In this guide
Before
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The initial registration process
Once you have completed your course, your university will upload to our database your course details and personal information (such as name, address and date of birth).
After confirming your qualification details, we will inform you by email within 2–5 working days.
Your university will also need to send us a declaration confirming your good health and good character. It may take up to working 10 days to receive, verify and allocate it to the rest of your application. We aim to assess your completed application within 2-10 working days, meaning that the time between your university sending this declaration to us and your application being assessed will be a maximum of 20 working days. As with all applications, we will always aim to process these as quickly as possible.
To join our register, you’re advised to create an account with NMC Online. You can pay the registration fee of £120 (£23 if recording subsequent registration qualifications) and complete an application form online. At this point, you must declare any police cautions or criminal convictions to us. For information on how to do this, please see our section on declaring cautions and convictions.
When we receive all of the information we need, a registrations officer will review your documents. If everything is completed correctly, your application will be processed and you will be on our register within 2–10 working days. Use NMC Online to check if your application has been accepted, as well as to download and print a statement of entry.
If you make an application six months or more after completing your nursing or midwifery programme, you are required to complete a separate application. If you do not register your qualification within five years, you will have to complete a preregistration programme again or a test of competence. Please read the standards and guidance on registering more than five years after qualifying.
Your potential employers can use the online confirmation service to check your registration as the statement of entry is not proof of registration.
After
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How to join the register
In total, it usually takes no more than 20 working days. Here’s how it works.
What happens when I finish my course?
Your university will:
- upload your course and personal details to our database
- send us a declaration of your good health and character.
We’ll email you in 2-5 working days to let you know we’ve had your qualification details. Once we have everything from your university we’ll send you an email to let you know and tell you how to create your NMC Online account.
How do I get on the register?
You’ll need to use your NMC Online account to pay the registration fee of £120 and fill in your application. At that point, you’ll need to declare any police cautions or criminal convictions.
What happens next?
Once you’ve applied online, we’ll review your application. If we have everything we need, you’ll be on our register within 2-10 working days. Sometimes we need a bit more information from you or your university, but we’ll keep you updated throughout and you can check how it’s going through your NMC Online account.
Once it’s done we’ll let you know and you can download and print your statement of entry.
Potential employers will also be able to use our online confirmation service to check you’ve been registered – the statement of entry isn’t proof on its own.
Is there a time limit?
- If you apply more than six months after finishing your course we’ll need to get a bit more information from you as part of your application process.
- If you apply more than five years after finishing your course, get in touch with us and we’ll tell you what you need to do.
We look forward to welcoming you to the register, and good luck with the rest of your career.
What’s changed?
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- The original was one big block of text, with some quite long paragraphs. We’ve used subheadings and bullet points to break it up and make it easier to navigate.
- We’ve used contractions (‘once you’ve applied, we’ll review your application’) to sound kind. And instead of formal phrases like ‘You are required to complete a separate application’, we’ve used more everyday ones like ‘You’ll need to do a separate application’.
- We’ve also taken out the hedgy phrase ‘We will aim to assess your completed application within 2-10 working days’, and gone with this instead: ‘If we have everything we need, you’ll be on our register within 2-10 working days.’
- Lastly, we’ve added a human touch by wishing the applicant luck with their career.
