Membership policies

Membership and subscription policy

Subscription year

The subscription year runs from 1 April to 31 March. The fees payable by members for any subscription year will be notified in advance via a renewal notice. Fees may be varied or waived by the Council subject to College bye laws or ordinances.

Late payments

Subscriptions are due on 1 April of the subscription year. Subscriptions which are outstanding as at 1 August will result in your membership being lapsed. In such instances, you will no longer be entitled to use the post-nominals MRCGP, FRCGP, MRCGP[INT], or FRCGP[INT] after your name.

Reinstating within two year

If you reinstate your membership within a two-year period, there is no gap in your years of membership and you will retain your original date of enrolment. This is important if you:

  • Are interested in applying for Fellowship, which requires that applicants have at least five years of continuous membership.
  • Hope to become a Life member, which requires a minimum of 40 years ‘active’ membership with the most recent 5 years prior to election to Life being continuous.

Requirements for reinstating:

  • All outstanding fees must be paid in full for the years when your membership was lapsed.
  • You must still be actively registered with the GMC.

By reinstating your membership of the RCGP you acknowledge that, you will be bound by the RCGP’s Royal Charter, Bye laws and Terms and Conditions.

Reinstating after two years

When you re-join the RCGP, you are given a new enrolment date, as if you are a new member. You will only receive credit for the current and one previous year’s membership.

Requirements for reinstating:

  • Pay the previous and/or current year membership fees in full, in order to receive membership benefits.
  • You must still be actively registered with the GMC.

By re-joining membership of the RCGP you acknowledge that, you will be bound by the RCGP’s Royal Charter, Bye laws and Terms and Conditions.

To reinstate your membership please contact the Member Services team.

Reduced membership fees

Reductions can be claimed in the following circumstances:

  • Professional income below the specified amounts (see RCGP website).
  • Retired
  • Discount for the first 2 years of full membership after GP training completion/entering GP register
  • Overseas residents
  • Training for general practice
  • Unemployment, illness and hardship
  • Career break
  • Maternity, paternity or adoption leave
  • Member of another Royal Medical College or Faculty where appraisal is conducted within the other specialism. 

Resigning

All resignations must be received by completing the Resignation Form below. Please refer to our Membership Refund and Cancellation Policy for further information.

Personal details

The RCGP maintains a private database of its members and each member is responsible for ensuring that their details are complete, accurate and current. You can update your details by logging in to the members' area of the website.

Feedback

We aim to provide all our members with the highest quality of service, tools and benefits relevant to day to day practice. If you’re unhappy with our services, products, or have a complaint, please contact us in order that we can understand the situation and do everything we can to put things right. We always welcome suggestions and feedback.

Membership refund and cancellation policy

RCGP membership is an annual subscription running for a minimum 12-month period from 1 April.

Renewal notices are sent to all members at least five weeks before the subscription period ends. The notice will advise:

  • the amount of subscription due for the following year
  • your chosen method of payment
  • the date your payment is due / will be collected (if paying by direct debit).

To view RCGP’s current fees, go to membership fees.

Cancellation of membership

If you wish to resign your annual membership, you will need to complete a Membership Resignation Form which can be found in the Membership Resignation section below this policy. 

Annual Payments

If membership is cancelled during the year after full payment is made, no refunds will be provided, unless you meet the criteria outlined in this policy.

If you do not wish to renew your membership at the end of the 12-month period, you are required to give us written notice of this at least one calendar month before the date on which your current membership expires.

Monthly and Quarterly Payments

If you pay by direct debit, we will automatically renew your membership unless you give us one calendar month written notice of your intention to cancel. If you cancel your direct debit payments midway through your membership year, you remain liable to pay us the remaining balance of your membership fee for that year, either by a one-off payment or by reinstating your direct debit. Any outstanding fees would also be payable before reinstating your membership.

If you have outstanding membership fees due to the RCGP, we reserve the right to lapse your membership and stop access to all membership benefits, including access to GP Self-test and the Trainee ePortfolio.

