The NMC checks your documents twice. First as scans in your online application, then in person, at a Test of Competence centre on the day of your first OSCE attempt. At that check, "All required documents must be provided in their original format", including "Certified English Translations (from a certified translator) of any documentation not originally produced in English."
If anything is missing or not original, the ID check cannot go ahead, and "a further in-person appointment will be required at your own expense."
Below: stages and fees, documents, the NMC's translation rules, what translations must show, English evidence, police certificates and the mistakes that stall applications.
How does NMC registration work if you trained outside the UK?
In five steps, based on the NMC's step-by-step guide (updated 16 September 2026):
- Route assessment and a MyNMC account. Be ready before you start: applications that have not progressed "within three months after they were opened will be closed".
- Eligibility and qualification application. Passport details and photo page, a copy of your qualification certificate, and your regulator's details and registration certificate, or your training institution's details if you were never registered. You pay the non-refundable evaluation fee, and the NMC aims to decide "within 14 days" once it has heard from your regulator.
- Test of Competence. A computer-based test (CBT) and a practical OSCE, specific to your field: adult, mental health, learning disabilities or children's nursing, or midwifery. You must pass both "within two years of each other", in either order, and a pass stays valid for five years.
- Registration application. Health, character and language evidence, an indemnity arrangement and the registration fee. Once eligibility is confirmed you have two years to finish, and the NMC aims to consider a complete application within 30 days.
- ID check and decision. The ID check is pre-booked for your first OSCE. Refusals on health, character or English grounds can be appealed within 28 days.
| Fee, from 1 October 2026 | Amount |
|---|---|
| Qualification evaluation fee, non-refundable | £167 |
| CBT, first sitting | £83 |
| OSCE, first sitting | £794 |
| Registration fee, refundable in some circumstances | £182 |
| Total, first sittings | £1,226 |
Resits cost extra: £70 or £50 for a partial CBT resit and £397 for a partial OSCE resit (up to seven stations failed), or the full fee again. Adult nurses and midwives whose EU, EEA or EFTA qualification meets the requirements for automatic recognition skip the Test of Competence. Nursing associates follow a separate NMC guide.
Which documents does the NMC ask for?
| Document | When you provide it | Original needed at the ID check? |
|---|---|---|
| Passport | Eligibility stage: details and photo page | Yes, valid on the day |
| Qualification certificate | Eligibility stage: copy of the certificate you were awarded | Yes |
| Registration certificate or card, or a statement of entry | Eligibility stage, if you have been registered | Yes |
| Name-change evidence: marriage, civil partnership or divorce certificate, or deed poll | Whenever names differ across your documents | Yes |
| Transcript with clinical and theory hours | If you use your training as English evidence | Not on the ID check list |
| National police clearances, and a DBS check if you have lived in the UK 3 months or more | Registration application | Yes |
| IELTS or OET results | Registration application, with the TRF or candidate number | Verified with the test provider |
| Certified English translations | With every document not in English | Yes |
Two declarations come from other people: a health declaration from a registered medical practitioner who has assessed you in the last 12 months, not a friend or relative, and a character declaration, usually from your regulator if you were registered in the last three years. Contact both before you submit, because the NMC cannot assess your application until they reply.
What are the NMC's translation requirements?
The current overseas guide, under "My certificate is not in English", says: "For every document that is not in English, you must provide":
- "the original document"
- "a photocopy of the original document stamped and signed by a translation service"
- "a complete and accurate English translation with the photocopy of the original document, also stamped and signed by the translation service"
- "the contact details of the translation service or translator used"
It ends: "We won't be able to accept your document without these."
The NMC's separate page on certifying documents and translations, last updated in December 2020 but still live, is stricter about the translator: "Translations must be from a legally licensed and authorised translator. The translator must confirm in writing that the translation is an exact and direct translation from the original language into English. The translator's full name, address, signature, contact details and stamp must be provided."
What that means in practice:
- Stamp and signature on both the photocopy and the translation. Both pages ask for a stamp as well as a signature.
- Paper originals for the ID check. The NMC must see physical documents as physical originals; for documents issued electronically, it asks you to print a copy and says it will tell you if it needs more.
- EU multilingual standard forms. The certification page accepts, instead of a translation, "a multilingual standard form which has been signed and stamped or sealed by the authority which issued the original document."
Official Translations can provide what the current guide describes: on request, we apply our company stamp and signature to both the photocopy of your original and the English translation, and our contact details appear on the certificate.
What must translated nursing documents show?
The NMC verifies your qualification and registration directly with your regulator and, if you were never registered, your training institution, so the translation must match their records exactly.
- Qualification certificate: "Your name, the name of the qualification and the date you were awarded the qualification should be clearly visible on the certificate." Translate the title literally; do not turn it into "Registered Nurse".
