The Medical Board of Australia CPD Registration Standard, effective 1 January 2023, introduced a Professional Performance Framework that affects how doctors undertake CPD. These changes are to ensure you’re engaging in learning that’s relevant, effective and evidence based. To meet this standard, doctors must: 

1. have a CPD home

2. complete a Professional Development Plan (PDP) annually

3. record 50 hours of CPD annually which includes: 

   • 25 hours - Reviewing Performance (RP) and Measuring Outcomes (MO) - with five hours minimum of each type.

   • 12.5 hours - traditional learning or Educational Activities (EA), e.g., reading, lectures, podcasts, webinars, conferences, etc.

   • 12.5 hours free choice of activities – allocate these CPD hours as you wish across one, two or all three activity types

4. complete CPD activities related to the Program Level Requirements (PLRs): culturally safe practice, health inequities and professionalism and ethical practice

5. for Specialist GPs, complete a CPR course once each triennium, e.g. once in the 2023-25 triennium

6. retain records of your annual CPD activity for audit for three years after the end of each one-year cycle. 

Click here for further information. 

The Medical Board of Australia CPD Registration Standard, effective 1 January 2023, requires all registered medical practitioners to engage in CPD activities relevant to culturally safe practice, health inequities, and professionalism and ethical practice. These are not additional to, but part of your 50 hours of CPD. Each year, you must include at least one activity in each of these areas.

Your PDP includes a reflection on each of the program-level requirements that will help you to meet these. All RACGP CPD Approved activities are mapped to the relevant PLRs so you can find them through myCPD Home > Browse. If you use Quick log, simply tick the relevant PLR box.

You must complete one activity from each program level area each CPD year.

Yes, you should select activities that meet your professional scope of practice.

Further details are available on the RACGP website as well as the Australian Medical Council

The RACGP is required to report on every CPD home members' compliance with CPD hours, PDP, specialist high-level requirements and program-level requirements. 

All doctors with active medical registration with AHPRA must meet the MBA CPD Registration Standard requirements (unless exempt). Doctors who received their first Australian registration by 30 June must meet full CPD requirements for that year; those registered from 1 July are entitled to a variation. Holding an Australian registration automatically creates a CPD requirement regardless of whether you are overseas or not working — though non-working doctors complete 50 EA hours only.

For more information see Medical Board of Australia – What do I need to do?

The MBA CPD Registration Standard applies to all registered medical practitioners except: medical students; interns in accredited programs; practitioners with limited registration for no more than four weeks; practitioners granted an exemption for 6–12 months absence due to parental leave, carer leave, serious illness or other approved circumstances; and practitioners with non-practising registration.

You can apply if you have had a continuous 6–12 month leave of absence due to parental leave, carer's leave, serious illness, or other approved circumstances. Complete this online form for RACGP CPD home approval.

CPD homes can grant exemptions/variations for a maximum of three consecutive years. Practitioners should be aware of how extended absence may impact the recency of practice registration standard and re-entry to practice.

PEP participants must meet the MBA CPD requirements including a PDP and 50 hours. If on continuous leave for 6–12 months you may be entitled to an exemption. Complete this online form to apply.

Specialist trainees or registrars meet CPD requirements through their accredited training program. However, if working as a doctor outside the training program while on approved leave, you become personally responsible for annual MBA CPD requirements. Complete this application form to apply for an exemption or variation.

For more information refer to the CPD Guide for GP Training.

Newly Fellowed GPs (FRACGP and/or FRACGP-RG) have modified requirements for the year Fellowship is ratified. Those Fellowing January–June need to complete a PDP, 10 hours of any CPD type, and 10 hours of RP and/or MO. The RACGP awards 30 hours credit (15 EA, 7.5 RP, 7.5 MO). Fellowship from July onwards receives full credit for the remainder of the year.

A CPD home is an AMC-accredited organisation providing a CPD program for medical practitioners. To fulfil the MBA CPD Registration Standard you must participate in a program delivered by an accredited CPD home and advise AHPRA of your CPD home when renewing your registration each year.

As a member, the RACGP is your CPD home. Members have access to myCPD with tools to complete your PDP, self-record activities, meet PLRs, browse over 450 CPD providers, and monitor your progress. Refer to the RACGP - Member declaration for more information.

If not currently a member, express your interest here or contact Member Services on 1800 472 247 or racgp@racgp.org.au

The MBA CPD Registration Standard requires all registered doctors to complete a PDP annually. The PDP is your personal and private document — the RACGP will not review or share it. You can claim up to five hours (capped) of Reviewing Performance for completion of your PDP. The PDP covers six questions including your current situation, learning goals, and reflections on PLRs.

