Professional registration · 5 min read
Nurse and midwife registration in Uganda: how to apply on the UNMC portal
Sign up on the Uganda Nurses and Midwives Council portal, apply as a new entrant, scan documents in the right format and track your application, with the document list for each route.
Nurses and midwives in Uganda register with the Uganda Nurses and Midwives Council (UNMC) and renew their practising licence through it. The Council now handles registration, licence renewal and payments online. This guide follows the UNMC's own instructions for a first registration and lists the documents it asks for on each route.
What the UNMC portal does
In a public notice of 17 May 2023 the UNMC said it had stopped physical registration and renewal: every cadre, from certificate to PhD, and private practice applies online. The Council's system covers professional registration, renewal of practising licences, registration and renewal of private practice facilities, fee payment by mobile money and direct transfer, tracking of applications and instant printing of provisional licences. It is at registration.unmc.ug and works on a phone or computer with a browser such as Chrome, Safari, Opera or Firefox.
Sign up and log in
If you are new, click signup and enter your name, email, phone number, date of birth, password and gender. Each time you log in, the system sends a one time code to your phone and email; type it in and click submit to open your dashboard. A new code is sent every time, so keep the phone number and email you registered with.
Apply as a new entrant, step by step
- On the dashboard, choose Professional Registration.
- If this is your first registration with the Council, choose new entrant.
- Pick your profession, the institution you attended and your qualification, then continue.
- Choose your nationality and where you trained: Locally Trained or Foreign Trained.
- Enter your personal details, your address and an emergency contact.
- Enter your NSIN, the start date of your training and your qualification date.
- Upload your documents.
- Check the summary carefully, tick the declaration and click submit.
You return to the dashboard, where a notification shows that your application is under review. The 2023 notice says the UNMC team reviews and approves an application in not less than three days after the documents are uploaded.
Scan documents the way the portal wants
The UNMC asks for authentic, well scanned original documents. Its registration guide asks for each required document as a separate PDF file, except the passport photo. The 2023 notice sets the photo: coloured, 50 x 55 mm, decent clothing on a white background, as a JPEG, JPG or PNG file, so get a proper studio photo rather than a selfie.
The same notice lists three checks that prevent delays: your testimonial or transcript must show your final semester results, a practising licence you present must be valid (renew it first if it has expired), and if you sat the UNMEB exam more than once in the final semester, upload all the examination cards together as one document. Bachelor's graduates must also upload proof that they completed their internship.
Which documents for your route
The UNMC publishes a different list for each route. In summary:
- Enrolment: O level ID and results slip, UCE certificate, nursing or midwifery school ID, testimonial results from the school, UNMEB examination card, UNMEB certificate (or a school testimonial if you do not have the certificate yet), the attachment report if you were attached, and the photo.
- Registration, direct entry: the same documents with A level as well, meaning O and A level IDs and results slips and the UCE and UACE certificates.
- Registration, extension: the enrolment documents, UACE where applicable, plus your certificate of enrolment or registration and your practising licence.
- Bachelor's degree, direct: UCE results slip and certificate, UACE certificate, university transcript and certificate, letter of completion and the photo. Extension degree holders add the enrolment certificate where appropriate, registration certificate and practising licence.
- Master's and PhD holders: the O and A level documents, enrolment and registration certificates and practising licences, university transcripts and certificates, and the photo.
Renew your licence on time
Licence renewal runs through the same portal. For practitioners, the UNMC lists the UCE results slip and certificate, UACE documents where appropriate, registration certificates, the previous practising licence and a passport photo. Employers check: the Health Service Commission's eRecruitment System asks applicants for their licence number and council registration number and images of both documents.
Registration is not a job offer
Registration and a licence let you practise; they do not place you in a job. Public posts are filled through the Health Service Commission and district and city service commissions, and private hospitals and NGOs recruit on their own. Never pay anyone who offers to arrange registration or a posting for you outside the official portal.
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Frequently asked questions
Where do I register as a nurse or midwife in Uganda?
On the Uganda Nurses and Midwives Council portal at registration.unmc.ug. Sign up, choose Professional Registration and, for a first registration, new entrant.
What format should my documents be?
Each required document as a separate PDF, and the passport photo as a coloured JPEG, JPG or PNG, 50 x 55 mm, on a white background, as the UNMC's guide and its 2023 notice describe.
I do not have my UNMEB certificate yet. Can I still apply?
The UNMC lists a testimonial from your nursing school as an alternative for applicants who do not have the UNMEB certificate yet.
How do I know my application was received?
After you submit, the dashboard shows a notification that your application is under review, and you can track its status in the portal. The UNMC's 2023 notice says review and approval take not less than three days.
Does registration guarantee me a job?
No. Registration and a practising licence allow you to practise. You still apply for posts through the Health Service Commission, district service commissions or private employers.