Guides Turkish → English
Turkish nurses and midwives: NMC registration documents
Nurses and midwives trained in Türkiye register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council through its overseas route: an eligibility check, English, a computer-based test, an identity check with documents, and an OSCE in the UK. This guide sets out the order and the NMC’s wording on translations.
The overseas route in sequence
The NMC registers nurses, midwives and nursing associates trained outside the UK through a defined process. You first complete an online eligibility and qualification self-assessment; the NMC then confirms whether your training is comparable and which test of competence applies. You demonstrate English (IELTS or OET at the NMC’s required scores, or another route the NMC accepts), pass the computer-based test (CBT), which can be taken in Türkiye, and then supply documents and pass an identity check. The final stage, the objective structured clinical examination (OSCE), is taken at a UK test centre, usually after a UK employer has recruited you and sponsored the Health and Care visa. The NMC’s pages set the detail and the fees, and they are revised; this guide is the order of the Turkish paperwork within that process. The NMC page shows the translation format.
What the NMC says about translated documents
In its requirements for the identity check on the overseas route, the NMC lists “Certified English Translations (from a certified translator)” for documents not in English. It does not publish a list of translators or a form of words beyond that. Our certification on each page states that the translation is a true and accurate translation of the original document, gives the date, and carries the signatory’s name and signature, our stamp, and the company’s contact details and registry number, which is what makes the translation certified in the sense a UK body uses. The NMC’s document set is checked against the originals at the identity check, so every translation must correspond page for page to the document you present.
Turkish documents for the NMC file
| Document | Turkish name | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Nursing or midwifery qualification | Hemşirelik / ebelik lisans diploması (or the earlier sağlık meslek lisesi or önlisans qualification where the NMC accepts it) | Full translation; the NMC assesses comparability from it. Details |
| Transcript | Not dökümü | Shows theory and practice hours; translated in full. Details |
| Registration and good standing | Sağlık Bakanlığı registration record; good-standing letter from the ministry or the professional body the NMC names | Must be recent; the NMC may contact the issuer |
| Employment references | Çalışma belgesi, hospital letters | Cover the recent practice period the NMC asks about. Details |
| Identity | Passport; name-change decision if applicable | Data page bilingual; decision translated |
| Criminal record | Adli sicil kaydı | Required by employers and for the visa in a health occupation code; the NMC has its own character declaration. Details |
If your school or its qualification title has changed since you graduated, ask the school for a letter confirming the change, because the NMC matches the diploma to its records of Turkish institutions. Where the diploma bears a maiden name, include the marriage record or a translator’s note so that the identity check can link the documents to your passport.
Timing and money
The NMC charges an evaluation fee at the start and a registration fee at the end, with test fees for the CBT and OSCE paid separately; all are on its site and revised periodically. English test results have validity periods and the good-standing letter is expected to be recent, so obtain both with the timetable in mind. Many Turkish nurses are recruited by NHS trusts or agencies that fund the tests and the visa; ask what the employer pays for and whether it also covers translations. Our translation of a diploma, a transcript, a good-standing letter and two references comes to about £60–110 in one to two working days; the criminal record certificate with e-apostille adds £10–20. No UK VAT is charged.
Where files are delayed
- A transcript that does not show clinical hours, so the NMC cannot complete the comparability assessment; ask the school for the version with hours.
- A good-standing letter obtained early and expired by the identity check.
- References covering the wrong period, or from a manager who cannot be contacted.
- A name on the diploma with a maiden surname and no translated marriage record or note to link it to the passport.
- Translations done by a colleague or relative rather than a certified translator.
After registration
Once the OSCE is passed and the NMC registers you, the employer completes its checks and you begin work under supervision arrangements it sets. Registration is renewed annually and revalidated on a cycle; neither involves Turkish documents. The visa side is covered in our Skilled Worker guide. Whether your Turkish training is comparable, and which test applies, is decided by the NMC; we prepare the documents to its standard and do not assess eligibility.
Step by step
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Complete the NMC eligibility self-assessment
Register on the NMC’s online portal, complete the self-assessment of your qualification and training, and pay the evaluation fee. The NMC confirms whether your Turkish training is comparable and which test of competence you take. Order a fresh transcript showing theory and clinical hours from your school now, since it takes time.
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Pass the English test
Book IELTS Academic or OET and achieve the NMC’s required scores, checking the current combining rules and validity periods on the NMC site. Book early, because test dates in Türkiye fill up, and keep the test report form, since both the NMC and the visa application refer to its number. The certificate is in English and needs no translation.
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Sit the computer-based test
Book the CBT at a test centre; it is available in Türkiye. Pass results are recorded on your NMC account. Around this point most nurses secure a UK employer, who will sponsor the visa and often fund the OSCE.
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Gather and translate the documents
Obtain the diploma, the hours-bearing transcript, the good-standing letter from the issuer the NMC names for Türkiye, and references covering the recent practice period. Send scans to us; we translate each in full, certify every page with our stamp, signature, date and contact details, and return PDFs in one to two working days.
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Submit documents and complete the ID check
Upload the original-language documents with the certified translations to your NMC account and complete the identity check as instructed, presenting the passport and originals. Answer the character and health declarations fully. The NMC may contact the Turkish issuer of the good-standing letter.
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Take the OSCE in the UK and register
Travel on the sponsored visa, sit the OSCE at a UK test centre within the NMC’s time limit, and on passing pay the registration fee. Your employer’s checks, including the translated adli sicil kaydı, run alongside. Keep the translations; revalidation does not need them, but a change of employer may.
Frequently asked questions
Does the NMC accept a translation certified by my hospital’s translator?
The NMC asks for certified translations from a certified translator, and it checks documents at the identity stage. A translation from an independent translation company with a stamp, signature and contact details is what the requirement describes.
My nursing qualification is from a sağlık meslek lisesi. Is it accepted?
Comparability is the NMC’s decision through the self-assessment. We translate whatever qualification you hold, in full, so the NMC can assess it.
Who issues the good-standing letter in Türkiye?
Check the NMC’s current country guidance for the issuer it accepts for Türkiye and the validity period. Obtain it late in the process so it is current at the identity check.
Do I need the diploma apostilled?
The NMC’s requirement is a certified translation, not an apostille. Employers and the visa do not require one either.