Educational Activities — one-way intake of information: lectures, webinars, workshops, reading, podcasts, courses.

Reviewing Performance — reflection on feedback about your work from patients, peers or self. Use our Reviewing Performance tool.

Measuring Outcomes — use of work data (audits, research, evaluations) to ensure quality results. Use our Measuring Outcomes tool.

Hybrid Activities — activities covering more than one type. The RACGP and our providers offer a broad range of hybrid activities.

Any activity relevant to your scope of practice that maintains or upskills you and is not direct delivery of patient care can be recorded as CPD. This includes day-to-day activities, practice meetings, audits, teaching, supervision, mentoring, team care planning, and peer-to-peer conversations. Use CPD in your Practice for guidance.

Work-based teaching, supervision, examination, and assessment all count. Activities like deconstructing clinical decisions, sharing ideas with colleagues, and evaluating your own performance can all contribute. You decide how to allocate hours across activity types.

Teaching, examining, lecturing, developing educational content, and research all count. Committee work, advocacy, and academic roles can also contribute. If any work is done for the RACGP (as staff or via Statement of Works), your CPD hours will be uploaded for you. Access our policies and guidelines for further information.

GPs who work for or with the RACGP (either as a staff member or via a Statement of Works) through GP Training, examining, developing education resources and/or committees will have their CPD hours uploaded automatically.

If you are involved in teaching or supervising medical students in a university setting, please refer to our CPD for GP supervisors affiliated with Australian medical schools.

Quick log is available in the myCPD website or myCPD mobile app (available on Apple and Android) to record any non-RACGP CPD Approved activity. It lets you upload supporting evidence for safekeeping. Watch this video for guidance.

No. Activities completed through the RACGP or our network of over 450 CPD providers are uploaded automatically. Do not Quick log activities accessed via myCPD Browse as this will create a duplicate record.

Preparation and participation time at meetings can be claimed. If you discussed clinical cases, practice improvements, audit results or feedback you may also include time spent reflecting and implementing changes. Refer to CPD in your Practice for guidance.

GPs who participated in their practice's accreditation receive five CPD hours per year (2.5 RP + 2.5 MO). The RACGP allocates these hours quarterly from data provided by the accreditation agencies, except for QPA which GPs must quick log.

Dual Fellows must meet the CPD standard for each specialty. Where possible, CPD can be completed within a single CPD home. Use the Dual Fellowship tool in myCPD to add your additional specialty. There are no additional requirements for doctors holding both FRACGP and FACRRM. Refer to the RACGP’s Dual Fellowships CPD guide for more detail.

For specialist GPs, the high-level requirement is completion of CPR at least once every triennium (e.g. 2023–25), already built into the myCPD dashboard. Dual fellows should check their other college's requirements on the MBA website.

Specific CPD requirements by qualification:

The Rural Procedural Grants Program (RPGP) provides financial assistance to GPs providing procedural and/or emergency medicine services in unsupervised rural and remote settings. See the RACGP website for further information.

CPD homes must report to the MBA within six months of each annual cycle and audit at least 5% of practitioners’ records annually. The RACGP's Quality Assurance Audit policy is available here.

To meet audit requirements:

• Add specific detail to Quick log titles (topic, organisation, date).
• Provide sufficient reflection on what you learned.
• Upload evidence where possible — it helps coordinators assess whether hours and CPD types claimed are justified.
• If claiming MO, indicate how patient/work data was used.

Please email cpd.national@racgp.org.au for further information or feedback. To formally dispute the outcome, use the Dispute, Reconsideration and Appeals Policy.

Email cpd.national@racgp.org.au. All enquiries are managed in confidence. Further information is in the Guide to performance management for general practitioners.

All member data is managed in accordance with the RACGP’s privacy policy.

From 2024 all doctors must complete their annual CPD requirements within the relevant calendar year — there is no longer a grace period to backdate activities. The CPD recording period closes 28 February of the following year.

No. CPD hours above the 50-hour minimum cannot be carried across into the next CPD calendar year.

Any proposed changes will be communicated at least six months in advance via the website, app and myCPD Home, monthly CPD newsletter, direct email to all members, and social media.

We’ll update the RACGP website regularly with information about the current triennium.

You can also contact the RACGP’s CPD team on 1800 716 853 or cpd.assist@racgp.org.au.