Thinking of making the move to Australia as a GP?
One essential part of the transition is understanding how Continuing Professional Development works under the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP). While the Australian system shares similarities with the UK’s, some important changes make it worth a closer look.
Annual CPD Requirements (RACGP)
CPD in Australia operates on a calendar-year basis—trienniums are out. All practising GPs (full-time or part-time) must complete:
50 hours of CPD per year, broken down into:
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25 hours: Performance Review & Outcome Measurement
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12.5 hours: Educational Activities
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12.5 hours: Free choice.
Additional requirements include PDP and CPR training required every 3 years. They specify mandatory topics must include cultural safety, health equity and professionalism.
What Counts as CPD?
Similarly to the UK, CPD can include seminars and webinars, online courses, clinical education events, case-based discussions clinical audits and QIPs
How GPs Achieve Their CPD Hours
You’re probably already doing a lot that counts toward your 50 hours. Common sources include, reading clinical updates and discussing cases with peers, attending workshops and conferences, conducting audits or peer reviews within your practice
RACGP CPD Home
Every GP must select a CPD Home—most choose RACGP.
It helps you:
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Create and manage your Professional Development Plan
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Track your hours via myCPD
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Automatically log accredited activities
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Access quality CPD resources
For GPs on the PEP Specialist Pathway
As part of your application, you must evidence 50 hours of CPD prior to lodging your application and then continue meeting the 50 hours/year requirement under RACGP’s myCPD system
For GPs on AHPRA’s Expedited Specialist Pathway
CPD evidence is not required for application if you meet the recency of practice requirements . Once practising in Australia, all GPs must meet AHPRA’s CPD requirements, including 50 hours per year and CPD Home affiliation.
Australia’s CPD framework is structured yet flexible. With support from RACGP and the ability to count much of your everyday learning, integrating into the system is straightforward.
Sources:
- Medical Board of Australia – Expedited Specialist pathway medicalboard.gov.au
- RACGP CPD – Frequently Asked Questions for GPs on the new CPD standard racgp.org.au
