If you graduated from a medical school in the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, your basic medical qualification is recognised under Directive 2005/36/EC (as amended). You do not sit a registration exam. You apply to the Medical Council for registration, then apply for posts and training schemes in the same way as Irish graduates.
Step 1: registration with the Medical Council
- Create an online account with the Medical Council and apply for the category that fits you. EU/EEA applicants use the mutual recognition route, which normally needs a Certificate of Conformity from your home authority, a Certificate of Good Standing from every regulator that registered you in the last five years, notarised identity and degree documents, and certified translations where needed.
- Irish programmes publish timelines: EU graduates are typically processed faster than applicants who need credential verification, but allow several weeks and apply before you accept a job.
- Registration categories (General, Trainee Specialist and Specialist) are explained on the registration page.
Step 2: internship
Irish graduates complete a 12-month internship in hospitals approved by the Medical Council, arranged through the intern training network. An EU/EEA graduate who has already completed an internship or equivalent in their home country can usually go straight to a Senior House Officer (SHO) post. If your home country has no internship, you may be asked to complete one. Ask the Medical Council which applies to you before you move.
Step 3: specialty training
| Pathway | How it works | Where to apply |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Specialist Training (BST) | A two-year scheme with a college and a hospital rotation. You pass the college’s membership exam, then compete for higher training | The relevant college (for example RCPI, RCSI, the College of Anaesthesiologists, the College of Psychiatrists and others) through national recruitment |
| Higher Specialist Training (HST) | Specialty-specific training that ends with a certificate of satisfactory completion of specialist training (CSCST) and eligibility for the Specialist Division | The training body of your specialty |
| General Practice training | A four-year scheme with hospital and community posts, run by the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) | ICGP national recruitment |
| Run-through or direct entry schemes | Selected specialties (for example some surgical and radiology schemes) have different entry points | Training body and medicalcareers.ie |
Non-scheme posts and service jobs
Many hospital posts are not on a training scheme. EU/EEA graduates can apply for them through hospital recruitment and the HSE’s national recruitment. They give clinical experience and sometimes support exam fees, but they do not by themselves lead to the Specialist Division. Plan the move to a scheme deliberately.
Practical advice
- Register with the Medical Council first; hospitals will not appoint without a registration number.
- Create profiles on medicalcareers.ie and the websites of the training bodies for your specialty.
- Check CV and interview requirements: schemes score audit, publications, exams and portfolio.
- Irish and UK memberships are often equivalent for entry. Confirm with the college before taking a UK exam for Irish training (or the reverse).
Your checklist
- Confirm the Medical Council category and documents I need
- Check intern-year equivalence with the Medical Council
- List the training bodies for the specialty I want
This page is general education, reviewed 24 October 2026. Rules, fees and dates change: always confirm with the official sources below. It is not medical, legal or immigration advice.