Recognition & career

Registering with the medical council after a Romanian degree: steps and timelines

July 30, 2026 · Med Romania

You have your Romanian Doctor-Medic degree. Directive 2005/36/EC guarantees its automatic recognition. But to practise, you need one more thing: registration with the medical council.

That registration is compulsory. Without it you are not a doctor in the eyes of the law — you cannot prescribe, you cannot see patients, you cannot set up a practice. And, contrary to what many people assume, it is not a mere formality.

Here is the full journey, document by document, deadline by deadline.

A note on the worked example. This guide uses France and its Ordre des Médecins as its case study, because that is the system our readers most often return to and the one whose legal detail is most fully documented. The underlying right — automatic recognition under Annex V.1 — is identical across the 27 member states. Only the name of the registering body changes: Ärztekammer in Germany, Ordine dei Medici in Italy, the BIG register in the Netherlands, the Colegio de Médicos in Spain. The document list and the language check are, in practice, remarkably similar everywhere.

Why registration is compulsory

The Ordre des Médecins is a French public-law institution created in 1945. Its duties:

To keep the Tableau: the official roll of every doctor authorised to practise in France.
To watch over the competence and the good standing of practitioners.
To enforce the Code of Medical Ethics.
To handle professional discipline.

In France, nobody may practise medicine without being on the roll (Article L.4111-1 of the Public Health Code). That is as true for a Paris graduate as for a Cluj-Napoca graduate.

For EU graduates, registration rests on Directive 2005/36/EC, which requires France to recognise your degree and register you on the same terms as a French graduate — subject to the usual checks on identity, good standing and language.

Step 1: Identify your departmental council (CDOM)

The Ordre is organised into departmental councils (CDOM), one per department. You register with the CDOM of the department where you intend to practise — not where you live.

For example: you live in Paris but want to practise in the Gironde? The Gironde CDOM handles your file. Want to practise in several departments? You need one registration per department (or, in certain situations, a registration with the National Council).

Find your CDOM on the National Council’s site: www.conseil-national.medecin.fr.

Step 2: Assemble the file

The CDOM will give you the exact list of documents. Here is what is generally required of an EU graduate:

Compulsory documents

Document	Detail
Registration form	Supplied by the CDOM. Completed and signed.
Doctor-Medic degree	Certified true copy of the original.
Sworn translation of the degree	By a translator approved by a French Court of Appeal, or a translator sworn before the Romanian Ministry of Justice.
Transcripts / diploma supplement	To evidence the content and duration of your training. Translated where required.
Identity document	Valid ID card or passport.
Proof of EU nationality	Your ID card or a member state passport.
Criminal record extract	Bulletin n°3 (for French nationals) or the equivalent from your home country, translated where required.
Proof of address	Rent receipt, utility bill, or a hosting attestation.
Recent passport photo	Standard format.
Proof of indemnity insurance	Professional civil liability cover — compulsory in order to practise.
Curriculum vitae	Setting out your training and any professional experience.

Documents that may also be requested

Some CDOMs ask for:

An attestation from the Romanian medical council (Colegiul Medicilor din România) confirming you have not been disciplined.
A certificate of removal from the Romanian roll if you were registered there.
Evidence of French language ability (the CDOM may check your level at the interview).

Tip: call your CDOM before you gather the documents. Some have specific requirements. A five-minute phone call can save you weeks of delay.

Step 3: The sworn translation — do not underestimate it

This is the step people routinely misjudge. Your Romanian degree and transcripts have to be translated by a sworn translator. Two options:

In France: a translator approved by a Court of Appeal. Each Court of Appeal publishes its list.
In Romania: a translator sworn before the Romanian Ministry of Justice. A translation produced in Romania for use in France has to be apostilled (Hague Convention of 5 October 1961).

Cost: budget €50 to €150 depending on the volume of documents and the target language.

Time: 1 to 3 weeks depending on the translator. Some offer an express service for a surcharge.

