specific purposeDoctors of foreign nationality with foreign qualifications who come to Pakistan for postgraduate study, short skill demonstrations or service in missionary hospitals.1 steps

  1. Step 1

    Apply for temporary registration with a sponsor

    PM&DC grants foreign-national doctors temporary registration only for set purposes. These are postgraduate study at a PM&DC-recognised institute (one year, extendable), specific procedures or skill demonstrations (no more than three months), and service in missionary hospitals (one year, extendable). Each needs a sponsor letter and an active foreign licence, and you apply through the Temporary License form on the PM&DC portal. Pakistan Origin Card holders are treated as Pakistani citizens for registration.

    Run by
    Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC)
    Fee
    Rs. 7,000 for temporary registration (PM&DC Registration Regulations 2023, checked 2026-10-17)

    Where people get stuck

    • It is limited to the stated purpose and period; it is not a general licence to practise.
    • You need a Pakistani sponsoring institution.

    What it opens up

    • Postgraduate training, skill demonstrations or missionary-hospital service in Pakistan
    SourcesPM&DC Registration Regulations 2023PM&DC FAQs (temporary license)
    Pakistan