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Comparing listed schools against your home regulator's conditions: a checklist of questions

Sources checked · Unofficial summary

This page gives a checklist of questions to put to a school that offers English-taught undergraduate clinical medicine in mainland China. Each question is tied to one document. The China section comes from the Ministry of Education's list for 2023–2024, which is covered on this register's section page. The India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal sections each set out the conditions of that country's regulator or ministry, and each condition applies only to the students named in its own document.

The page describes conditions and names who sets them. It does not say that any school meets any condition, and decisions on registration or licensing belong to the authority named in each section.

Document Publisher Date as printed Scope as printed
Notice on the 2023–2024 list (教外厅函〔2023〕10号) Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China (General Office) Dated 15 May 2023; published 30 May 2023 Schools on the list for 2023–2024
Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations, 2021 National Medical Commission (India) Gazette of India, 18 November 2021 Foreign medical graduates, as limited by regulation 5
Policy for Students seeking Admissions in Undergraduate Medical / Dental Foreign Institutes Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PM&DC) Dated 29 July 2024; effective from Session 2024-2025 Pakistani students seeking admission
Public Notice on recognition of foreign institutions PM&DC (Registrar) 22 October 2025 Graduates of foreign institutions; eligibility for the National Registration Examination
Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council Act, 2010, section 12 Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Bangladesh Act No. 61 of 2010 Degree holders who wish to use a medical degree in Bangladesh
Accreditation Standards for MBBS 2024 Medical Education Commission (MEC), Nepal 2024 Admission and licensing passages named in each section

China: the 2023–2024 list

The Ministry's notice is dated 15 May 2023 and was published on the Ministry's site on 30 May 2023. Paragraph 1 of the notice says that for 2023–2024 the Ministry entrusted 44 universities to enrol students in English-taught undergraduate clinical medicine, with 3,048 places in total. Paragraph 1 says the places were set by taking account of earlier years' enrolment and of each university's day-to-day teaching and management of medical education for international students.

This list is for the 2023–2024 academic year. The Ministry's policy index listed no later edition when this site read it on 11 October 2026. Confirm the current year's status with the university and the Ministry.

The annex to the notice lists universities by their Chinese names. This register uses English names.

This page does not treat a plan number as a quality measure.

Questions to put to the school:

  1. Is the school named in the annex to the notice for the 2023–2024 academic year? (Paragraph 1 and the annex.)
  2. If the school is not on that list, which degree certificate may it issue? Paragraph 2 says a school not on the list may not issue an English-version degree certificate for English-taught undergraduate clinical medicine (MBBS), or an English-version degree certificate containing the word "MBBS".
  3. If the school is not on that list, what may it enrol students for? Paragraph 2 says it may enrol international students only in Chinese-taught undergraduate clinical medicine, and that the training standard may not be lower than the standard for China's own undergraduate clinical medicine students.
  4. Does the school run any arrangement described as "bilingual teaching"? Paragraph 2 strictly prohibits enrolling international students in disguised form through a "bilingual teaching" model.

India: regulation 4 and Schedule I

The conditions in this section come from the National Medical Commission (India) and set the conditions for permanent registration of a foreign medical graduate in India. Under regulation 5(1)(a) and (b), those regulations do not apply to people who acquired a foreign medical degree, or were already pursuing their education in a foreign institution, before the regulations came into force on 18 November 2021 (per Q2 and Q4 of the Commission's FAQ). Under regulation 5(2), those people are governed by the earlier applicable regulations. The FAQ states that it explains the regulations for ease of understanding and cannot be upheld in a court of law, so the regulation is the text cited here for each rule.

