GMC reference number

The General Medical Council (GMC) identifies every doctor by a unique seven-digit reference number. Doctors' numbers have no prefix. Since the GMC began regulating physician associates and anaesthesia associates, their reference numbers carry the prefix "A" for associate, so the two groups are easy to tell apart.

In its guidance for associates, the GMC says the reference number stays with the holder throughout their career and does not, on its own, indicate that they hold registration; the same logic applies to doctors' numbers. What matters is your status on the register, which shows whether you are registered and whether you hold a licence to practise.

International medical graduates usually first deal with the GMC through a GMC Online account, which gives access to the booking service for PLAB 1. The GMC's PLAB guidance refers to candidates who already hold a GMC reference number, so it is common to have a number well before you are registered. Our PLAB and GMC registration guide sets out the full sequence, including EPIC verification and English evidence.

1. Register checks: employers, patients and others search the GMC's online register by number to confirm your registration, licence status and any conditions or undertakings.
2. Job applications: NHS and private employers ask for it on application forms and before an offer is confirmed.
3. Professional records: GMC guidance for associates says it is good practice to display your registered name and reference number at work, in records, and in letters and reports. The same habit helps doctors, because it lets anyone confirm who you are.
4. Revalidation and GMC Online: it links your account, fees, connection to a designated body and revalidation history.

The number is also tied to your fees. From 1 April 2026 an application for full registration with a licence to practise costs £481, and the annual fee, due on the anniversary of your registration, is £481 with a licence or £172 without.

Because the number is issued early and kept for life, it can appear on a doctor who is not currently registered, is registered without a licence, or has been suspended or erased after a fitness to practise process. Anyone checking a doctor should look at the status shown on the register, not just the number. The nursing equivalent is the NMC PIN.

If you are registered without a licence, for example while you are not practising, the GMC charges a lower annual fee, but you cannot carry out the activities reserved for licensed doctors.

• Telling an employer you are "GMC registered" because you have a number. Until your registration is granted, you are not.
• Giving a number with a typo on forms, so the employer finds the wrong entry or none. Check it against your GMC Online account before submitting.
• Not logging in for years. The GMC has asked doctors who had not used GMC Online since August 2021 to update their account.