NMC says Georgia MD graduates need a licence to practise, not just junior doctor status, for FMGE

The National Medical Commission has told a candidate who asked, through the PM Grievance Portal, whether a six-year MBBS/MD in Georgia qualifies her for the FMGE that a foreign medical graduate must hold a licence to practise medicine in the country where the degree was obtained, PTI reported on 7 October 2026. Medical Dialogues reported on 1 October that an NMC reply to a CPGRAMS grievance dated 24 September 2026 took the same line. The NMC cited Regulation 4(b) of the Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations, 2021, and said junior doctor status would be sufficient only if it legally permits practice at the required level, a question to be decided under Georgian law.

For students in or considering Georgia's six-year MD programme, this means supervised junior doctor work alone does not meet the rule if independent practice in Georgia requires postgraduate certification. A September 2022 advisory from the Embassy of India in Yerevan, which previously also handled Georgia, said independent practice there needs the Georgian-language NPDQE, residency and a licence. PTI cited estimates of 30,000 to 40,000 Indian students enrolled in Georgian medical colleges since the 2021 regulations. A Republic World initiatives-desk piece reported on 21 October that Georgia's quality agency NCEQE published a 17-point statement on 14 October asserting the programme aligns with FMGL 2021; no NMC response to it has been reported.

Students should check the FMGL 2021 regulations on nmc.org.in.