Australia welcomes more than 100 new GPs under fast-track registration

08 May 2025

New pathway making a positive impact on workforce shortages

Australia’s primary care system has received a boost with more than 100 internationally qualified general practitioners registered to work in Australia through a new expedited specialist registration pathway.

The pathway, approved by Health Ministers last year, has streamlined registration processes and maintained high standards, allowing highly-qualified medical specialists from similar health systems to be registered faster so they can start seeing Australian patients sooner.

The pathway enables eligible internationally qualified medical specialists (SIMGs) from the UK, New Zealand and Ireland to apply directly to the Medical Board of Australia or the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra), rather than be assessed individually by a specialist college.

By 28 April, 127 specialists had been registered – 125 GPs, one anaesthetist and one psychiatrist.  Since the pathway opened, 251 internationally qualified specialists have applied for registration in Australia. Of these, 223 applications were from general practitioners, 13 from anaesthetists,13 from psychiatrists and two from obstetricians and gynaecologists, with 84% of applications from the United Kingdom.

We are receiving between 10 to 15 applications each week from SIMGs, with most applications still waiting on additional evidence or information from candidates before they can be assessed.

Medical Board of Australia Chair, Dr Susan O’Dwyer, said patient safety and medical workforce supply were balanced in the new pathway.

'Patients need to feel safe seeing any medical specialist in Australia and be able to get an appointment when they need one. It’s great the new pathway is starting to help make this happen,” Dr O’Dwyer said.

‘There is stiff global competition for skilled medical specialists, and the data show the new pathway is helping make Australia a more attractive destination,’ she said.

Applicants on the Expedited Specialist pathway must meet the same registration standards as all other doctors, including English language, criminal history and recency of practice.

Each new SIMG is supervised for six months by an Australian-registered specialist, completes an orientation to Australia’s health system and cultural safety education. A national Medical Board committee of doctors and community members has been appointed to make all registration decisions about individual SIMGs on the pathway.  

The pathway opened to eligible general practitioners in October 2024, was expanded to include internationally trained anaesthetists from the UK and Ireland and psychiatrists from the UK in December 2024 and since 5 March 2025, has been open to obstetricians and gynaecologists from the UK and Ireland.

Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner welcomed the encouraging start to the new pathway. 

‘It is great to see so many practitioners from similar health systems wanting to work in Australia and doing their bit to ease workforce shortages,’ he said.

‘Our registration teams are prioritising applications for registration where practitioners are in Australia and ready to commence employment.’ 

Contact us

• For media enquiries: (03) 8708 9200

• For registration enquiries, phone 1300 419 495 (within Australia) +61 3 9125 3010 (overseas callers).