Doctors, nurses and allied healthcare professionals who want to work in Saudi Arabia need to obtain professional registration with the Saudi Commission for Health Specialities (SCFHS). This article gives an overview of the process.

The Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS) is the single medical regulatory authority responsible for registering and licensing physicians, dentists and all medical and healthcare professionals permitted to practice in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Headquartered in Riyadh the capital city, it has 6 regional offices throughout the country. However applications for registration are managed via the on line portal and there is generally no need to visit the physical offices of the SCFHS.

Candidates often complain that the application process to obtain approval for a licence to practice in Saudi Arabia is long and tortuous. We would advise that with good preparation, it need not be and can be executed swiftly without complications. The first step is to understand the processes involved and then prepare the relevant documents and information required to submit the application.

The SCFHS Licence Application Process

Applying for the relevant professional registration and licence to practise is a four-step process, as follows:

Step 1: Primary Source Verifications of Credentials via DataFlow

The DataFlow Group is a third party company used by the SCFHS to verify an applicants educational qualifications, professional licence and employment experience documents at the source of issue. The purpose of this action is to ensure that the credentials are authentic and thereby prevent the use of fraudulent credentials to obtain professional registration. (Before this step was included as part of the professional registration process, there were many instances of people working as doctors with fake qualifications and even performing surgical procedures!).

Our guide to the DataFlow Report describes the procedure for obtaining your report. Please read it and follow the steps.

The process of verification takes 14-30 days if the express service is used but significantly longer with the standard service. We would recommend using the express service with assistant which expedites the process for a small additional fee. The DataFlow assistant will keep you immediately informed of any delays or problems.

Once complete, DataFlow issues a report which confirms the authenticity of your credentials and you can proceed to Step 2. Your DataFlow report can be used for all medical regulatory authorities in the Middle East and is easily transferred between them for a small fee.

Step 2: Professional Classification and Licensing Exam

MumarisPlus is the SCFHS online application system where your licence application is initiated and into which your relevant documents must be uploaded.  These include educational certificates, passport, professional license and employment certificates. You should register an account and upload your documents.

The SCFHS will then review your application to determine your eligibility for licensing in Saudi Arabia in accordance with their established criteria for each profession and grade. If you are deemed "eligible for licensing," you will be issued an "Eligibility Number" which allows you to register for the licensing exam which is taken via the Prometric Testing system. Our article about the prometric exam details the procedures for taking this exam.

You will usually be granted an exemption from this exam if you have qualified and completed post graduate training in the UK, USA, Canada, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand and hold the appropriate specialist certificate of completion of training or fellowship and specialist registration with the relevant medical or dental board.

SCFHS Classification and Registration fees vary by an applicant's qualifications and profession.

Step 3: Professional Classification Certificate

Once you have passed the licensing exam or been granted an exemption,  the SCFHS will complete a final review of your application. Once approved, you will be issued a Professional Classification Certificate which states your specialist field and licence category, for example Consultant in Cardiology, Specialist in General Surgery.

It is worth noting that a general practitioner is a non specialist physician equating to a resident, registrar or house officer in other jurisdictions. A family physician is the job title of a physician specialised in general medical practice. Please review our article about medical job titles for clarification.

Step 4: Professional Registration

The registration process is completed when you arrive in Saudi Arabia and you will be issued with a licence card which details your name and licence category.

Documents Required by Data Flow

You should prepare the documents listed below for upload to the DataFlow portal.

1. Educational Certificates  - copies of your degrees or diplomas. English and Arabic documents are accepted. Documents in other languages must be professionally translated into Arabic or English. Transcripts of educational qualifications are required in some cases.
2. Professional Licence - a copy of your professional registration in current jurisdiction of practice.
3. Employment Certificates - certificates confirming job title and dates worked from your employer human resources department covering the last 3 - 5 years of employment.
4. Passport - copy of page with photograph, passport number and data
5. Passport photo - a standard passport photo with white background
6. CV - a recent CV with full employment history and all gaps in practice explained.

For further information about the process of obtaining a licence, please contact us. 

Applying for Jobs in Saudi Arabia

Candidates who wish to work in Saudi Arabia or other states in the Middle East can upload a CV and contact us to discuss job opportunities and credential requirements. Advertised jobs can be viewed on line and applications made by uploading a recent CV highlighting all relevant requirements as set out in the job advert.

You can read more articles about working in Saudi Arabia and keep up to date with latest news.

You may read about Vision 2030 the strategic plan of the Saudi Arabian government for economic diversification and the projects for the healthcare system.

Credentialing and Privileging of Doctors

Doctors seeking jobs in Saudi Arabia should understand the differences between credentialing and privileging and the implications. Our blog article covers this topic in greater depth but in summary, credentialing is the process performed by the SCFHS which determines the appropriate licence category for the physician. But each employer has its own privileging process which determines what level of practice the doctor will be permitted in a designated hospital or clinic. The two processes may not yield the same outcomes.

Preparing a CV for applications for medical jobs in Saudi Arabia

There are some special features which should be considered when drafting a CV for applications medical positions in Saudi Arabia. Specific information which should be included and the order in which is set out are described in our article about drafting CVs for consultant jobs in Saudi Arabia. The article on preparing a productive CV lists the general considerations of formatting and key words.