Verification Services

The Verifications Services team:

• assesses all IMG applications for primary and post-graduate and qualification verifications
• maintains the AMC qualifications portal which is accessed by Australian Specialist Colleges and AHPRA to verify medical student primary and post-graduate qualifications
• assists IMGs in establishing an AMC online portfolio, and
• updates IMG verification status with the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG).

An IMG seeking registration in Australia and applying to complete the AMC examinations must firstly have attained an eligible medical qualification recognised by the AMC. The process of verifying IMG medical qualifications is described as Primary Source Verification (PSV) and was implemented by the AMC in 2006. PSV is designed to check and ensure the integrity of basic and specialist medical qualifications and is confirmed by ECFMG who assist the AMC to verify the IMGs identity, check the integrity of the qualification documentation, and confirm the awarded qualification directly with the issuing institution. ECFMG now has a total of 1,226 medical institutions in the e-verifications system.

In the 2018-19 reporting period a total of 5,052 portfolio applications were established (an average of 112 applications per week). A total of 909 additional medical qualifications were added to IMG portfolios.

A summary of key statistics for the 2018-19 year follows.

Qualifications verified via the Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (EPIC) verification system for the 2018-19 reporting period were similar to those for the previous year.

The eight highest countries remain unchanged, however, China and Iraq were replaced by the Philippines and South Africa in positions 9 and 10. Overall, numbers across the top 10 countries remained consistent at 3,463 in 2017-18 and 3,432 in 2018-19. The top 10 countries comprise just over 50% of all applications.

Postgraduate qualification verification statistics

Compared to the 2017/2018 period, Brazil and Malaysia did not remain in the top 10 countries, replaced by Iran and Singapore. Overall, postgraduate qualifications verified in 2018-19 fell by just over 9%, affected primarily by the 15% fall from the UK.