Testimonials
The testimonies below come from British and French doctors who completed their training in the UK after Brexit and wish to have their qualifications recognised in France in order to work there.
Doctor D,
General Practitioner, French and British nationality
I am a French citizen who trained as a general practitioner in the UK. My wife is French, and we live in the Drôme, where our children attend school. However, I have to periodically return to the UK to work, leaving my family behind in France.
I started my application to register with the Order of Physicians before Brexit took effect. The process has been lengthy, taking several years. I have met all the exams, language, and translation requirements. However, I was told that I would need to resign from the General Medical Council (GMC), which would leave me unemployed, in order to continue my application. Moreover, I was informed that the processing time would take at least an additional eight months, with no guarantee of acceptance. Since re-registering with the GMC is also a lengthy process, this option was not viable.
In our region, there is a severe shortage of doctors, and residents are frustrated by the lack of access to healthcare. The local medical practice is eager to recruit me, as the current doctors will soon retire with no replacements planned. This issue has been raised officially, notably in the Senate (see https://www.senat.fr/questions/base/2024/qSEQ240210080.html). As a collective, we have written several times to the Minister of Health, with no response. Ready to serve the French community, we are blocked by bureaucracy and must consider going back to the UK, leaving the region without a doctor.
Doctor O,
General Practitioner, Irish nationality
I am an Irish general practitioner with an EU passport, but I obtained my medical degree in Liverpool, UK. I also have experience in pre-hospital care and have worked in French-speaking regions (France, Mali). I have been working as a Senior Doctor in the Emergency Department for several years. Since starting university in 2010, I have been eager to work in France. I was fortunate enough to be one of the four students admitted to the Erasmus program in France, where I completed internships at the University Hospital of Angers.
Since graduating, I have also done other internships in Grenoble, France, as part of the Hippokrates program, and more recently, I worked as a doctor at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. These experiences, along with my work in low-resource settings in Mali and refugee camps in Greece, have greatly contributed to improving my French language skills.
My partner is French, and as an EU citizen, I would like the opportunity to work as a doctor in France, whether in primary care or in emergency services. There is a constant shortage of doctors in France, and I would like to contribute to the French healthcare system.
Doctor B,
General Practitioner, British nationality
I am a bilingual British general practitioner, with a French husband. We met in 2017 and decided to settle in France after I completed my general practitioner training in 2022. We were ready to move to France, but it quickly became clear that it was impossible since my qualifications are no longer recognized by the Conseil de l'Ordre des Médecins due to Brexit. While awaiting a positive change, we are currently living in Quebec, Canada, where I work as a French-speaking family doctor in a 'centre de santé communautaire'.
We hope that the acceptance by the Ministry of Labour, Health, Solidarity, and Families, as well as the Conseil de l'Ordre des Médecins, will come soon, allowing us to finally realise our dream of living and working in France, and enabling my husband to return to his country of birth.
Doctor M,
Trainee Doctor, French nationality
After growing up in France, I followed my parents to London in 2014 at the age of 17, the year of my baccalauréat. I studied neuroscience at King’s College London and then entered the graduate-entry medicine program at Imperial College in 2018, two years before Brexit.
At the time, there was no indication that I would not be able to return to France to complete my medical studies. In the middle of my third year at Imperial College School of Medicine, in January 2021, I learned that my degree would no longer be recognized by France. I suddenly found myself without any option to return to France—the beloved country of my childhood—neither to continue my medical studies (through the French internship system or any other pathway) nor to practice medicine there. I was erased by France as a doctor.
After gathering information, I realized that I had to find another European country that would accept me (Belgium, Spain, Romania, Switzerland, or another—not France in any case). I would need to live there to complete my internship training (lasting from 5 to 15 years, depending on the specialty), then work for three years in an EU country (any EU country except France) before finally applying for an exemption to return to France—an exemption that could very well be denied, making me a permanent exile.
I now find myself isolated from my loved ones in France and, in any case, unable to practice medicine there, despite holding a degree that meets European standards.
The former MP representing the French in the UK, Mr. Alexandre Holroyd, made considerable efforts over several years to pass legislation in the National Assembly and the Senate to make my return, and that of other French nationals in the same situation, possible—but without success.
The United Kingdom has allowed its nationals who began medical studies in Europe before Brexit to return with full recognition of their degree. We cannot sacrifice citizens on the altar of changes in international agreements if we truly think about it.
Doctor L,
Radiologist, French nationality
Born in Belgium but of French nationality, I went to study in England after completing my Baccalaureate in France in 2009. The opportunity to pursue prestigious studies at Oxford, and then at Cambridge, seemed like a good idea.
