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Q1. How do I update my particulars?
A1. To update personal details, please login to the Professional Registration System (PRS):
(i) Click ‘Login for Doctors & Providers’ at
www.smc.gov.sg;
(ii) Select ‘Doctor’;
(iii) Click ‘Login here with SingPass’ tab;
(iv) Enter SingPass ID and password.
After login, you may access Administration -> Update Particulars function.
Q2. What is COPS? How do I request for a copy of the COPS?
A2. COPS is a Certificate of Professional Status. It was previously known as CGS - Certificate of Good Standing.
The COPS includes basic information on the doctor’s registration status with SMC and any other information related to the doctor’s performance, including any action that has been taken against the doctor by SMC. It is issued directly to the overseas regulatory body or medical council and the doctor will receive a duplicate copy of the COPS through email.
To proceed with the application for COPS, please
login here to SMC’s Professional Registration System.
To apply:
(i) Click
here to login to Professional Registration System;
(ii) Select ‘Doctor’;
(iii) Click ‘Login here with SingPass’ tab;
(iv) Enter SingPass ID and password.
After login, you may access Application » “Issuing a CGS” function.
There is a non-refundable fee of S$80 for the application (and an additional fee of S$10 for registered mail) payable via credit card.
The average processing time of a straightforward application is 14 working days. SMC will take a longer time to review a complex application.
Q3. I have just obtained a new NRIC number (Singapore Permanent Resident status) and am unable to login to PRS via SingPass. What should I do?
A3. Doctors who have obtained Singapore Permanent Resident status will need to update their NRIC details with SMC in order to login to the PRS with their SingPass.
Please email a
certified true copy of your blue NRIC (front and back) to
SMC@spb.gov.sg for verification. A true copy must be certified by either the Human Resource Personnel of your current local employer or a Notary Public
with an official stamp of the institution/hospital, the full name of the signatory and a professional designation.
Once the certified document is received and in order, we will proceed to update in the system. After your record is updated, we will notify you and you can proceed to log in.
Q4. I am an international medical graduate. What are the criteria for me to be registered as a doctor in Singapore?
A4. For International Medical Graduates (IMGs) seeking registration to be a doctor in Singapore, a basic medical qualification that is listed in the ‘
List of Registrable Basic Medical Qualifications’ is necessary. In addition, the doctor must fulfil the SMC’s
prevailing requirements, which includes an offer of employment with an SMC-approved healthcare institution.
Please note that satisfaction of the general criteria for medical registration
does not guarantee approval. Every application for medical registration will be considered by SMC, based on its own merits and subject to SMC’s prevailing requirements that may change from
time to time.
Q5. How do I submit an application for medical registration with SMC?
A5. If you have satisfied all the prevailing
Requirements for Conditional Registration and have obtained an offer of employment with an SMC-approved healthcare institution, you may login to the Professional Registration System (PRS)
here to submit the registration application online. The current system software works best with Internet Explorer.
If you have been previously registered with SMC, please login using your old MCR number for re-registration.
If you have not been registered with SMC previously, please click on “Pre-Application for New Doctors Only” and answer the requisite questions to allow the system to generate a temporary User ID and password for you to login to PRS.
Details on the application process and supporting documents required for registration are found at
Documentation Requirements & Processing Time.
Q6. I am an international medical graduate. What is the procedure to get a provisional licence in Singapore and start the Postgraduate Year 1 (PGY1) program?
A6.
Provisional registration allows a medical graduate to be employed as a Postgraduate Year 1 (PGY1) trainee or House Officer in one or more approved hospitals in Singapore.
Eligible International Medical Graduates
must obtain an offer of employment as a PGY1 trainee with MOH Holdings Pte Ltd (MOHH) before they can apply for Provisional Registration with SMC. If you have deemed to meet the requirements (including a basic medical qualification listed in the ‘
List of Registrable Basic Medical Qualifications’), please seek employment with
MOHH directly.
For more information on the medical service career path, please refer to
http://www.physician.mohh.com.sg/medicine/medical-service-career-path for the requirements and details. You may also contact MOHH at
physician@mohh.com.sg.
