Section 10A(1) of the Nurses Registration Ordinance (“the Ordinance”) (Cap. 164, Laws of Hong Kong) stipulates that “a registered nurse must not practise as a registered nurse in Hong Kong unless he is the holder of a practising certificate which is then in force issued under this section”. Section 16A(1) of the Ordinance also stipulates that “an enrolled nurse must not practise as an enrolled nurse in Hong Kong unless he is the holder of a practising certificate which is then in force issued under this section”.
An applicant who has successfully obtained a certificate of registration / enrolment from the Nursing Council of Hong Kong (“the Council”) is required to apply for a practising certificate from the Council before he/she may practise in Hong Kong. The application should be accompanied by the prescribed fee for the issue of a practising certificate.
A practising certificate is valid for a period not exceeding 3 years and ending on 31 December. Nurses are obligated to renew their practising certificates before the due date if they intend to continue to practise nursing in Hong Kong.
Nurses whose practising certificates are due for renewal are invited to renew their practising certificates and informed of the application procedures by the Central Registration Office under the Department of Health in around September every year. The renewal application may be made via the online platform with payment of the prescribed fee or by settling the prescribed fee using General Demand Note.
Nurses who opt to apply online and have an “iAM Smart+” account with digital signing function may choose to receive an electronic version of the practising certificate (“e-practising certificate”) in Portable Document Format (“PDF”) through their designated email addresses. They may also indicate their preference to obtain a practising certificate in paper form (“paper practising certificate”) in addition to the e-practising certificate when completing the electronic application form.
Nurses who do not have an “iAM Smart+” account can also apply for renewal of their practising certificates and settle the prescribed fee via the online platform. However, in the absence of a digital signature for verifying their identity, only paper practising certificate will be issued to them by registered post. Likewise, nurses who choose to apply for renewal and settle the prescribed fee using General Demand Note will only receive paper practising certificates.
Payment of the prescribed fee may be made by any of the following ways:-
For details, please refer to the website of the Treasury. Nurses can check the payment status of the demand notes via the Treasury Hotline (at 2845 8866) or the website of the Treasury.
A nurse shall be deemed to have obtained the certificate when he/she has duly applied and paid the prescribed fee.
Sections 7(3) and 13(3) of the Ordinance provide that the Council may order the removal from the register of nurses (“the register”) / roll of enrolled nurses (“the roll”) of the name of any person who has failed to obtain a practising certificate within 6 months after the date of the person’s registration / enrolment or after the expiry date of the last practising certificate issued to the person. In this connection, if a nurse does not apply for renewal of practising certificate, the Council may proceed with the removal of his/her name from the register / roll without further notice.
If a person’s name is removed from the register / roll, he/she will cease to be a registered / an enrolled nurse. It is a criminal offence under sections 24(1)(a) and 24(1)(c) of the Ordinance if a person, who is not a duly registered nurse / an enrolled nurse, wilfully pretends to be or takes or uses the name or title of registered nurse / an enrolled nurse, either alone or in combination with any other words or letters, or any name, title, addition, description, uniform, or badge, implying that he/she is registered / enrolled.
E-practising certificates have the same legal standing as paper practising certificates. For verification purpose, the e-practising certificate carries a digital signature and an encrypted QR code. Scanning the QR code will direct the enquirer to the website of the Council where he/she may verify the contents of the e-practising certificate (click here for a specimen e-practising certificate and the verification information to be shown).