Road to NHS
The pathway
From wherever you are now to the GMC register and a first NHS post, in order. Every step links the body that decides it and carries the date we last checked it.
5 of 12 steps are written. A gap you can see is a gap you can plan around.
Filled is written. Open is not.
The route to the register, in order
The route to the register, in order. the steps an international medical graduate completes, with their prerequisites. 11 steps on one rail, in the order they have to happen, from English test at the left to first post at the right.
In order: Routes to GMC registration, English language requirements, PLAB 1 and PLAB 2, Verifying your qualification through EPIC, Certificates of good standing, The GMC identity check, Visa routes and the application process, CREST forms and how to get one signed, Portfolio and evidence building, Finding a first NHS post and Induction and the first weeks.
5 of the 11 are written and drawn as filled nodes: Routes to GMC registration, English language requirements, PLAB 1 and PLAB 2, Verifying your qualification through EPIC and Certificates of good standing.
The remaining 6 are drawn as open nodes because we have not written them: The GMC identity check, Visa routes and the application process, CREST forms and how to get one signed, Portfolio and evidence building, Finding a first NHS post and Induction and the first weeks. Filling them with plausible text would take an afternoon and is precisely what this product is meant not to do, so the gap is shown instead.
This is a schematic drawn from the values listed above, not a recording from a patient.
International medical graduates
- Routes to GMC registrationLast verified 2026-08-31 · typically Varies by route
- English language requirementsLast verified 2026-08-31 · typically 4 to 12 weeks including booking and results
- PLAB 1 and PLAB 2Last verified 2026-08-31 · typically 6 to 18 months across both parts
- Verifying your qualification through EPICLast verified 2026-08-31 · typically Weeks to months, depending on your medical school
- Certificates of good standingLast verified 2026-08-31 · typically 2 to 8 weeks per regulator
- The GMC identity checkNot written yet · after gmc registration routes
- Visa routes and the application processNot written yet · after gmc registration routes
- CREST forms and how to get one signedNot written yet · after certificates of good standing
- Portfolio and evidence buildingNot written yet · after plab
- Finding a first NHS postNot written yet · after plab
- Induction and the first weeksNot written yet · after first nhs post
UK graduates
- From finals to foundationNot written yet
A note on numbers
Where a fee is not stated, we have not checked it
Fees and timescales change with a budget or an immigration rule. A number that was right last year is worse than no number at all — it is money somebody did not plan for. The official source on each step is the authority for its own figures.