MDCN Increases Registration Fee for Foreign-Trained Medical Graduates From ₦265,000 to ₦415,000 Without Giving Reason

MDCN Increases Registration Fee for Foreign-Trained Medical Graduates From ₦265,000 to ₦415,000 Without Giving Reason

Foreign-trained Nigerian medical graduates have raised concerns after the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) unexpectedly increased its registration fee for newly qualified doctors without giving any reason.

The affected graduates, who recently passed the MDCN’s June qualifying examination and are preparing for their induction, said they initially received an email on July 10 directing them to pay ₦265,000 for registration and induction.

One of the graduates, Betty Joan (name withheld), who studied medicine in Russia, said many candidates had already begun making financial plans based on the stated amount.

“We had already started planning around that amount,” Joan said.

However, the following day, the council sent another email instructing candidates to disregard the earlier notice and instead pay ₦415,000, representing a ₦150,000 increase.

“Then all of a sudden they changed the mail yesterday and said we should pay ₦415,000 for the fees now. They just told us to ignore the first mail,” she said.

Joan described the development as unfair, saying the abrupt increase came without any explanation after candidates had already made financial arrangements “It isn’t fair,” she added.

According to report when contacted, an official at the MDCN Registrar’s Office declined to comment over the phone, saying:

“This cannot be discussed over the phone. You can send an email to us or submit a document to that effect at the council’s headquarters.”

An enquiry sent to the council by the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) had not received a response as of the time the report was published.