Please note that satisfaction of the criteria for medical registration
does not guarantee approval. Every application for medical registration will be considered by SMC based on its own merits and is subject to prevailing requirements that
may change from time to time.
Q7. I am an international medical graduate and would like to practise aesthetic/open my own (aesthetic) clinic in Singapore. What are the criteria?
A7. Only fully registered doctors with the SMC may practise in an aesthetic clinic in Singapore.
Q8. I was previously registered with SMC. Can I apply for registration with SMC again?
A8. To apply for re-registration, you will need to submit a new application online for medical registration to SMC; subject to an offer of employment and
SMC’s prevailing requirements for registration at the point of application. You may refer to the following links on the prevailing requirements for medical registration:
(i)
Requirements for Conditional Registration
(ii)
Documentation Requirements & Processing Time
All the supporting documents required for the application for medical registration must be uploaded, except for the letter of verification (LV) for your medical qualification. Any new information or documents not provided/furnished before must be submitted in support of your new application.
Your past performance as assessed by your supervisor(s) and/or other healthcare professionals during your previous registration will be taken into consideration when SMC reviews your application.
Please note that doctors applying for re-registration or change of employer must also fulfil the prevailing Continuing Medical Education (CME) requirements before applying for a new practising certificate (PC). Such doctors are advised to fulfil such requirements early as the processing time for CME applications may take 3 to 4 weeks. You may visit our SMC website for the
CME requirements for doctors.
Please note that doctors whose names were removed from the register cannot apply for re-registration. They may only apply for restoration of their names to the SMC’s register, subject to prevailing conditions and fees, followed by an application for a new PC.
Q9. I have graduated as a medical doctor and completed residency overseas. I am interested to work in Singapore as a Specialist. What types of documentation or certifications would I need in order to work in Singapore?
A9. SMC will only consider granting
medical registration to an International Medical Graduate who has the medical qualification that is recognised by SMC and fulfils SMC’s prevailing requirements including
an offer of employment with an SMC-approved healthcare institution.
In order to be accredited and registered as a Specialist in Singapore, it is a two-step process as follows:
(i) You must first be accredited by the Specialists Accreditation Board (SAB).
(ii) Only upon successful accreditation by SAB, can the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) process your application for specialist registration.
We advise that concurrent applications be submitted to SAB & SMC in order to avoid any delay in the processing of the applications. Visit the SAB website
here for more information on how a foreign trained specialist can be accredited and the SMC website
here for information relating to specialist registration after getting the accreditation.
Foreign-trained doctors must receive an employment offer with approved hospitals or healthcare providers in Singapore before submitting an application for accreditation and registration. Please note that all applications will be considered on its own merits.
Q10. I have obtained a Family Medicine (FM) qualification and am interested in finding out about Family Physician accreditation.
A10. The criteria for Family Physician (FP) Accreditation are:
(i) must be practising in Singapore at the time of application;
(ii) must possess a postgraduate Family Medicine (FM) qualification (e.g. MMed(FM), GDFM, MRCGP) recognised by the Family Physicians Accreditation Board (FPAB) Singapore;
(iii) have at least 3 years of post-housemanship clinical FM practice; and
(iv) must practise Family Medicine locally in Singapore for at least 30 hours per month with such practice months totalling at least 1 year in the preceding 3 years at the time of application.
Your detailed work experience / CV must be submitted to verify the above criteria. The FPAB recognises clinical experience from post-housemanship onwards only in selected hospital postings recognised as relevant for FM with a cap on the duration of each type of posting.
You should list your work experience in chronological order and it should have the following information including residency training details where applicable:
(i) Full name of the department(s)/clinic(s) (including Residency Continuity Clinics) that you practise/practised at;
(ii) Start and end dates (mm/yyyy) (including Residency Continuity Clinics) for each posting/practice place;
(iii) Number of clinical hours you spent on a weekly basis at each practice place (including Residency Continuity Clinics); and
(iv) A brief description of your work scope for each posting/practice place (information should include the range of cases and profile of patients you seen).
Please note:
(i) Besides the criteria above, each application will be considered based on prevailing criteria for registration and subject to the assessment and approval of the FPAB.
