MBBS in China Q&AMenuIs there a time limit to finish MBBS abroad for Indian students?
Unofficial · Sources checked
Yes. Under rules of the National Medical Commission (India), an Indian student who seeks to license a foreign medical degree in India must complete the medical course within ten years from the date of joining. Three National Medical Commission (India) documents state this limit, each with different wording; this page sets them out without reconciling them.
For the course length, internship and degree steps see Course and internship.
The three provisions
| Document and date | What must be done within ten years |
|---|---|
| Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations, 2021 — Schedule I, paragraph 2(iv); restated in FAQ Q10. Published by the National Medical Commission, India on 18 November 2021. | "The total duration of the foreign medical graduation course shall be completed within ten years from the date of joining the course." |
| Public Notice of 7 December 2023, item 5. Published by the National Medical Commission, India (Under Graduate Medical Education Board). | "All FMGs shall have to complete their internship within 10 years from date of joining their Foreign Medical Institutions to procure qualification equivalent to MBBS in India." |
| FAQs of 8 June 2026, Q12. Published by the National Medical Commission, India (Undergraduate Medical Education Board). | An answer that construes the 7 December 2023 clause; its last sentence is quoted in the section below with its context. |
The 2021 Regulations and their scope
Schedule I, paragraph 2(iv) of the Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations, 2021 requires that the total duration of the foreign medical graduation course shall be completed within ten years from the date of joining the course. FAQ Q10 restates this: "Yes; the total duration of the foreign medical graduation course shall be completed within ten years from the date of joining the course."
Under regulation 5 of the Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations, 2021, these regulations do not apply to foreign medical graduates who acquired a foreign medical degree or primary qualification before 18 November 2021, or to candidates already pursuing their education in a foreign institution before 18 November 2021; those persons are governed by the earlier applicable regulations (per Q2 and Q4 of the National Medical Commission (India) FAQ, the regulations came into force on 18 November 2021).
The Public Notice of 7 December 2023
Item 5 of the Public Notice of 7 December 2023 states: "All FMGs shall have to complete their internship within 10 years from date of joining their Foreign Medical Institutions to procure qualification equivalent to MBBS in India."
The FAQs of 8 June 2026 (Q12)
Q12 is an answer in the FAQs of 8 June 2026, which the National Medical Commission, India (Undergraduate Medical Education Board) issued on queries raised about the Public Notice of 18.03.2026 concerning compensatory physical training for study affected by the COVID-19 pandemic or the Ukraine-Russia war.
Q12 answers how the clause in the Public Notice of 7 December 2023 on capping the limit to qualify the FMG examination within ten years is to be construed, referring to the Graduate Medical Education (Amendment) Regulations, 2019. Its last sentence, quoted exactly, is:
"Therefore, the FMG who has taken admission in medical course outside India after year 2019, they are required to clear the FMG examination within 10 years from the date of admission."
This sentence appears only as part of the Q12 answer about the 2023 notice and is not stated here as a free-standing general rule.
Sources
- National Medical Commission (Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate) Regulations, 2021 — National Medical Commission, India
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): FMGs covered by National Medical Commission (Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate) Regulations, 2021 — National Medical Commission, India (Undergraduate Medical Education Board)
- Public Notice No. U-15024/9/2023-UGMEB of 7 December 2023 — National Medical Commission, India (Under Graduate Medical Education Board)
- Frequently Asked Questions No. U-15024/15/2024-UGMEB(Pt) of 8 June 2026 — National Medical Commission, India (Undergraduate Medical Education Board)
Checked 11 October 2026.
This page is an unofficial summary, is not legal or professional-licensing advice, is not published by the bodies named, promises no admission, examination or registration outcome, and the official text and the regulator's own instructions prevail if they differ.