If you are new to Northern Ireland and you do not currently have a Health & Social Care (HSC) number you need to first register with a Doctor/General Practice. As part of this process your entitlement to access services will be assessed.
Only persons who are ‘ordinarily resident’ or ‘eligible visitors’ can register with a GP in NI. To satisfy this test you need to be lawfully residing for a settled purpose.
Most people who were born here, went to school here and continue to live and work here are considered ‘ordinarily resident’. People who come to Northern Ireland to live and work, when they are lawfully here, are considered ‘ordinarily resident’
Patient Guide to Entitlement and Lawfulness
The Patient Guide to Entitlement and Lawfulness is available to download using the link below
Patient Document Guide (pdf)
If you have any additional accessibility needs with this document, please contact the team
Access & Entitlement to NHS Services
In order to register with a doctor and obtain a medical card you need to fill in an application form. This form is called an HSCR-1, you can download in a range of languages below.
The form should be presented to a doctor of your choice in the area in which you reside. This form is also available in any doctors’ surgery.
| HSCR-1 (English) | |
| HSCR-1 (Arabic) | |
| HSCR-1 (Bulgarian) | |
| HSCR-1 (Hungarian) | |
| HSCR-1 (Lithuanian) | |
| HSCR-1 (Mandarin) | |
| HSCR-1 (Polish) | |
| HSCR-1 (Portuguese) | |
| HSCR-1 (Romanian) | |
| HSCR-1 (Slovak) | |
| HSCR-1 (Tetum) |