Around one in five GPs do not hold specialist registration

Around one in five GPs were not on the Medical Council’s specialist division for general practice in 2025, shows Council data.

Some 78.9 per cent of GPs (3,959) were on the specialist division for general practice, according to the Medical Workforce Intelligence Report 2025. However, 968 GPs (19.3 per cent) were on the register’s general division. A further 1.8 per cent of self-reported GPs (89) were on the trainee specialist division (which may relate to GP trainees who identified as GPs).

Doctors on the specialist division have completed specialist training recognised by the Medical Council and are permitted to practise independently as a specialist in their field. Doctors on the general division may practise independently without supervision, but may not represent themselves as specialists. Doctors in specialist training posts are registered in the trainee specialist division.

The Council’s rules on eligibility for registration in the specialist division of the medical register came into effect through a statutory instrument (SI) on 16 March 2009.

According to the HSE, since this SI was commenced, a GP must be on the specialist division for general practice to take up any of the three core GMS contracts, ie, medical card, GP visit card, and under-8s GP visit card. “There are a small number of GMS GPs who held their HSE contract prior to 16 March 2009 and to whom the requirement for specialist registration does not apply,” stated the Executive.

The Health (Provision of General Practitioner Services) Act 2012 also requires a GP to be on the specialist division for general practice to obtain a GMS contract. As of 1 September 2026, some 2,615 GPs hold a GMS contract.

According to the Council’s workforce report, the largest GP grouping were principals/partners (2,302), followed by GP assistants (953), locums (460), and sessional GPs (450). Of all doctor groups, GPs were most likely to report experiencing barriers to providing sufficient patient care at least once a week or more frequently (34.7 per cent). The main barriers were bureaucracy and administration, workload, and difficulty accessing specialist opinion.

Regarding GPs on the general division, an Irish College of GPs spokesperson said the College and the Medical Council were “engaging on addressing this matter to ensure that all eligible GPs are appropriately registered on the specialist register”.

According to the Medical Council, doctors on the general division “practise in a wide range of roles, settings, and are at various stages of career progression”. In relation to GPs on the general division, the Council’s research team is exploring this cohort via semi-structured focus groups. “These are exploring professional experiences, training and professional supports, practice arrangements, challenges and barriers including system issues and career plans,” said a Council spokesperson.

In 2025, some 31.6 per cent of all clinically active doctors in Ireland were on the general division. Many work in NCHD service posts.

The Council said doctors on the general division “play a vital role” within the Irish healthcare system and it is seeking to understand “how it can better support and manage these doctors”.