The National Medical Register (NMR) is the single, Aadhaar-linked national register of licensed allopathic (MBBS) doctors that the National Medical Commission maintains under Section 31 of the NMC Act, 2019. Registration is free and is done online through the NMR portal linked from nmc.org.in: the doctor applies with Aadhaar, an MBBS degree and the first State Medical Council registration certificate, the State Medical Council verifies the application, NMC approves it, and the doctor receives an NMR ID. As of 5 November 2026 registration is still voluntary, but NMC's draft amendment regulations of 11 August 2026 propose a unique ID for every doctor on a State Medical Register, generated centrally and kept in sync with the states.
This guide is for practising doctors, medical college faculty and the hospital HR and credentialing teams who keep doctors' registration papers in order. It covers the current legal position, the registration steps, the reasons applications stall, and how the NMR differs from the Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR) run under ABDM.
Key takeaways
- NMR is the legal register; HPR is the digital-health registry. NMR is a statutory register of licensed allopathic doctors under the NMC Act. HPR is ABDM's registry of all healthcare professionals, used to identify the doctor on digital health records. They are separate.
- Voluntary today, likely universal soon. The government told Parliament on 8 August 2025 that applying for an NMR ID is voluntary. The 11 August 2026 draft regulations would give every doctor on a State Medical Register a national UID. They were not final as of 4 November 2026.
- There is no fee. NMC clarified in September 2026 that no doctor has to pay for NMR registration, new or existing.
- Verification is the bottleneck. NMC minutes reported in June 2026 counted about 1,800 certificates issued against more than 30,000 applications pending verification.
- It already matters in medical colleges. Since September 2026 NMC has required each faculty member's NMR or State Medical Register number on the AEBAS attendance portal.
What is the National Medical Register?
Section 31 of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 tells NMC's Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB) to maintain a National Register in electronic form containing the name, address and all recognised qualifications of every licensed medical practitioner. The NMR is that register. Union Health Minister J P Nadda launched the portal on 23 August 2024, and an EMRB public notice circulated on 30 August 2024 declared it "ready for registration of RMPs with immediate effect".
The notice described the NMR as a "dynamic database for all allopathic (MBBS) registered doctors", linked to each doctor's Aadhaar, and said that doctors already on the old Indian Medical Register (IMR) "have to register again on the NMR". It started with MBBS qualifications, with additional qualifications to follow. The NMR replaces the static IMR that the former Medical Council of India compiled from state lists.
NMR vs HPR vs State Medical Register vs IMR
Doctors meet four registers and IDs, and they are easy to confuse. This is how they differ:
| State Medical Register (SMR) | Indian Medical Register (IMR) | National Medical Register (NMR) | Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | State Medical Council | Former MCI (legacy) | NMC's Ethics and Medical Registration Board | National Health Authority, under ABDM |
| Legal basis | State Medical Council Acts and NMC regulations | Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 (repealed) | Section 31, NMC Act, 2019 | ABDM policy; not a licensing register |
| Who is on it | Doctors licensed in that state | Doctors compiled from state registers | Licensed allopathic doctors, Aadhaar-verified | Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, AYUSH and other professionals |
| What it is for | Licence to practise in the state | Historic national list | National record of licence status and qualifications | Identity in digital health: signing and linking records, mapping to facilities |
| Status in 2026 | Required to practise | Being replaced by the NMR | Voluntary; draft rules propose a UID for all | Voluntary for doctors nationally; mandated in some programmes |
The 2024 NMR notice let a registrant opt to join the HPR during the NMR application, but the two IDs are not the same number and NMC has not said they will merge. A doctor working in an ABDM-integrated hospital should hold both. Our HPR registration guide for doctors covers the ABDM side.
Is NMR registration mandatory in 2026?
Not yet, but it is moving that way. Three documents set out the position:
- 8 August 2025, Lok Sabha: answering Unstarred Question 3264, the Minister of State for Health said NMC "has informed that the application for issuance of NMR ID is voluntary".