Refund eligibility

We will only refund your subscription:

  • for an over payment, due to personal circumstances or income changing in the first 3 months of the subscription year. You must notify us within the first 3 months of the subscription year to be eligible, no refunds will be offered after the first 3 months.
  • we agreed to the refund after an appeal.
  • if you die and your estate requests a pro rata subscription refund.
  • you can show that the payment was made in error.
  • if you are unable to work, due to ill health or hardship.

We will not refund, in part or full, annual membership fees you paid for the same year you cancelled your membership.

Exceptions

Refunds will also be made to members affected by the following: 

  • where a member’s personal circumstances change (e.g., maternity leave, career break, ill health) in the first 3 months, meaning a lower annual fee, but have already paid in advance for the higher annual fee. The refund due will be the difference between the fee paid. You must notify us within the first 3 months of the subscription year to be eligible, no refunds will be offered after the first 3 months.
  • Where an Associate in Training (AiT) suspends their membership due to maternity/parental/adoption leave or out of programme.

Changes to circumstances

Members must inform us in writing of required changes to their circumstances at the time those changes take place. For example, please notify us if you take maternity or paternity leave, retire, stop work through unemployment or undertake unpaid work abroad. Refunds will not be given for retrospective changes to personal circumstances: for example, a member who has been retired for two years.

Appeals

If a member feels they have an extenuating circumstance that justifies an exception to the refund policy, then they may submit an appeal, in writing, to Honorary Treasurer membership@rcgp.org.uk.

All requests must be submitted in writing and include supporting documentation.

If you have any further questions about RCGP membership fee refunds, then please contact us via the member helpdesk.

Membership resignation

We are sorry to hear that you are thinking of resigning your membership of the College.

The RCGP is committed to ensuring professional standards throughout general medical practice, it's only with the support of our members that we can achieve this vital work. Your College is dedicated to keeping your needs at the heart of everything we do, supporting you at every stage of your career. As a valued member of the College you have access to a wide range of events, a network of peers, free learning tools such GP Self-Test to support your CPD and training and exclusive offers on lifestyle benefits that help our members save more money. In addition, your College is engaging with policy and decision makers at all levels to keep the needs of members and General Practice at the top of the agenda.

Please note:

  • All resignations must be received in writing by completing the Membership Resignation form below.
  • If membership is cancelled during the year after full payment is made, no refunds will be provided, unless you meet the criteria outlined in our Membership Refund and Cancellation Policy.
  • Only a member can cancel their own membership (we cannot accept cancellations from other parties, e.g. practice managers, spouses, siblings, etc. unless they hold a power of attorney for you)
  • Resigning your membership is likely to affect your ability to become or continue as a GP trainer and may affect your ability to become a Life member or Fellow in the future.
  • If you resign your membership you will no longer be able to access any benefits or use MRCGP or FRCGP post-nominals.

Continuity of your membership is important, especially if you are thinking of applying for Fellowship (or nominating a colleague), considering becoming a GP trainer, and for free Life membership eligibility.

Are you sure you want to go?

We want to make sure we've done everything we can to find out why you are resigning and try and fix this before you leave. Please contact the Member Services team if you wish to discuss further before you resign.  

Did you know . . .

  • Fees are based on your income from the previous year, and we offer discounts of up to 75% if your income is below certain thresholds.
  • You can set up a Direct Debit and pay by monthly instalments, so that your fee is more manageable over the year.
  • Our membership fees are also taxed deductible by up to 40%.
  • As a member, you have access to hundreds of face-to-face and online learning resources and events, many of which are free and the rest with a discount for members, free access to an extensive eLibrary of journals and publications, a network of support from other members, free resources to look after your well-being, a voice in leading the conversation on policy issues affect GPs, and a role in shaping the future of general practice.

Still want to go?

In order to resign your membership of the College, please complete and submit this Membership Resignation form.

You will receive an email notification once your membership has been resigned.

On behalf of everyone at the RCGP, we’d like to thank you for your support. We wish you every success for the future and the good news is that you can re-join the College at any time,

By submitting this form, you understand that your membership with RCGP will end and you will no longer be able to access any of the member benefits, use the post nominals and eligibility for Fellowship or life membership may be impacted.

Can't find what you need?

If your question isn't answered on this page, we're here to help. Please contact us via our member helpdesk with any questions you may have about joining the RCGP, your current membership, membership certificates and login issues.