Regulation 4 says no foreign medical graduate shall be granted permanent registration unless he has met the conditions in paragraph (a), (b), (c) and (d). Questions to put to the school:

  1. Is the course at least fifty-four months long? (Regulation 4(a)(i): "a course leading to foreign medical degree with minimum duration of fifty-four months".)
  2. Was the internship at least twelve months, in the same foreign medical institution? (Regulation 4(a)(ii); Schedule I, paragraph 2(i)(b).)
  3. Was the foreign medical degree awarded with English as the medium of instruction? (Regulation 4(a)(iii).)
  4. Were the mandatory subjects in Schedule I studied? (Regulation 4(a)(iv).) Schedule I, paragraph 2(i)(b), lists clinical subjects "including but not limited to" Community Medicine, General Medicine, Psychiatry, Paediatrics, General Surgery, Anaesthesia, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Otorhinolaryngology, Ophthalmology, Dermatology, Emergency or Casualty services, lab services and their sub-specialties.
  5. Was the whole course, training and internship carried out outside India, in the same foreign medical institution? (Schedule I, paragraph 2(iii): no part of medical training and internship may be done in India, or in any country other than the country where the primary medical qualification is obtained.)
  6. Will the course be completed within ten years of joining? (Schedule I, paragraph 2(iv).)
  7. Is the course commensurate with the MBBS course of India under the Regulations on Graduate Medical Education, 1997? (Schedule I, paragraph 2(ii)(a).) Is the curriculum available for review? (Schedule I, paragraph 2(ii)(b).)
  8. Is the degree registrable with the professional regulatory body in the country where it is awarded? (Regulation 4(b): registration must be "competent to grant license to practice medicine" in that country, "at par with the license to practice medicine given to citizen of that country".)
  9. Is there a supervised internship in India of at least twelve months, applied for to the Commission? (Regulation 4(c).) Has the graduate cleared the National Exit Test, or another test the Commission mandates? (Regulation 4(d).)

Regulation 4 sets these conditions. Ask the National Medical Commission (India) whether a particular course meets them.

Pakistan: the 2024 policy and the October 2025 notice

The PM&DC policy is for Pakistani students seeking admission to foreign medical or dental institutions for undergraduate education. It is dated 29 July 2024 and effective from Session 2024-2025. Its ten mandatory conditions, in the order printed, are:

  1. Passed FSC (Pre-Medical) with a minimum 60% marks, having completed intermediate education within Pakistan; or qualified SAT-II with a minimum score of 550 in each subject; or a foreign MCAT / UCAT examination with 50% marks in the mandatory subjects of Biology, Chemistry and either Mathematics or Physics in a Higher Secondary School Certificate or equivalent.
  2. Obtained 50% marks in the MDCAT conducted in Pakistan. The result is valid for three years (applicable to students who complete their intermediate education within Pakistan). Check with PM&DC whether this bullet has changed since the policy's date.
  3. Verify that the institution is on the list of such institutions available at the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, Islamabad.
  4. The qualification must be in allopathic medicine, awarded by an institution recognised by a regulatory body of the country concerned for full registration, and accredited by the WFME or the World Directory of Medical Schools.
  5. Obtain a PM&DC Student Registration Certificate before accepting studies at the institution.
  6. The medical qualification must comprise at least 6,200 hours (with a minimum of 80% attendance) over five years.
  7. Where the medium of education is not English, spend a minimum of six months learning the local language before proceeding.
  8. Pass the National Registration Examination of the PM&DC to obtain full registration after qualifying.
  9. Provide the details of residence and contact numbers in the country of study before proceeding.
  10. Provide a Multiple Entry Visa for the duration of study before proceeding.

The PM&DC public notice is dated 22 October 2025. It says that graduates of foreign institutions not recognised by the PM&DC shall not be issued provisional registration unless they have qualified from a PM&DC recognised institution. For eligibility to appear in the National Registration Examination, the notice says recognition by the respective foreign regulatory authorities, along with accreditation of the institution by the Education Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), shall be the standard criteria. The notice points readers to the PM&DC website and to the ECFMG's website to review the recognition status of an institution.

Questions to put to the school:

  1. Is the institution on the PM&DC list of institutions? (Policy, third condition; notice, paragraph 2.)
  2. Is the qualification recognised by its country's regulator for full registration, and is the institution accredited by the WFME or the World Directory of Medical Schools? (Policy, fourth condition.)
  3. Is the institution accredited by the ECFMG, and is it recognised by its country's regulator? (Notice, paragraph 3.)