- 11 August 2026, draft amendment regulations: NMC published the draft "Registration of Medical Practitioners and Licence to Practice Medicine (Amendment) Regulations, 2026" in the Gazette (No. R.11061/05/2026-EMRB-Reg) and invited objections within 30 days. It withdrew an earlier draft of 7 April 2026.
- 4 November 2026: NMC's "What's New" page lists no final notification of the amended regulations. A news report in October 2026 quoted an NMC official expecting them by 30 November 2026; treat that as a target, not a date.
What the August 2026 draft would change
- A Unique Identification (UID) number "assigned to every medical practitioner registered under State Medical Register", valid for practice anywhere in India.
- The UID generated centrally by the EMRB once a doctor is registered in a State Medical Register, with the national and state registers kept in electronic sync.
- The NMR to show whether each licence is active or inactive, along with disciplinary details.
- New registrations made to the State Medical Council through a unified registration portal, decided within 30 days, with a UID that embeds the state code and SMR number. A doctor could practise in any state without fresh registration.
- Doctors already on the IMR or a state register without a UID would update their details on the EMRB portal once, within a period the EMRB sets, at no fee.
Two points are often misreported. The draft never uses the word "mandatory"; that is a reading of its effect. And the five-year licence validity, with an "inactive" status if renewal is not sought within three months of expiry, is not new — it is already in the 2023 registration regulations, which the draft only re-words.
How to register on the NMR: step by step
Doctors registered with a State Medical Council can apply now. The process reported by NMC and doctors who have completed it is:
- Open the NMR portal through the link on nmc.org.in. NMC's notice says the portal should be accessed only through that link.
- Authenticate with Aadhaar and the mobile number linked to it.
- Fill in your details — name, address, State Medical Council, registration number and year, MBBS college, university and year of passing.
- Upload documents: a digital copy of your MBBS degree and your first registration certificate from the State Medical Council or MCI.
- Choose whether to create or link an HPR profile, if offered.
- Submit. The application goes to your State Medical Council, which may refer it to your college or university for confirmation of the degree.
- State Medical Council verification, then NMC verification. Once both approve, the NMR ID is issued, with a digital certificate or ID card available on the portal.
The portal carries a user manual, a verification manual for councils and colleges, SOPs, a video and FAQs. NMC's contact for NMR queries is nmr@nmc.org.in.
The unified portal
On 11 September 2026 NMC clarified that a unified registration portal would generate the NMR ID automatically when a doctor registers afresh with a State Medical Council, and that existing doctors would register with Aadhaar authentication and an instant online check against the state register, with the state and national registers synchronised in real time. A report in October 2026 said the portal was expected to go live by 15 October 2026 and be fully commissioned by 31 December 2026, and that existing doctors would be included automatically only where Aadhaar is already linked to their state record. Check the NMC site for the current status before you start.
How many doctors are on the NMR?
Uptake has been slow, and the published figures measure different things:
- An RTI reply in May 2025 showed 10,411 applications in about eight months, of which 10,237 were not yet approved.
- Minutes of NMC's 17th meeting, reported on 15 June 2026, recorded "approx. 1800 certificates" issued and "more than 30,000 applications" pending verification. They blamed voluntary enrolment, data mismatches between state registers and the NMR, and technical constraints, and proposed a committee to speed things up.
- A report of 2 October 2026, quoting an unnamed NMC official, put NMR registrations at about 1.66 lakh against 13,88,185 registered allopathic doctors.
Read together, a large majority of India's doctors are not yet on the NMR, and the government is relying on the unified portal and the new regulations to close the gap.
Why NMR applications stay pending, and what to do
- Name mismatch with Aadhaar. Degrees and council certificates issued before Aadhaar often spell names differently. Councils have asked for affidavits. Correct the state record first, or keep a notarised name affidavit ready.
- Returned with queries. Doctors report files sent back several times. Answer every query in full with clear scans rather than resubmitting piecemeal.
- State Medical Council backlog. NMC has said an NMR ID is issued only after the council verifies the application. If it has been pending for weeks, write to the council's registration section with your application number.
- College or university verification. Older degrees may need confirmation from the university. A letter from the college confirming the degree speeds this up.