Due to the unexpected consequences of Brexit, I find myself stuck in England. I graduated in 2018, and my specialisation in radiology is ongoing (expected to finish in 2027), but my degrees are not recognised as equivalent by France. Given the current circumstances, I am wondering if it would be possible to interrupt my career to retrain in a profession that would allow me to return to France. My family in France does not understand why I cannot return to practice in my country given the shortage of doctors and the level of my education.
Doctor T,
General Practitioner, British nationality
I am a general practitioner who graduated in the UK. I moved to Lyon in 2023 with my husband and two young children, as he accepted a position as a pastor in the Anglican Church of Lyon. We wish to stay in France beyond this position, but it will be difficult if I cannot work here.
Due to Brexit regulations, I am classified as a non-European doctor, which means I cannot work in France as a doctor. I spend my time learning French while supporting my family during this transition period. I obtained a B1 level in March 2024, and I hope to reach a B2 level by 2025, so that I can begin the process of applying for a medical license in France.
Doctor N, General Practitioner, British nationality
I have been a general practitioner for 13 years, having graduated in the UK in 2012. Until 2022 I lived in London with my French husband and children, whereby we decided to move to the Pau area in France to be closer to my husband’s family and integrate our bilingual children into French culture.
Since our arrival, we have settled in a village near Pau, and our children are attending the village school. We have purchased a house that we love. Both my husband and I work remotely, and in my free time, I teach dance classes to children. I have made friends and connections with the school and local families.
However, since the UK decided to leave the EU, the administrative procedures for a British doctor to work in France have become complex and unjustified, such as the requirement to cancel my British medical license. This would mean I would have to stop the remote work I do for British patients, which currently constitutes my main source of income.
I would like to practice medicine in France and would like to retain my British license, as was the case before Brexit, where my employment opportunities were maintained. I hope the French government along with L'Ordre des Médecins can find a solution for bilingual British doctors like me.
Doctor F, in the process of completing GP training, British nationality
I am bilingual, having lived in France for several work experiences, including summer jobs, a year of Erasmus at Paris VI, an external medical internship, and finally a position in the emergency department at Kremlin-Bicêtre.
My partner of 10 years is French. We were in a long-distance relationship for 5 years, until I took the first opportunity my training allowed to move and work in France.
Since I moved to France before Brexit, I was granted a 5-year residence permit. I was hired in the emergency department as a FFI (Faisant Fonction d'Interne - a temporary position equivalent to an intern or junior doctor).
Upon further research, I discovered that it would not be possible for me to complete my training in France. After 2 years, I returned to the UK to complete my GP (General Practice) training.
My partner followed me but kept his French job, working remotely with exhausting trips back to France every two weeks. This was not sustainable, and after almost 3 years, he decided to quit his French job.
We are now stuck here because my qualification as a general practitioner in the UK is no longer recognized as equivalent in France since Brexit.
From what I understand, my only option is to pass an exam, which would require a lot of preparation time, not compatible with my work as a general practitioner, followed by 2 years in a position in an unknown location in France, with a salary much lower than what I currently earn, before my qualifications are recognized by the Conseil de l'Ordre des Médecins.
Unfortunately, this path, with all the difficulties and costs it would entail, would be hard to justify, while I can easily obtain a job as a general practitioner in the UK.
If the recognition of British qualifications were restored by France (as it still is for French doctors despite Brexit), facilitating the process for UK-trained doctors to settle in France, France would have the opportunity to welcome two workers, one of whom is a general practitioner and the other a French person who had to leave because of the non-recognition of my qualifications in France.
Doctor E,
Foundation Doctor, French nationality
A French national, having previously completed a Master of Science in Ireland (90 ECTS), I wanted to apply for the medical studies pathway in France in April 2019. However, due to a legal gap in Article 2 of the decree of March 24, 2017, which only mentions the ECTS of a French Master 2 (120 ECTS) as a requirement to be eligible for this pathway, my application could not be presented to the jury. As a result, I was forced to pursue my medical studies in the United Kingdom in December 2019.
Previously a lawyer and HR Manager at Airbus, I hold a Master's degree from the Smurfit Business School at University College Dublin. I was also the top graduate of the 2015 class in the double degree program in Civil Law and Common Law at the Faculty of Law of Toulouse 1 Capitole, with a year of academic exchange at the University of Limerick in Ireland. I am attaching my Curriculum Vitae for your reference.
In June 2024, I graduated with a medical degree from the University of Buckingham in England (equivalent to the first and second cycles of medical studies in France). I am now a doctor at a hospital in England (NHS), where I am serveing as a Resident Doctor for two years. This is a hospital internship ("Foundation Years"), also known as residency, which is equivalent to the Third Cycle in France. At the end of these two mandatory years for all doctors, we can choose our specialty internship. It is within this context that I would like to return to France to start my specialty internship in Psychiatry during the intern's intake in November 2026. Psychiatry is an area under pressure in Haute-Garonne, with a number of internship positions unfilled each year.
