High Court halts registration exams for 792 newly trained doctors

The Human Rights Division of the High Court in Accra has intervened in a dispute between the Medical and Dental Council (MDC) and hundreds of newly trained doctors, temporarily stopping a mandatory registration examination scheduled for October 22, 2026.

The order affects 792 medical graduates who were required to sit the Stage 1 Common Registration Examination (CRE) before obtaining provisional registration to begin their housemanship.

The court granted an interim injunction following legal action initiated by the Federation of Ghana Medical Students’ Associations (FGMSA) and the affected graduates.

The order restrains the MDC, the Attorney-General and the Ministry of Health from enforcing the examination requirement pending further proceedings.

Medical students challenge examination requirement

The legal dispute arose over the introduction and implementation of the Common Registration Examination as a condition for newly trained doctors to obtain provisional registration.

The affected graduates, acting through FGMSA, challenged the requirement before the Human Rights Court in Accra.

According to the federation, the decision to pursue legal action followed unsuccessful engagements with the relevant authorities over concerns surrounding the examination.

The students subsequently sought the court's intervention to prevent the examination from taking place while the legal issues surrounding its implementation were considered.

The court's interim order, issued ahead of the scheduled examination, temporarily prevents the Council from enforcing the disputed requirement against the affected graduates.

Federation welcomes court intervention

In a statement issued on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, FGMSA confirmed the development and called on the parties involved to comply with the court's directive.

The federation maintained that regulatory decisions affecting the academic and professional progression of medical and dental graduates must be consistent with the law and principles of fairness and due process.

It also expressed appreciation to its legal representatives, the affected graduating classes and members of the medical and dental student community for their support during the legal challenge.

FGMSA indicated that further information on the proceedings would be communicated through its official channels.

Examination requirement remains before the court

The interim injunction does not amount to a final judicial determination of the legality of the Common Registration Examination.

Rather, it provides temporary relief to the affected graduates while the court considers their application for an interlocutory injunction and the substantive issues raised in the action.

The decision also does not automatically confer provisional registration on the graduates or permanently abolish the examination requirement.

For now, the MDC and the other respondents are restrained from enforcing the disputed requirement against the affected students in accordance with the court's order.