- Registration certificate: the number, category and dates as printed. If your regulator no longer issues certificates, the NMC recommends a statement of entry to the register instead.
- Transcript: "a personal transcript with your name on it, rather than a generic course syllabus", which must "clearly show the breakdown of clinical and theory hours". If you trained where English is not a majority language, it must also show at least 50 percent clinical interaction, at least 75 percent of it in English. Every hour figure and language statement must survive translation; see our transcript translation guide.
- Name-change documents: issued by the relevant official body, clearly showing "your previous and new name(s)". See marriage certificate translation.
What English language evidence does the NMC accept?
One of three types: a test, training in English or recent practice. The rules apply to every applicant trained outside the UK, whatever their nationality:
| Evidence | NMC requirement |
|---|---|
| IELTS Academic, including UKVI | At least 7 in reading, listening and speaking, and 6.5 in writing |
| OET | At least grade B (350) in reading, listening and speaking, and C+ (300) in writing |
| Training in English | A pre-registration programme "taught and examined in English", shown by your transcript |
| Recent practice | At least one year as a registered nurse or midwife in a majority English-speaking country |
Both tests are valid for two years from the test date and must still be valid when your application reaches the assessment queue. You can combine two sittings to reach the scores, provided none falls below 6.5 (6 in writing) for IELTS, or C+ (C in writing) for OET. Supporting information from a UK employer (SIFE) can top up a near miss or English-medium training from a country outside the NMC's list, but it is "not a standalone evidence".
The NMC does not accept PTE or the IELTS Indicator test, and "NARIC/ECCTIS certificates are currently not included in our English Language policy", so a UK ENIC or Ecctis statement will not help here.
Which police certificates does the NMC need?
A national police clearance from "each overseas country you have lived in for 12 months or more (in total, not necessarily consecutive) in the last ten years", plus a DBS check if you have lived in the UK for 3 months or more. The rules that catch people:
- National only: "Regional/State/Province issued police certificates cannot be accepted."
- Issued late enough: the NMC wants certificates issued after you left each country, and its ID check page also accepts one issued within 8 weeks of departing.
- Recent for your current country: issued "no more than 12 months before the date we're assessing your application".
See police certificate translation.
Why NMC applications stall
- No paper originals at the OSCE ID check, so it has to be rebooked at your expense.
- Translations without stamps, or without the stamped photocopy of the original.
- A regional police certificate where a national one is required.
- A generic syllabus instead of a personal transcript with clinical and theory hours.
- A qualification title "converted" in translation, so it no longer matches your regulator's records.
- Names that differ across passport, certificate and registration, with no name-change evidence.
- Referees and doctors not warned, so declarations arrive late.
- An English test that expires before the application reaches the assessment queue.
Checklist: NMC application documents
Questions people ask
What does the NMC require for translated documents?
For every document not in English, the original, a photocopy of the original stamped and signed by a translation service, and a complete and accurate English translation with that photocopy, also stamped and signed, plus the translation service's contact details. Its separate certification page adds that translations must come from a legally licensed and authorised translator who gives their full name, address, signature, contact details and stamp.
Can my documents be translated in my home country?
Yes. The NMC does not say where the translator must be based. What matters is that the translation service stamps and signs the photocopy and the translation and gives its contact details; the certification page also asks for a legally licensed and authorised translator, which a licensed translator in your country of training may be able to provide.
Do I need to bring my translations to the OSCE?
Yes. The ID check on the day of your first OSCE requires all documents in their original format, including certified English translations of anything not produced in English. If a document is missing or not original, you will need a further in-person appointment at your own expense.
How much does NMC registration cost in 2026?
From 1 October 2026, the evaluation fee is £167, the CBT £83, the OSCE £794 and the registration fee £182, a total of £1,226 for first sittings. Resits cost extra, and visa fees, flights and accommodation are not included.
How long does NMC registration take?
The NMC aims to evaluate your qualification within 14 days once it has heard from your regulator, and to consider a complete registration application within 30 days. You have two years from confirmed eligibility to finish, and must pass the CBT and OSCE within two years of each other.
Do I need to translate my nursing transcript?
If it is not in English and you rely on it, yes. The transcript is the evidence when you use your training to meet the English requirement, and it must show your name and the breakdown of clinical and theory hours. The qualification certificate itself needs translating at the eligibility stage.
Does the NMC accept a UK ENIC or Ecctis statement?
Not as English language evidence: the NMC says NARIC and Ecctis certificates are not included in its English language policy. For qualifications, the NMC checks directly with your regulator and, where needed, your training institution, so a comparability statement is not part of its process.
Do I need to prove my English again for the Health and Care Worker visa?
Not usually. GOV.UK says nurses and midwives do not need to prove their knowledge of English if they have already passed an English language assessment accepted by their regulator. Visa documents not in English or Welsh, such as your family's certificates, still need a certified translation.
