Licence status
Fitness to practise sanctions compared: doctors, nurses, solicitors and US boards
Short answer
- GMC suspension maximum
- Twelve months per direction 1
- GMC conditions maximum
- Three years per direction 1
- NMC caution order
- One to five years 3
- SRA fine limit
- £25,000 4
- California suspension
- Up to one year 7
- Australia cancellation
- Only a court or tribunal 6
Sanctions side by side
| Regulator | Removal | Suspension | Conditions or restrictions | Lesser outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GMC, Medical Practitioners Tribunal (UK) 1 | Erasure, not in health or language cases 1 | Up to 12 months 1 | Up to 3 years 1 | Warning where fitness is not impaired 1 |
| NMC Fitness to Practise Committee (UK) 3 | Striking-off order 3 | Up to 1 year 3 | Up to 3 years 3 | Caution order, 1 to 5 years 3 |
| Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (England and Wales) 5 | Striking off the roll 5 | Indefinite or fixed period 5 | Exclusion from criminal legal aid work in set cases 5 | Penalty paid to the Crown 5 |
| SRA (England and Wales) 4 | Not an SRA power under s.44D 4 | Not an SRA power under s.44D 4 | Not an SRA power under s.44D 4 | Written rebuke or penalty up to £25,000 4 |
| National Boards and tribunals (Australia) 6 | Cancellation by a court or tribunal only 6 | Suspension 6 | Conditions or undertakings 6 | Caution or reprimand 6 |
| Medical Board of California 7 | Revocation 7 | Up to 1 year 7 | Probation 7 | Public reprimand 7 |
Doctors in the UK
Section 35D of the Medical Act 1983 sets the powers of a Medical Practitioners Tribunal that finds a doctor's fitness to practise impaired 1. It may direct erasure, except in a health or language case, suspension for up to twelve months, or conditional registration for up to three years 1. Where fitness is not impaired, it may give a warning 1.
On review, a tribunal may extend a suspension, but by no more than twelve months at a time 1. In a health or language case, a suspension that has lasted at least two years may be extended indefinitely 1. A doctor whose name was erased cannot apply for restoration until five years after erasure 2.
Nurses and midwives in the UK
Article 29 of the Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001 lists four orders 3. A striking-off order removes the person from the register. A suspension order lasts up to one year. A conditions of practice order lasts up to three years. A caution order annotates the register for not less than one year and not more than five years 3.
For some types of allegation, striking-off is only possible after the person has been suspended or under conditions continuously for at least two years 3.
Solicitors in England and Wales
Two bodies share sanctions. Under section 44D of the Solicitors Act 1974 the SRA may give a written rebuke or direct payment of a penalty of up to £25,000, and the penalty is not payable until any appeal period ends 4. Subsection 2A removes the cap in some cases 4.
Under section 47 the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal may strike a solicitor off the roll, suspend from practice indefinitely or for a set period, or order a penalty forfeited to the Crown 5. It may restore a struck-off solicitor to the roll on application 5.
Australia and California
Ahpra lists the outcomes of a notification 6. A National Board may accept an undertaking, impose conditions, issue a caution or a reprimand, or suspend registration, in which case the practitioner cannot practise 6. Ahpra says only a court or a tribunal has the power to cancel registration 6.
In California, section 2227 of the Business and Professions Code lets the Medical Board, after a hearing or a stipulation, revoke a licence, suspend the right to practise for up to one year, impose probation with monitoring costs, or issue a public reprimand that may include required courses 7.
Common questions
How long can the GMC suspend a doctor?
Up to twelve months per direction, extendable on review by no more than twelve months at a time 1.
What is a caution order from the NMC?
An order annotating the register for between one and five years 3.
How much can the SRA fine a solicitor?
Up to £25,000 under section 44D, with no cap in the cases set out in subsection 2A 4.
Who can cancel a health practitioner's registration in Australia?
Only a court or a tribunal 6.
Is probation a sanction in California?
Yes. The Medical Board may place a licensee on probation and require payment of monitoring costs 7.
Rules and charges change. Check the official source linked on this page before you pay or travel. Spotted an error? Email hello@thecredentialregistry.com.
Sources
- legislation.gov.uk: Medical Act 1983, section 35D
- legislation.gov.uk: Medical Act 1983, section 41, Restoration of names to the register
- legislation.gov.uk: The Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001, article 29
- legislation.gov.uk: Solicitors Act 1974, section 44D
- legislation.gov.uk: Solicitors Act 1974, section 47
- Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency: Notification outcomes
- California Legislative Information: Business and Professions Code section 2227
Related
- Licence status terms explained: active, conditions, suspended, disbarred and more
What common register status labels mean, from active and inactive to conditions, undertakings, suspension, cancellation, disbarment and prohibition.
- Restoration after removal from a register: waiting periods and procedures compared
How professionals removed from a register apply to return: waiting periods for doctors, nurses, dentists and solicitors in the UK, California and the EU.
- Licence renewal and revalidation compared: nurses, doctors, solicitors and pharmacists
Renewal cycles, deadlines and CPD hours for nurses, doctors, solicitors, pharmacists and architects in the UK, Ireland, Australia and California.
- Glossary of credential verification terms
Plain definitions of official terms used in licence and degree checks, from apostille and caution order to erasure, multistate licence and revalidation.
- Lawyer registers compared: solicitors, barristers, state bars and law societies
How to check a lawyer's licence and status in England and Wales, California and Ontario, and what each official register shows.
- Medical registers compared: UK, US, Australia, Canada, India and more
Where to check a doctor's registration in the UK, US, Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, India and Kenya, and what each register shows.