Step 4: File the application and pay the fees

You lodge the complete file with the CDOM, by recorded delivery or in person (some CDOMs insist on physical filing).

Registration fees: they vary by CDOM, generally between €100 and €300. They cover processing the file and the first annual subscription. The annual subscription thereafter is around €350 (it varies by department and by your status — locum, established practitioner, and so on).

Step 5: The interview with the CDOM

Once your file is judged complete, you are called to an interview before the members of the departmental council — doctors elected by their peers.

What they check

Your identity and your degree: that the documents are genuine.
Your good standing: that you have no conviction incompatible with practising medicine.
Your French: that you can communicate with patients and colleagues. CEFR level B2 is generally expected.
Your knowledge of the Code of Ethics: the founding principles — medical confidentiality, professional independence, collegiality.

How to prepare

Read the Code of Medical Ethics (Articles R.4127-1 to R.4127-112 of the Public Health Code). You do not have to recite it, but you must know its principles.
Be ready to explain your path: why Romania, which university, what clinical training.
Show that you know the French health system: social security, the carte Vitale, the referral pathway, the role of the médecin traitant.
The interview is not an exam — it is a check on your fitness to practise. Be professional, open and honest.

From a graduate: “The interview lasted 30 minutes. They asked about my time in Cluj, my clinical placements, and how well I knew the health system. Then one question on medical confidentiality and one on refusing care. Nothing designed to trip you up, provided you have prepared.” — Dr M., UMF Cluj graduate, registered with the Rhône CDOM.

Step 6: The decision and entry on the roll

After the interview the CDOM deliberates. Three possible outcomes:

Entry on the roll: you are officially a doctor in France. You receive a registration certificate and a council number.
A request for further documents: the CDOM holds its decision pending additional papers.
Refusal: rare for an EU graduate, but possible where there is an issue of good standing, document fraud, or manifestly insufficient language. A refusal has to be reasoned, and you can challenge it before the National Council and then the Conseil d’État.

Timelines

The CDOM has three months to decide from receipt of the complete file (Article L.4112-3 of the Public Health Code). In practice, allow 2 to 4 months between filing and effective registration.

Special case: you are already registered in Romania

If you are already on the roll of the Colegiul Medicilor din România, you must:

Provide a certificate of registration (and of no disciplinary removal) issued by the Colegiul.
Have yourself removed from the Colegiul if you stop practising in Romania. Dual registration is not forbidden, but it means paying subscriptions in both countries.

Special case: registering as a locum

Many graduates start out as locums. Good news: the procedure is identical. Entry on the roll covers every form of practice — self-employed, salaried, or locum work.

Locum work is an excellent way in: it lets you sample different practice settings, build a network, and defer the choice of a permanent post.

FAQ: registering with the council

“Can I register before I have found a post?”

Yes. Registration is not conditional on employment. You can register and then look for a post. But you will have to give a professional address or, failing that, a home address in the department.

“My degree is in Romanian. Is a translation enough?”

Yes. A sworn translation by an approved translator is enough. The original stays in Romanian; the sworn translation is what the council relies on.

“Do I have to wait until I finish specialty training to register?”

No. Once you have your Doctor-Medic degree you can register immediately and practise as a general practitioner. Registration is not tied to a specialty.

“What happens if I move to another department?”

You apply for a transfer to the CDOM of the new department. The procedure is simple: a request letter plus a certificate from the original CDOM confirming no disciplinary proceedings are pending.

“Can I practise without registering?”

No. Practising medicine without registration is a criminal offence (Article L.4161-1 of the Public Health Code), punishable by two years’ imprisonment and a €30,000 fine.

Summary: your registration checklist

Going further

Last verified: July 2026 — Sources: French Public Health Code (Art. L.4111-1 and following), Directive 2005/36/EC, the National Council of the Ordre des Médecins (www.conseil-national.medecin.fr), Code of Medical Ethics (Art. R.4127-1 and following).

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