Restrictions for permanent residents
Most medical jobs in Australia require the doctor to have a Medicare provider number. You will need to check with your Australian employer which type of Medicare provider number you require for the position.
Overseas trained doctors (OTDs) that require a Medicare provider number which enables them to attract Medicare rebates are subject to Medicare provider number restrictions. These restrictions are different according to whether you are a temporary resident OTD or a permanent resident OTD.
OTDs who take up permanent residency or citizenship in Australia are unable to obtain a Medicare provider number and therefore provide services that attract Medicare rebates unless they work in a District of Workforce Shortage.
This Medicare provider number restriction applies for a period of 10 years starting from the date of issue of permanent residency or the date of first medical registration in Australia, whichever is later. If you are willing to take up a hard-to-fill position as a general practitioner (GP/family physician) in Australia, you may be eligible to participate in the 5 year scheme, which shortens the 10 year restriction to 5 years or less.
OTDs who have been offered a job in a District of Workforce Shortage may apply for an exemption to the 10 year Medicare provider number restriction, which will enable them to be issued with a Medicare provider number. This is referred to as a section 19AB exemption. An application for a section 19AB exemption to these Medicare provider number restrictions is made when applying for a Medicare provider number.
OTDs with permanent residency or citizenship in Australia should note they are also required to work in an Area of Need unless they hold full medical registration in Australia or have completed the standard pathway for specialist assessment or the standard pathway for general practitioner assessment.
The Medicare provider number restrictions for OTDs who are permanent resident or citizens of Australia does not apply to doctors who:
- were registered with an Australian State or Territory Medical Board before 1 January 1997 and were not on a temporary resident visa, providing the doctor had retained the continuous legal right to remain in Australia; or
- made an application to the Australian Medical Council (AMC), which was received before 1 January 1997, to undertake exams, successful completion of which would ordinarily enable the person to become a medical practitioner; and
- on the day the application was receive, the doctor was eligible to undertake those examinations.
- have postgraduate qualifications as a specialist or GP which are recognised by the relevant Australian Specialist Medical College. For overseas trained specialists, this means completion of the standard pathway for specialist assessment in Australia. For GPs, this means Fellowship of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. If you have postgraduate qualifications in general practice from a country other than Australia, you must complete the standard pathway for GP assessment in Australia to meet the requirement for Fellowship of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners; or
- be on an approved postgraduate training program in Australia. Approved training programs are offered by the Australian Specialist Medical Colleges and lead to Fellowship of the College. The approved training program for general practitioners is the Australian General Practice Training Program; or
- be on an Australian approved workforce program (either the Rural Locum Relief Program in which positions are typically located in Rural, Remote or Metropolitan Area classifications 4--7, or on the Approved Medical Deputising Service Program).