DHA licence for a GP with a degree from Russia or the CIS

Is the degree accepted?

The PQR accepts medical degrees from accredited institutions and evaluates them by country, institution, duration and clinical content. For the GP title the degree must take at least five years of study, not counting the internship year, which the standard six-year general medicine programme meets. Final acceptance is decided by the authority for each file.

Internship and experience

• A one-year internship after graduation is required. Without evidence of an internship the PQR asks for two additional years of experience
• An internship built into the degree is accepted only if completed after the final degree exam
• After the internship: two years of hands-on clinical experience, licensed and paid
• Experience counts for the GP title only in these fields: cardiology, critical care, emergency medicine, family medicine, general surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics
• The internship (internatura) was phased out in Russia in the late 2010s, so many recent graduates have none; how their training is counted is decided case by case, so check it early

Ordinatura and the specialist title

• The PQR lists Russian clinical ordinatura only with a minimum duration of three years, not including the internship; clinical master, Kandidat Nauk and Doktor Nauk are also listed
• All of these sit in Tier 3, as do the listed qualifications from Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan
• Tier 3 specialists (non-UAE nationals) need three years of experience after the main specialty; the Consultant title is normally not available
• A standard two-year ordinatura is not in the list, which is why many doctors apply as GP first

Common blockers

• A gap in practice over three years adds CME credits and supervised training; over five years a non-UAE national generally cannot apply
• Years spent only in cosmetology or aesthetic medicine do not count towards the GP title
• Experience letters without exact dates, position and full-time status
• Proof of the right to practise that does not cover the claimed experience period
• The exam is in English only, and no translator is allowed in oral assessments

Practical tips

• Use one Latin spelling of your name everywhere, exactly as in the passport
• Ask each employer for a letter on letterhead in English with dates, position, department and full-time status; keep the work book copy as support
• Order certified legal translations of every document not in English or Arabic
• Where there is no regulator that issues good standing certificates, the PQR allows one from the last employer; confirm the accepted format before ordering
• Keep practising while you apply: a gap makes everything harder

How we help

Our team speaks Russian. We check your documents against the PQR before you spend on DataFlow, tell you which title is realistic and introduce you to clinics that hire Russian-speaking doctors. For clinic owners we bring doctors with a clear licence route. Candidates never pay us: the employer pays the recruitment fee.