(ii) Doctors who are not registered as Family Physicians are not allowed to assume such title. Doctors found doing so may be subject to disciplinary action as stipulated in Section 65(1A) of the Medical Registration Act.
The application fee is not refundable once successfully submitted in the SMC’s Professional Registration System.
Q11. When can conditionally registered doctors apply for full registration?
A11. Conditionally registered doctors may apply for full registration after they have fulfilled the conditions and periods of supervised practice which include prevailing criteria of overall performance, professional conduct and professionalism and fitness to practise.
You may refer to the following link on the eligibility and documentation requirements for full registration:
Eligibility and documentation requirements for Full Registration
Q12. How do I register my postgraduate qualification?
A12. Medical practitioners can apply to have their postgraduate qualifications registered by submitting an online application.
Please login to the Professional Registration System (PRS)
here to submit your online application.
Q13. How do I know what are the qualifications that SMC allows for display and the documentation requirements for such application?
Q14. I am a visiting foreign surgeon who is engaged to assist practising surgeons at a local hospital for a short-term period. How do I apply for medical registration and practising certificate?
A14. Any visiting foreign doctor who wishes to practise medicine in Singapore must first apply for medical registration with SMC. He/she must fulfil SMC’s documentation requirements for the application for SMC’s consideration. Upon SMC’s approval, the foreign doctor has to arrange for a certificate of good standing to be issued directly to SMC from the overseas medical regulators in the country/countries where he/she has practised or has been practising 3 years prior to the SMC’s application.
To complete the registration with SMC, the foreign doctor has to apply for a practising certificate (PC) and fulfil all other conditions for the purpose of registration as stipulated in SMC’s approval letter before he/she can commence his/her practice in Singapore.
You may refer to the following links on the prevailing requirements for medical registration:
Requirements for Temporary Registration
Documentation Requirements & Processing Time
Q15. I am a registered doctor planning to go on No-Pay Leave (NPL). What are the procedures?
A15. If you are a fully registered doctor:
You are not required to seek the SMC’s approval to remain on the SMC’s register while you are on NPL. However, you are required to update your activity status by submitting an Update Particulars application through the Professional Registration System (PRS) accordingly.
Separately, you may wish to clarify with your employer on any NPL conditions which you may have been bounded.
If you are a conditionally registered doctor:
Your employer must submit an online application via the Professional Registration System (PRS) to seek the SMC’s approval for you to remain on the SMC’s register while you are on NPL at least four (4) weeks before you embark on/ continue with your NPL. You will receive an email notification from the SMC that the application has been approved.
If you do not receive an email notification from the SMC that the application has been approved one week before the start of your NPL period, please alert SMC to check on the application status.
If you are a temporarily registered doctor:
SMC’s prior approval for you to remain on the SMC’s register while you are on NPL is not required. However, your employer must ensure that you remain under its employment/training during the entire NPL period.
Please note that your temporary registration (T-reg) will not be automatically renewed beyond the approved T-reg duration to compensate for the NPL period you have taken. Further, your employer must inform the SMC immediately if your employment/training ceases during the NPL period.
If you are a provisionally registered doctor:
SMC’s prior approval for you to remain on the SMC’s register while you are on NPL is not required. However, your employer should still submit an online application via the PRS to SMC for records purpose.
Your employer must ensure that you remain under its employment during the entire NPL period. Your provisional registration (P-reg) will not be automatically renewed beyond the approved P-reg duration to compensate for the NPL period you have taken. Further, your employer must inform the SMC immediately if your employment ceases during the NPL period.
Q16. I am a foreign-trained doctor currently staying in Singapore. I would like to provide some health talks to local residents. Do I need to be registered with SMC?
A16. Medical registration is not required for giving talks on health topics not involving the practice of medicine. You must also not portray yourself as a registered doctor or medical consultant when giving such talks in Singapore.
A doctor must be registered with SMC and have a practising certificate before he/she may, inter alia: (a) give medical advice during the talks; or (b) provide patient consultations; or (c) carry out live demonstrations of medical procedures in Singapore.