- Aadhaar not linked to the state record. Under the unified portal, automatic inclusion depends on it. Ask your council how to link it.
What hospitals should do about NMR
For a hospital, the NMR is a credentialing question. A doctor's licence status will sit in one national place, with active or inactive status visible, and NMC already uses NMR or SMR numbers in medical-college attendance. Sensible steps now:
- Keep three numbers for every doctor: State Medical Council registration number, NMR ID once issued, and HPR ID.
- Check licence validity at joining and at renewal, and record the expiry date in the doctor's file.
- Print the registration number on prescriptions, discharge summaries and certificates. NMC's professional conduct rules expect it, and insurers check it.
- Map doctors to your facility on HPR so ABHA-linked records carry the right practitioner. Our HPR guide for pharmacists and nurses covers the rest of your clinical staff.
- Teaching hospitals: make sure every faculty member's NMR or SMR number is on AEBAS, or daily attendance is rejected. See the NMC ABDM-HMIS mandate for medical colleges.
In Healthixio, each doctor's council registration number is stored in the doctor master and printed with the doctor's name and degree on prescriptions and other printed documents, so the number is never typed by hand on a document that matters. See the OPD module and ABDM integration for how records are linked to the treating doctor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is NMR registration mandatory for doctors?
Not as of 5 November 2026. The government told Parliament in August 2025 that it is voluntary. NMC's draft amendment regulations of 11 August 2026 would give every doctor on a State Medical Register a national UID, but they had not been finalised by 4 November 2026.
Is there a fee for NMR registration?
No. NMC clarified on 11 September 2026 that no fee is payable for NMR registration by any registered medical practitioner, new or existing. The draft regulations also make the one-time update for existing doctors free.
What documents are needed for NMR registration?
Aadhaar (with its linked mobile number), a digital copy of the MBBS degree and the first registration certificate from the State Medical Council or MCI. Keep your council registration number and year at hand.
Is the NMR ID the same as the HPR ID?
No. The NMR ID comes from NMC's statutory register of licensed doctors. The HPR ID comes from ABDM's Healthcare Professionals Registry and identifies a professional on digital health records. The NMR application has let doctors opt into HPR, but the two are separate identifiers.
Do doctors on the old IMR have to register again?
NMC's 2024 notice said doctors on the IMR "have to register again on the NMR". The 2026 draft would have existing doctors update their details once on the EMRB portal, free, within a period the EMRB sets. If your Aadhaar is linked to your state record, the unified portal may include you automatically.
Why is my NMR application still pending?
Most pending applications are waiting for State Medical Council verification, often because of a name mismatch with Aadhaar or a query on the degree. Reply to every query with clear documents and follow up with the council's registration section.
Will my licence need renewal every five years?
The five-year validity and renewal rule is already in NMC's 2023 registration regulations. A licence turns inactive if renewal is not sought within three months of expiry. The 2026 draft keeps this and would show active or inactive status on the NMR.
Does NMR apply to AYUSH or dental practitioners?
No. The NMR covers allopathic practitioners registered under NMC. AYUSH practitioners are registered through NCISM and NCH, and dentists through the Dental Council. All of them can join ABDM's HPR.
Keep your doctors' registrations and records in one place
Healthixio keeps each doctor's registration number with their profile and prints it on every prescription and document, and links records to ABHA through ABDM. Book a demo or browse the product tour.
Sources
- NMC draft Registration of Medical Practitioners and Licence to Practice Medicine (Amendment) Regulations, 2026, Gazette dated 11 August 2026: nmc.org.in
- Lok Sabha Unstarred Question 3264, 8 August 2025: eparlib.sansad.in
- NMC clarification on no NMR fee and the unified portal, reported 11 September 2026: Medical Dialogues
- NMC 17th meeting minutes on NMR certificates and pending applications, reported 15 June 2026: Medical Dialogues
- NMR registration figures and unified portal timeline, 2 October 2026: ThePrint
- NMC AEBAS memorandum requiring NMR/SMR numbers, October 2026: nmc.org.in
Last reviewed 5 November 2026. The NMR rules are changing; check nmc.org.in for the final regulations.