Special Instructions and FAQs for Applicants to the Medical Council of Ireland

Special Instructions

ECFMG partners with the Medical Council of Ireland to primary-source verify medical education credentials of internationally educated physicians applying for registration in the Republic of Ireland. If you are a graduate of a medical school located outside of the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA), and Switzerland (also known as a Category 4 applicant), you must have certain required medical education credentials verified through EPIC prior to submitting your application to the Medical Council.

To have your credentials verified in support of an application to the Medical Council, complete the following steps:

Step 1 - Confirm that your medical school is listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools.

To be eligible for registration with the Medical Council, your medical school should be listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools, available at www.wdoms.org.
Step 2 - Establish an EPIC Account.

See Getting Started for complete instructions. Once ECFMG has processed your request and established your EPIC Account, ECFMG will e-mail you login information so you can access your EPIC Account.
Step 3 - Confirm your identity with EPIC.

Confirming your identity with EPIC requires you to submit an EPIC Identification Form (EIF). Once this form has been accepted by ECFMG, you will be able to upload credentials required by the Medical Council for primary-source verification. See Confirming Your Identity with EPIC.
Step 4 - Read Important Information on Required Credentials below, then upload the required medical education credentials for primary-source verification through EPIC.

As you upload each required credential, be sure to select the Medical Council of Ireland to receive an EPIC Report once the credential is verified. Request reports only for those credentials that the Medical Council requires.

Please note: It is very important that you select the Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report for each required credential, as you upload it. If you do, an EPIC Report on that credential will be automatically sent to the Medical Council when the credential is verified. If you do not select the Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report on a credential at the time you upload it, you will be required to send an EPIC Report to the Medical Council once your credential is verified.

Note that if your credentials have already been primary-source verified by ECFMG for ECFMG Certification or through ECFMG’s International Credentials Services (EICS), you do not need to upload the credentials that were previously verified by ECFMG. These credentials will be added to your EPIC Portfolio at no cost. Simply provide your ECFMG/USMLE ID and/or EICS ID when you establish your EPIC Account. ECFMG will review your file typically within 10 business days; if your file is acceptable, ECFMG will add your previously verified credentials to your EPIC Portfolio. You can then log in to EPIC and request that EPIC Reports for those credentials be provided to the Medical Council.
Step 5 - Once all required credentials have been primary-source verified, submit your application to the Medical Council of Ireland and provide your EPIC ID in Item 3 of the Medical Council’s Application Form for Registration in the Register of Medical Practitioners.
Step 6 - Ensure reports on all required, verified credentials have been sent to the Medical Council.

If you selected the Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report when a credential was uploaded, that report will be sent to the Medical Council automatically when the credential is verified.

If you did not select the Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report at the time you uploaded the credential, you must go to the “My Reports” tab in your EPIC Account and request an EPIC Report for the Medical Council. Be sure to select the Medical Council of Ireland from the drop-down list when sending your report or your request will be rejected.

Important Information on Required Credentials

Credentials required in support of your application to the Medical Council vary based upon your training history and whether you are applying for an exemption to the Medical Council’s Pre-Registration Examination System (PRES). For complete details on the Medical Council’s application process and required documents, visit http://www.medicalcouncil.ie/. Credentials that EPIC verifies for Medical Council applicants include:

Basic Medical Qualification (Final Medical Diploma in EPIC).
- The official document awarded to you by your medical school upon graduation
- Required for all applications to the Medical Council
- The document must display the full graduation date
- The following documents are not required by the Medical Council and will not be accepted as a substitute for your final medical school diploma:
  - Medical School Transcript
  - Alternate Graduation Document
  - License to Practice Medicine
  - Graduation Certificate
Internship Certificate, Certificate of Experience, Attestation of Postgraduate Training, or equivalent (Postgraduate Medical Education Credential in EPIC).
- Credential must be from the relevant postgraduate training body and state the name of the training program and the duration of training.
- In the case of Pakistan, the document must be from the Pakistan Medical & Dental Council, which certifies internship experience. This Certificate must provide a breakdown of all rotations completed, by specialty.
- If you are seeking an exemption from the PRES on the basis of an equivalent internship, visit https://www.medicalcouncil.ie/registration/faq/certificates-of-experience-or-equivalent/certificates-of-experience-or-equivalent-.html for a list of internships currently recognized for that purpose.
Evidence of Higher Qualifications (Specialist Qualification in EPIC) for applicants seeking an exemption from the PRES on the basis of a recognized Higher Qualification.
- See https://www.medicalcouncil.ie/registration-applications/what-division-of-the-register-are-you-eligible-for/higher-qualifications.html on the Medical Council’s website for a list of Higher Qualifications that are currently recognized.