Having contacted the CNG (Centre National de Gestion), they provided me with the decree of December 13, 2019, Articles 1 and 6, II, 2° (https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/loda/id/JORFTEXT000039645846/2024-11-27/) which would only grant me access to the fifth year of the Second Cycle of medical studies in France. Consequently, even though I am already in my Third Cycle, I would have to downgrade to the Second Cycle, thus losing four years of training. I am willing to consider restarting the Third Cycle in France, but not the Second.
This is once again a legal gap that does not mention the possibilities of returning to France in the Third Cycle for French resident doctors who graduated from a medical school in the United Kingdom post-Brexit. I am not the only one in this situation, as outlined in the attached article: https://www.egora.fr/etudiants/etudes-de-medecine/nous-abandonnes-le-casse-tete-de-brillants-etudiants-en-medecin
Doctor F,
General Practitioner, British Nationality
I am British General Practitioner, born, raised and medically trained in the U.K. Since visiting France in childhood, I held a lifelong dream of becoming a doctor in France. I completed my G.P training in 2022 and moved to Nice in France in 2023.
Along the journey towards my goal, I have lived in France several times including working in a ski station before university and taking a year abroad during medical school to shadow doctors at hospitals in Marseille, France and Dakar, Senegal for the purpose of learning medical French. I studied for language exams and in 2021 passed the DELF-B2 exam required for a professional working visa in France.
There are many barriers to working as a doctor in France which ultimately, upsettingly, lead to me returning to live and work in the U.K where I earn a viable living to support my family, which I could not do in France.
The greatest barrier was financial. In the UK I am fully qualified and earn “peak career” earnings. In post Brexit France my qualifications are no longer recognised. The only work I could access was « stagiaire » as an « FFI » (Faisant Fonction d’Interne i.e. “Acting as Intern”) which is a step lower on the pay ladder than the most junior of interns when they begin their training programs. The net income after deductions was €1600 per month in my bank account. The is proved insufficient to support my family so we had to terminate and move back to the U.K.
Personally, I have now bought into a GP business, bought a house and started my children in a nursery & school, so moving back to France is not foreseeable for me any time soon. The opportunity has passed.
There are however colleagues still perusing this. I hope the obstacles I had can be reduced for them.
As described, the lack of qualification equivalence leading to insufficient earnings is the main barrier but I also faced many other barriers that cumulated to make the process harder than it needs to be. If these could be addressed then colleagues may have less deterrents. These are described below.
Arbitrarily the visa system doesn’t allow applicants to apply well in advance. So, despite having obtained the job offer over a year in advance I was not permitted to apply for a visa until shortly before the job start date. The visa approval only arrived two weeks prior to the job start date. To give my U.K employer reasonable planning notice for staffing I’d had to gamble and terminate my U.K employment long PRIOR to having my French visa application approved. Same for my rental contract with my landlord. This gave my family unnecessary suspense and uncertainty about possible (no) housing and (no) employment.
Where I met administrative barriers at every occasion I was greeted with help and welcome by the French people. Hours of effort and good will we’re given by hospital staff, visa staff, bankers, phone shop staff and my landlady, all of whom like the French public at large were encouraging me to stay.
I remain passionate about France and visit regularly but until « l’administration française » reciprocates the enthusiasm it will only see me and my peers in the limited capacity of tourists and so miss our offer to give a career of healthcare provision where I know it is wanted by the French people.
I am hosting French medical students at my U.K GP practice this summer. I look forward to cultivating a shared passion for the profession. I hope later in life circumstances will be simpler for me to return to France for another attempt.
Doctor W,
General Practitioner, French Nationality
I am French, I completed all my medical studies in France, then in 2013 I moved to England to join my husband. We have always planned to settle in France, but at the time, it was easier for me to go to England than for my husband to come to France, and Brexit was completely unimaginable. I enrolled in general practice training and obtained my CCT in 2021, just after Brexit, so I do not benefit from automatic recognition, even though I completed two-thirds of my studies in France and my basic degree is French.
My husband is British, he is also a General Practitioner and obtained his degree in 2019, before Brexit, but at that time we could not afford for him to deregister from the GMC and risk being without income, so he did not start the recognition process before Brexit.
Since 2021, I have knocked on all doors, CNG (Centre National de Gestion) - mostly multiple emails without response and calls to which no one answers - president, prime minister, senate, many ministers, mayors, departmental councils, and others. All my efforts have so far been completely in vain. While we may consider attempting the EVC (European equivalency exam), it is practically unfeasible for us to redo between 1 and 3 years of hospital training when we have 5 young children.