PMDC restores NLE exam, final approval expected July 27th

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) on Monday decided to restore National Licensing Examination (NLE) as mandatory exam for all MBBS and BDS graduates of public and private medical and dental colleges, with a final approval expected on July 27^th.

After the approval comes, all the MBBS graduates will be required to obtain a license for clinical practice in Pakistan.

PMDC President Prof Dr Rizwan Taj regretted the removal of the NLE as ‘unfortunate’ while expressing at a session conducted by Senate Standing Committee on Health Services on Monday. He said its removing was not aligning with the international regulatory standards.

Once it is reintroduced, he informed the Committee, no medical and dental graduates will be permitted to formally practice medicine or dentistry if they are without license in their field concerned.

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“No graduate will be allowed to practice without passing the NLE once it is reintroduced.”

The meeting also addressed in details the upcoming Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) to be conducted on Oct 5, 2025 and admissions to all colleges across Pakistan closed by Feb 2026. During the session, the following officials participated: PTI senator Humayun Mohmand, JUI-F senator Atta-ur-Rehman, Coalition government health minister Mustafa Kamal, senator Irfan Siddiqui, Health Services Academy Vice Chancellor Prof. Shahzad Ali Khan, PMDC President Prof Dr Rizwan Taj and committee chairman Amir Waliuddin.

MDCAT test updates:

The following decisions were made for the MDCAT-2025 in accordance with a notification issued by the PMDC registrar office on June 2025:

• All candidates will be allowed to set in the test centre only in the region where from their domiciles hail.
• Candidates only staying in Riyadh, the Saudi Arabia capital, will have the opportunity to appear for the test there in the international venue.
• 65 per cent scores in F.Sc/ intermediate (Pre-Medical) or equivalent is mandatory for admission to MBBS/BDS colleges in the country w.e.f. session 2025-26
• The Curriculum for the test is placed on the PMD&DC website: www.pmdc.pk