What did Circular DHP/2025/08 change?

The circular, dated 14 July 2025 and addressed to all healthcare professionals and facilities in Qatar, ends the old route in one paragraph: DHP decided "to discontinue the acceptance of certificates of good standing submitted via the department's official good standing email and PO Box, effective 01 August 2025". It replaces that route with PSV: "all healthcare practitioners are required to submit a primary source verification report for the good standing certificate as the approved alternative". And it closes the door on late arrivals: "any certificates of good standing sent via email or postal mail after the stated date will no longer be accepted."

In practice, the certificate is verified by your PSV provider and DHP receives the verified report. Follow the provider's instructions on whether you upload a copy or your regulator sends the certificate to the provider.

Why is the change easy to miss?

Because DHP's own guidelines have not caught up. The Guidelines for Nurses still say that at licensing the original certificate "must be sent directly from the registration authority", and the allied health guidelines say much the same. The physician guidelines already describe the new route: the certificate is verified by the PSV company and the final report uploaded. Where a guideline and a later circular disagree, follow the circular – it is the newer rule.

What should you do if you are applying now?

  1. Plan the certificate for the licensing stage. DHP's guidelines ask for it at licensing in most cases, and the QCHP good-standing policy requires it to be "not more than 6 months old" when you apply for the licence. Order it while your evaluation is in progress.
  2. Ask every regulator that covers your recent experience. If you were licensed in more than one country during the years DHP counts, you may need a certificate from each.
  3. Have it verified by one of the approved providers. Each sells a good-standing package and a single-certificate add-on; the PSV fees guide compares the prices.
  4. Do not send it to DHP directly. A certificate emailed or posted to DHP's good-standing address after 1 August 2025 will not be accepted; follow your provider's instructions instead.

What has not changed?

DHP still issues its own certificates of good standing to practitioners licensed in Qatar who move abroad, sent to the receiving regulator's official email. We have found no later rule changing the six-month age limit. And the evaluation stage still needs the main PSV report – qualifications, licence and employment – before DHP will look at your file.

For everything a good-standing certificate and the rest of your file must show, see the documents guide; for how this fits into the overall timeline, see how long PSV takes.