Bangladesh: section 12 of the 2010 Act

The English wording below is this site's translation of section 12 of the Bengali text. Section 12 of the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council Act, 2010 (Act No. 61 of 2010) sets out the following:

  • Section 12(1): A person holding a bachelor-level degree in medicine awarded by a medical institution, whether located in Bangladesh or outside it, who wishes to use that degree in Bangladesh must have the degree recognised by the Council under this Act.
  • Section 12(2): If the name of a medical institution awarding a bachelor-level medical degree, whether in Bangladesh or outside it, is not included in the First Schedule or the Second Schedule respectively, that institution, or the degree holder as the case may be, must apply to the Council for recognition of the qualification under this Act.
  • Section 12(3): If a degree obtained outside Bangladesh is recognised under sub-section (2) by the medical council of the country concerned, the applicant shall take the examination set by the Council. An applicant who passes is temporarily registered to take the internship for the period set by the Council.
  • Section 12(4): After receiving an application under sub-sections (2) and (3), the Council, if it finds the applicant or institution eligible under the criteria and policy set for this purpose, shall include the institution's name in the relevant schedule, by amending the First or Second Schedule, together with the qualification.

Questions to put to the school and the Council:

  1. Is the degree recognised by the Council? (Section 12(1).)
  2. Is the institution named in the First or Second Schedule? If it is not, has an application been made under section 12(2)? (Section 12(2).)
  3. Under section 12(4), who decides whether the institution is included in the schedule? The Council decides, against the criteria and policy it has set. Ask the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council for its current examination procedure, forms and list of recognised foreign institutions.

Nepal: the 2024 MBBS accreditation standards

Section 6.1 of the Medical Education Commission's 2024 standards is headed "Criteria for admission to the MBBS Program". A candidate is eligible for selection to the MBBS program if the candidate:

  • has passed 10 + 2 or an equivalent qualification in a single attempt, with physics, chemistry and biology, securing a minimum of 50% in each subject, including Higher Secondary Education (Science) or 10+2 (Science);
  • has passed Cambridge University 'A' level with Biology, Physics and Chemistry, securing a minimum of 50% (or equivalent) in each subject; or has equivalent Science education with Biology, Physics and Chemistry;
  • has passed the Bachelor-level common Entrance Examination conducted by the Medical Education Commission.

The final sentence of section 6.1 says: "Students going to foreign countries to study medical course must get the eligibility certificate from MEC and must have passed the bachelor level Medical Entrance Examinations." The sentence does not link the eligibility certificate to any one of the bullet points above it.

The standard's licensing passage says: "There is a provision of licensing examination by the respective council after acquiring the academic degree." The passage refers to "the respective council" and does not name it.

Questions to put to the school and to the Medical Education Commission:

  1. Has the student obtained the eligibility certificate from the Medical Education Commission? (Section 6.1, final sentence.)
  2. Has the student passed the bachelor-level Medical Entrance Examination? (Section 6.1, final sentence.)
  3. Which council conducts the licensing examination after the degree? (Licensing passage. Ask the Medical Education Commission and the council concerned.)

Questions people ask

Can a school not on the 2023–2024 list issue an English-version MBBS degree?

No, according to paragraph 2 of the Ministry's notice. A school not on the list may not issue an English-version degree certificate for English-taught undergraduate clinical medicine (MBBS), or an English-version degree certificate containing the word "MBBS". This is the wording of the notice for the 2023–2024 academic year.

Does the 2023–2024 list still apply in 2026?

The Ministry's policy index listed no later edition when this site read it on 11 October 2026. The list is for the 2023–2024 academic year, so confirm the current year's status with the university and the Ministry.

Who decides whether a medical degree is recognised in Bangladesh?

Under section 12(4) of the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council Act, 2010, the Council decides, after it considers an applicant or institution eligible under the criteria and policy it has set. The decision is made by including the institution's name in the relevant schedule, through amendment of the First or Second Schedule.

Sources

Checked 11 October 2026.

This page is an unofficial summary. It is not legal, medical or professional-licensing advice, it is not published by the bodies named, and it promises no admission, examination or registration outcome. The official text and the regulator's own instructions prevail if they differ.

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