How the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and New Zealand license overseas doctors

United Arab Emirates (Unified PQR)

General Practitioner needs a five-year degree, a one-year internship and two years after it; Specialist and Consultant depend on the tier of the specialty certificate in the PQR's table (Tier 1 and 2 need no experience for Specialist; Consultant needs two years after a Tier 1 certificate or five after a Tier 2; Tier 3 cannot). GPs with AMC, LMCC, PRES, NZREX, PLAB or GMC registration, or USMLE Step 3 skip the exam; Specialists and Consultants with a Tier 1 certificate from one of 22 listed countries skip it too.

Qatar (DHP)

General Practitioners from abroad need a six-year degree and five years of experience before the Prometric exam (USD 244), unless PLAB 1, USMLE Step 2, MCCQE 1, the AMC MCQ, PRES Part 2, IFOM CSE or the MRCGP AKT exempts them. Specialty scope depends on the category of the qualification: one or two years after the degree and no exam for Categories 1 and 2, three years in a government or training hospital plus the DHP exam for Category 3, and five years in total. Consultant is a facility title, not a DHP licence. DataFlow's physician package is QAR 1,210.

Saudi Arabia (SCFHS)

The SMLE (200 questions at a Prometric centre, up to four attempts a year) is the gate at the general level; Senior Registrar and Consultant are classified on a Saudi Board equivalent certificate, by direct decision, written exam or practical evaluation. The category definitions and the consultant's three years come from SCFHS's 2009 manual, so they are shown as official but older; the one-year rule for non-Saudis and the registration period are current.

Bahrain (NHRA)

Only Specialist and Consultant licences are open to overseas doctors; the general licence is for Bahrainis. Every physician sits the Bahrain Medical Licensure Examination (four attempts in three years, valid five years); Tier 3 certificates also sit the NHRA Specialist Examination. Experience after the certificate: none, one or three years for Specialist by tier; two or four for Consultant; a gap of three years closes the door.

New Zealand (Medical Council)

Four routes to the provisional general scope: 33 months' recent practice with registration in one of 29 comparable countries (NZD 1,935.55), a pass in the last five years in NZREX Clinical, PLAB or the AMC exams (NZREX costs NZD 5,827.86 all in and needs EPIC and a prerequisite exam first), UK general registrants, and UK or Irish graduates. English is IELTS 7/7/7 with 6.5 writing or OET 350/350/350 with 300 writing, two sittings within twelve months allowed and the One Skill Retake accepted.

Verification for the Gulf is the same DataFlow step as for nurses with the physician package per regulator; New Zealand uses ECFMG's EPIC.