GMC checks and doctor reference checks
Check the medical register first, then find out how the doctor actually practised. Here is what each step tells you.
What is a GMC check?
A GMC check is a search of the General Medical Council's medical register, free on the GMC website by name or GMC reference number. It shows whether a doctor is registered, holds a licence to practise, any conditions, undertakings or warnings, and their designated body and responsible officer. It shows status on the day you search. RefAssure collects the written references that cover how the doctor practised.
How to check the GMC register
The General Medical Council (GMC) keeps the medical register for the UK. To practise medicine in the UK, a doctor needs to be registered with a licence to practise. The register is public and free to search on the GMC website.
What to look at on a register entry
- Registration and licence. Registered with a licence to practise, registered without a licence, or suspended. A doctor without a licence cannot practise medicine in the UK.
- GP and specialist registers. Whether the doctor is on the GP register or the specialist register, and in which specialty, if the role needs it.
- Conditions, undertakings and warnings. These appear as flags on the entry. Read the detail: undertakings can require the doctor to tell employers and locum agencies, and some involve a workplace reporter.
- Revalidation. Licensed doctors revalidate through a designated body. The entry names the designated body and responsible officer where there is one.
The details are valid at the date and time of the search, so record when you checked and re-check during employment. The GMC also now regulates physician associates and anaesthesia associates, so the same approach applies to those roles.
GPs in England
To provide NHS primary medical services in England, a GP also needs to be on the national Medical Performers List. Check that alongside the register. Locum GPs need to be on the list too, and a GP's inclusion can carry conditions of its own.
What a clear register cannot tell you.
Many concerns about doctors are handled locally, by a trust or practice, without a referral to the GMC. A reference is where they surface.
Clinical practice
Competence, decision making and record keeping, from a consultant, clinical lead or medical director who saw the doctor work.
Local processes
Any complaints, serious incidents, capability or disciplinary processes, and any local restrictions on practice.
Working with others
Conduct with patients and colleagues, communication and team working.
Would they re-employ?
Reason for leaving, and whether the referee would employ the doctor again in the same role.
Doctor references without the phone tag.
Consultants and medical directors are hard to pin down. RefAssure gives them a secure link they can complete on a phone between clinics, and chases for you.
- Candidate consent collected online, with signature, before referees are contacted
- Referees sign on a unique secure link, no login, any device
- Replies sent by email instead of the form are captured and forwarded
- Signed PDF with timestamps for consent, requests, reminders and completion
Chased for you, day by day.
5 emails and up to 2 texts over 12 days, stopping the moment the referee replies.
NHS employment checks for doctors
In England, NHS Employers sets out six Employment Check Standards. The professional registration and qualification checks standard covers the GMC register. The employment history and reference checks standard asks NHS employers to obtain references that validate three consecutive years of employment or training before the application, and the number of references depends on the doctor's history. Our NHS references guide covers that standard in detail.
Independent providers registered with the CQC must meet Regulation 19, which asks for satisfactory evidence of conduct in previous health and social care roles. See our CQC Regulation 19 guide.
GMC check and doctor reference questions
More in the full FAQs.
Is a GMC register check free?
Yes. The medical register is public and free to search on the GMC website, by the doctor's name or GMC reference number.
How do I check a doctor's registration is current?
Search the register on the day you need it and look at registration status, licence to practise and any flags. The entry is valid at the time of the search, so keep a dated record.
Does RefAssure do GMC checks?
No. RefAssure collects references and employment history. You check the register directly with the GMC. RefAssure then handles the reference requests, chasing and the signed evidence.
Who should give a reference for a doctor?
Usually a consultant, clinical supervisor, clinical lead or medical director who directly supervised the doctor. For NHS roles, the references should together cover three years of employment or training.
What does it cost?
Your first reference is free. Then credits run from 99p to 80p each, with no monthly fee, no contract and no VAT added. See pricing.
What is a responsible officer?
A responsible officer is a senior doctor at a designated body, such as an NHS trust, who makes revalidation recommendations to the GMC about the doctors connected to that body. The register names the designated body and responsible officer where the doctor has one.
Does a locum doctor need a licence to practise?
Yes. Any doctor practising medicine in the UK needs registration with a licence to practise, whether permanent, locum or bank. Check the licence status on the register before each new engagement.
Related guides
Register checked. Now the references.
Your first reference is free. Two minutes to send, and RefAssure does the chasing.