Please note that although EPIC will primary-source verify Medical Registrations/Licenses to Practice Medicine, the Medical Council requires that a Certificate of Current Professional Status/Good Standing, dated within the last three months, be sent directly to the Medical Council from all overseas registration authorities with whom you are or have been registered within the past five years. Verification through EPIC of a Medical Registration/License to Practice Medicine will not substitute for this purpose.

For more information on the credentials verified through EPIC, see Using EPIC.

If you have any questions regarding EPIC and the EPIC verification process, please contact EPIC at info@ecfmgepic.org or +1 (215) 966-3900. Telephone assistance is available Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time in the United States.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please also read the general Frequently Asked Questions in the For Physicians section of the website.

About Applying to the Medical Council of Ireland

I am applying to the Medical Council for registration; do I need to use EPIC?

The Medical Council requires only Category 4 applicants for entry in the General and Trainee Specialist Divisions—applicants who qualified outside of the European Union, the European Economic Area, and Switzerland—to create an EPIC Account and have their credentials primary-source verified through EPIC.

When do I need to verify my documents through EPIC?

Verification should be completed before an application for registration is submitted to the Medical Council.

Which qualifications do I need to submit to the Medical Council through EPIC?

Credentials required in support of your application to the Medical Council vary based upon your training history and whether you are applying for an exemption to the Medical Council’s Pre-Registration Examination System (PRES). For complete details on the Medical Council’s application process and required documents, visit http://www.medicalcouncil.ie/Information-for-Doctors/Manage-your-registration-/Notice-for-applicants-for-registration-who-qualified-outside-of-the-EU-EEA-and-Switzerland-.html.

Please note in particular that the Medical Council requires that a Basic Medical Qualification (Final Medical Diploma) be submitted for all applications. The Final Medical Diploma is the document awarded to you upon graduation from medical school. The following documents will not be accepted in place of your Final Medical Diploma:

Medical School Transcript
Alternate Graduation Document
License to Practice Medicine
Graduation Certificate

How far in advance of applying for registration to the Medical Council do I need to upload my credentials to EPIC?

We recommend that you create an EPIC Account and upload your credentials to EPIC as soon as possible after you have decided to apply to the Medical Council for registration. Through EPIC, your credentials are verified directly with the issuing institution. The time required to complete the verification of credentials varies and depends on a number of factors, including the time it takes for the issuing institution to respond to our verification requests.

About Using EPIC

Will I have access to my medical education credentials after I apply for registration to the Medical Council?

Yes. The credentials that you upload to EPIC remain available to you as part of your EPIC Portfolio. You can use EPIC to send copies of these credentials along with reports verifying their authenticity to organizations worldwide at any time throughout your career.

Will the Medical Council have access to my EPIC Portfolio?

No. The Medical Council will not have direct access to your EPIC Portfolio. The Medical Council will have access only to the credentials and verification reports that you make available to them through EPIC when you choose the Medical Council as a report recipient for those credentials.

Do I need to use EPIC when applying to the Medical Council if my credentials have already been verified by ECFMG for another purpose?

Yes. If your credentials have already been primary-source verified by ECFMG for ECFMG Certification or through ECFMG’s International Credentials Services (EICS) for a medical regulatory authority other than the Medical Council, you will still need to create an EPIC Account and use EPIC to provide your credentials and verification reports to the Medical Council. However, you will not need to upload the credentials that were previously verified by ECFMG; they will be added to your EPIC Portfolio at no cost. Simply provide your ECFMG/USMLE ID and/or EICS ID when you establish your EPIC Account. ECFMG will review your file typically within 10 business days; if your file is acceptable, ECFMG will add your previously verified credentials to your EPIC Portfolio. You can then log in to EPIC and request that EPIC Reports for those credentials be provided to the Medical Council.

I need to have my Internship Certificate or Certificate of Experience verified through EPIC but there seems to be no category for this credential. Which category should I select?

Internship Certificates, Certificates of Experience, Attestations of Postgraduate Training, and equivalent documents should be uploaded to EPIC as Postgraduate Medical Education Credentials.

If I have questions or problems regarding EPIC, should I contact EPIC or the Medical Council?

If you have questions regarding EPIC’s services—such as creating an EPIC Account, uploading your credentials, managing your portfolio, the verification process, sending verification reports, or fees—please contact EPIC at info@ecfmgepic.org or +1 (215) 966-3900. Telephone assistance is available Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time in the United States (2:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m., Irish Time).

If you have questions regarding applying for registration to the Medical Council—such as necessary documentation, required qualifications, or registration division—please visit the Medical Council website at http://www.medicalcouncil.ie/Information-for-Doctors/Manage-your-registration-/Notice-for-applicants-for-registration-who-qualified-outside-of-the-EU-EEA-and-Switzerland-.html.