The Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Agency (AHPRA) is the Malaysian Medical Council equivalent in Australia and is responsible for registering all healthcare professionals. As a medical doctor, there are various types of registration available to us (non-specialist IMG).
- Limited registration for postgraduate training or supervised practice (full document here)
If you are aiming for a clinical post, this would most probably be the registration type you’ll be applying for. It is available to all who have already completed the AMC MCQ examinations. If applicants have yet to complete a medical internship, they must secure an offer of employment in an accredited intern position. This can be renewed up to 3 times (i.e. can spend total 4 years on this registration type).
- Limited registration for teaching or research (full document here)
This is the registration type I had applied for for my first employment in Australia as a clinical research fellow. There are no AMC exam requirements, though applicants must have completed a medical internship. This can be renewed up to 3 times (i.e. can spend total 4 years on this registration type).
- Provisional registration
Applicants who have already completed AMC MCQ and Clinical Examinations will be awarded the AMC certificate, which then allows applicants to apply for provisional registration. This registration can be renewed up to 2 times (i.e. can spend total 3 years on this registration type). IMGs from AHPRA-recognised countries are also eligible for this registration.
- General registration (full document here)
This is similar to MMC full registration. All doctors on limited registration should eventually work towards general registration. This requires applicants to have completed AMC certification (MCQ + clinical exam/work-based assessment) as well as 47 weeks FTE of supervised practice (inclusive of 10 weeks medicine, 10 weeks surgery, 8 weeks emergency medical care).
The guidelines state that “the supervised practice can be undertaken at any time, including before and/or after the AMC certificate is awarded and does not need to be carried out on a continuous basis”. This means time spent in an eligible department during employment under the initial limited registration may be counted towards these 47 weeks of supervised practice. It seems that the position level (intern/RMO/registrar) does not matter, though it will be difficult to make the necessary rotations as a registrar.
For those who want to be thorough and read through every single type of registration available, full details can be found at https://www.medicalboard.gov.au/registration-standards.aspx
A more detailed rundown of the application process can be found here.
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