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India: the course-length rule for a foreign medical degree, 54 months and a 12-month internship

Sources checked · Unofficial summary

India's National Medical Commission (Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate) Regulations, 2021 set the course-length rule for a foreign medical degree whose holder later seeks to practise medicine in India. Under regulation 4(a)(i) and 4(a)(ii), a foreign medical graduate must have undergone a course leading to the foreign medical degree with a minimum duration of fifty-four months and an internship for a minimum duration of twelve months in the same foreign medical institution. Under regulation 5, these regulations do not apply to people who had acquired their foreign 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), who are governed by the earlier regulations.

This register's section page on practising back home gathers the home-country rules for returning graduates. The rules set out below are India's alone.

Regulation 4: the conditions for permanent registration

The National Medical Commission (India) published the Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations, 2021 in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part III, Section 4, on 18 November 2021. Regulation 4 states that no foreign medical graduate shall be granted permanent registration unless he has met the following conditions:

  • (a)(i) undergone a course leading to a foreign medical degree with a minimum duration of fifty-four months;
  • (a)(ii) undergone an internship for a minimum duration of twelve months in the same foreign medical institution;
  • (a)(iii) received a foreign medical degree with medium of instructions in English; and
  • (a)(iv) studied the mandatory subjects specified in Schedule I;
  • (b) registered with the respective professional regulatory body, or otherwise competent to grant a licence to practice medicine, in the jurisdiction of the country in which the medical degree is awarded, at par with the licence to practice medicine given to a citizen of that country;
  • (c) undergone a supervised internship in India for a minimum term of twelve months, after applying for the same to the Commission; and
  • (d) cleared the National Exit Test, or such other mandated test or tests conducted by the Commission.

The duration conditions are the fifty-four-month course in regulation 4(a)(i) and the twelve-month internship in the same institution in regulation 4(a)(ii).

Schedule I: the course and internship criteria

Schedule I is part of the National Medical Commission (Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate) Regulations, 2021 (Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part III, Section 4, 18 November 2021; National Medical Commission, India). It sets the criteria to recognise foreign medical graduates applying for a licence or permanent registration to practise in India. Paragraph 2 sets the eligibility for a primary medical qualification in a country outside India.

Paragraph 2(i)(a) states that any person who pursues the foreign medical degree should have undergone a course of theory, practical and clinical training equivalent to Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) of India. Paragraph 2(i)(b) states that the person should have completed an internship of twelve months in addition to that course, in the same foreign institution where the primary medical qualification has been obtained, along with hands-on training in 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.

Paragraph 2(ii)(a) states that the course and internship or clinical clerkship shall be commensurate with the MBBS course of India in accordance with the Regulations on Graduate Medical Education, 1997 and subsequent amendments, and shall include the subjects mentioned therein as are duly recognised by the Commission under sub-section (2) of section 61 of the Act. Paragraph 2(ii)(b) states that the course curriculum shall be made available for review by appropriate authorities, and if necessary on the website of the institution or university where the course is being pursued at the time of joining the course.

Paragraph 2(iii) states that the entire course, training and internship or clerkship shall be done outside India in the same foreign medical institution throughout the course of study, and no part of medical training and internship shall be done in India or in any country other than the country from where the primary medical qualification is obtained.

Paragraph 2(iv) states that the total duration of the foreign medical graduation course shall be completed within ten years from the date of joining the course.

The Commission's FAQ on duration, medium and subjects (Q5 to Q7)

The National Medical Commission (India), through its Undergraduate Medical Education Board, published a FAQ on foreign medical graduates covered by the 2021 Regulations. Q5 to Q7 answer the duration, medium and subject points:

  • Q5 — "What should be the duration of the course leading to foreign medical degree?" Answer: minimum duration of fifty-four months [Reg. 4(a)(i) of FMGL. 2021].
  • Q6 — "What should be the medium of instruction during the course?" Answer: English [Reg. 4(a)(iii) of FMGL. 2021].
  • Q7 — "What are the subjects to be studied during the course?" Answer: (a) a course of theory, practical and clinical training equivalent to MBBS of India; (b) an internship of twelve months in addition to the course, in the same foreign institution where the primary medical qualification has been obtained, along with hands-on training in the clinical subjects named in Schedule I paragraph 2(i)(b); and (c) the course and internship or clinical clerkship shall be commensurate with the MBBS course of India in accordance with the Regulations on Graduate Medical Education, 1997 and subsequent amendments, and shall include the subjects mentioned therein as are duly recognised by the Commission under sub-section (2) of section 61 of the NMC Act, 2019 [Reg. 2(i), (ii) of Schedule I of FMGL. 2021].

The FAQ carries a disclaimer that it is in the nature of explanation for ease of understanding of the general public and cannot be upheld in a court of law, and that readers should refer to the relevant gazette notifications for legal validity.

Who the 2021 regulations cover

Regulation 5 sets the applicability of the 2021 Regulations. Regulation 5(1) states that, notwithstanding anything in regulation 4, these regulations shall not be applicable to: (a) foreign medical graduates who acquired a foreign medical degree or primary qualification prior to the coming into force of these regulations; (b) candidates who are pursuing their education in foreign institutions prior to the coming into force of these regulations; and (c) such foreign medical graduates who are specifically exempted by the Commission or the Central Government by notification. Regulation 5(2) states that those who acquired a foreign medical degree or primary qualification, or were pursuing education in foreign institutions, prior to the coming into force shall be governed by the erstwhile applicable regulations. Regulation 5(3) states that no grant of permanent registration shall be issued if it infringes upon public policy or national security.

The Commission's FAQ gives the coming-into-force date as 18 November 2021 (Q2) and repeats the exemptions in Q4, citing regulation 5. Q1 of the FAQ defines a foreign medical graduate as a person who does not have basic graduation or primary qualification from any university, medical college or institution in India, seeking a licence for medical practice in India.

Questions people ask

What is the minimum course duration for a foreign medical degree under India's 2021 rules?

Under regulation 4(a)(i) of the National Medical Commission (Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate) Regulations, 2021, a foreign medical graduate must have undergone a course leading to a foreign medical degree with a minimum duration of fifty-four months, and Q5 of the Commission's FAQ repeats this as the minimum duration of fifty-four months.

How long must the internship be, and where must it take place?

Regulation 4(a)(ii) requires an internship for a minimum duration of twelve months in the same foreign medical institution, and Schedule I paragraph 2(i)(b) requires an internship of twelve months in addition to the course, in the same foreign institution where the primary medical qualification was obtained, with hands-on training in named clinical subjects; Q7 of the FAQ repeats these points.

What medium of instruction is required for the degree?

Regulation 4(a)(iii) requires that the foreign medical degree be received with medium of instructions in English, and Q6 of the Commission's FAQ gives the medium of instruction during the course as English.

Do the 2021 regulations apply to students who started abroad before 18 November 2021?

No. Under regulation 5, the regulations shall not apply to foreign medical graduates who acquired a foreign medical degree or primary qualification, or to candidates who were pursuing their education in foreign institutions, prior to the coming into force on 18 November 2021 (per Q2 and Q4 of the FAQ), and those persons are governed by the earlier regulations.

Sources

Checked 11 October 2026.

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

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