Short answer: You can book the DHA exam once you hold a Sheryan account and an eligibility ID, but DHA’s Professional Qualification Requirements decide whether you qualify for a title. A Registered Nurse needs a nursing bachelor’s degree, a General Practitioner needs an internship plus two years of experience, and a pharmacist needs two years after qualifying.
Who is eligible to sit the DHA exam?
There is no single rule for everyone, because the exam is one step in a longer process. DHA’s Manual for Licensing Healthcare Professionals lists the steps in order: open a Sheryan account and complete the self-assessment, meet the qualification requirements, receive a positive primary source verification, and pass the assessment (a computer-based test or an oral assessment) where one is required.
So “eligible” has two parts. You must meet the written requirements for your title, which are in a DHA document called the Unified Healthcare Professional Qualification Requirements, shortened to PQR. Then DHA must accept your file, which gives you the eligibility ID that Prometric asks for when you book. Meddex is independent and is not connected to the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) or Prometric.
Key facts and where they come from
These points are official. Each names the document and the date we read it.
- Licence steps in order: Sheryan account and self-assessment, meet the PQR, positive primary source verification, then the assessment if required. Source: Licensing Manual, section 5.6, read 15 October 2026.
- Physicians: MBBS or equivalent plus one year of internship; General Practitioner also needs two years of clinical experience after internship. Source: PQR 4.1.4 and table 5, read 16 October 2026.
- Dentists: BDS, DMD, DDS or equivalent plus one year of internship; General Dentist also needs two years of clinical experience. Source: PQR 9.1 and table 10, read 16 October 2026.
- Pharmacists: a BSc in Pharmacy or a Doctor of Pharmacy, plus two years of experience after qualifying in the related field. Experience with pharmaceutical companies or as a sales representative is not accepted. Source: PQR table 18.27, read 16 October 2026.
- Registered Nurse: a bachelor’s degree in nursing of at least three years full time, with no experience required, subject to the gap of practice rules. Assistant Nurse: a diploma of not less than 18 months. Source: PQR 13.1.4 and table 14, read 16 October 2026.
- All DHA exams are conducted in English. Source: PQR 1.5.3.1, read 15 October 2026.
What does each profession need before it can book?
Read the list above as a minimum for the main general titles. Specialist and consultant titles, and the many allied health titles, have their own rows in the PQR, and we have not summarised them here.
Nurses are the simplest case on paper: a three-year bachelor’s degree is enough for a Registered Nurse with no experience requirement, although a long break in practice changes that. Our guide on the career break and gap of practice rules explains how. Doctors and dentists need the internship year in all cases, and the general titles add two years of experience. Pharmacists need two years, and the PQR says what kind does not count.
What else must be true before you can sit the exam?
The qualification is only the start. The PQR also says you must hold a valid licence or registration in your home country, or in the country where you last worked (PQR 1.3.1). DHA then verifies your qualification, experience and licence through a third-party agency, which the Sheryan FAQ names as DataFlow. See DataFlow primary source verification explained for what it checks.
You will also need a certificate of good standing. The good standing certificate guide sets out what DHA says about who issues it and how recent it must be.
What if your qualification is not on the list?
The Sheryan FAQ says the PQR is updated every two to three years, and that a qualification that is not listed can be reviewed by the PQR committee, which may select the closest title. That means a missing entry is not always a refusal, but nobody outside DHA can tell you the outcome in advance. Ask through your Sheryan account rather than relying on a forum answer.
What we do not know
Where to check and what to read next
Read the PQR row for your title on the Sheryan site, and read it again before you pay for anything. Then use the DHA licensing checklist to see the steps in order, and the eligibility checker to find which rules apply to you. If you are an Indian-trained clinician, DHA licence from India adds the home-council steps.
Frequently asked questions
This article is general educational guidance, not official advice. Exam rules, fees and timelines are set by the Dubai Health Authority and the test provider and can change, so always confirm the latest details on their official channels. Review of Meddex content by named, licensed clinicians is not complete yet. See how we write and check our content.
Last updated .