PLAB 1 in 2027: New Venues, Dates and Fees in Rupees

PLAB 1 in 2027 will not be held in Chennai, Hyderabad or Kolkata, and no overseas city will host the February 2027 sitting. The General Medical Council (GMC) keeps Bangalore, Mumbai and New Delhi for the May, August and November 2027 sittings. The exam stays at 180 questions in three hours, and the fee is GBP 283 from 1 April 2026.

Key takeaways on PLAB 1 in 2027

• Six overseas venues stop running PLAB 1 from 2027: Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Dhaka, Alexandria and Accra. The GMC says international demand has fallen after a period of fast growth, so it has cut the venues with the lowest bookings.

• The February 2027 sitting (exam on 11 February, results by 25 March 2027) takes place only in the UK and the EU. Indian candidates who want an Indian venue should book May, August or November 2027 instead.

• Bangalore, Mumbai and New Delhi stay on the venue list, along with Colombo, Dubai, Riyadh, Karachi, Islamabad and other cities, so an Indian graduate still has three home venues for the later 2027 sittings.

• If your IELTS or OET expires between 1 February and 31 May 2027 and you had planned a February sitting abroad, the GMC may extend your English evidence so you can sit in May 2027. You must email plab@gmc-uk.org by 19 March 2027.

• PLAB 1 costs GBP 283 (about Rs. 36,000) and PLAB 2 costs GBP 1,036 (about Rs. 1.32 lakh) from 1 April 2026. In 2025, 62.2 per cent of candidates passed PLAB 1, down from 70.5 per cent in 2024.

What is PLAB 1 and who sits it in 2027?

PLAB stands for Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board. It is the two part test that a doctor with a medical degree from outside the UK, the EU and a few other places passes to register with the GMC and work in the UK. PLAB 1 is the written part. PLAB 2 is the practical part, held only in Manchester.

The GMC describes PLAB 1 as an applied knowledge test of 180 single best answer questions in three hours. Each question gives a short patient scenario and five options. It covers the conditions a doctor in the second year of the UK Foundation Programme would see, including emergencies and long term conditions managed by a family doctor. Questions follow current UK practice, not the practice of the country where you trained.

For an Indian MBBS graduate, PLAB sits alongside the exam you need at home. The FMGE is the exam for practising in India after a foreign medical degree, and a graduate from India who wants the UK route needs PLAB, not FMGE. Our guide to working in the UK after MBBS walks through the full journey from registration to a first NHS job, and this post covers the part of it that changes in 2027.

PLAB 1 2027 at a glance

Rupee figures use the European Central Bank reference rates of 5 November 2026 (EUR 1 = GBP 0.834 and EUR 1 = Rs. 106.04, so GBP 1 is about Rs. 127). Last checked 6 November 2026.

Which PLAB 1 venues are closing in 2027 and which stay open?

The GMC's page on changes to PLAB 1 in 2027 names six venues that will no longer run the exam: Dhaka, Alexandria, Accra, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata. Three of the six are in India.

The GMC's venue list on its when and where can I take PLAB 1 page still shows six Indian cities for 2026. From 2027 the picture looks like this.

Overseas venues are run by the British Council, which sends the venue address directly to candidates. UK and EU venues are run by the GMC's supplier VICTVS, which confirms the address within seven days of the exam. If you have booked and have not heard about the venue one week before the date, contact the office listed on the GMC page for your city.

The GMC says it reviews venues every year against booking data and that any decision for 2028 will depend on demand. A student in Chennai or Hyderabad should plan for Bangalore from now on rather than wait for the city to return.

When are the PLAB 1 exam and result dates for 2027?

The GMC publishes exam and result dates on its PLAB 1 results page. Results come six weeks after the exam, by 4 pm UK time, in the My Tests section of GMC Online. The dates confirmed so far are below. The May, August and November 2027 dates appear in the GMC Online booking system before they appear on the public page, so check your account once you have verified English evidence.

Bookings close between two and six weeks before the test date depending on the venue, so a May 2027 seat in Bangalore is realistically booked by March or early April 2027.

Who is eligible to book PLAB 1 in 2027?

The GMC's booking page for PLAB 1 sets two conditions. First, you need an acceptable overseas primary medical qualification. If you have not graduated yet, the GMC needs confirmation that you have passed your final exams and met every other requirement for the degree. The GMC checks degrees against its own acceptable overseas qualifications guide, and the starting point is that your medical school is listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS).

Second, you need verified evidence of English. For almost every Indian graduate that means IELTS or OET. The GMC's own 2022 report on pass rates found that candidates with IELTS or OET pass PLAB 1 at the first attempt more often than those who use other evidence, and it recommends taking one of the two even if you could qualify another way.

An MBBS from India qualifies, and so does a six year medicine degree from a European university listed in WDOMS. Students in Europe can sit PLAB 1 in Dublin or Madrid without leaving the Schengen area or Ireland, which is why those two EU venues matter. Our post on NHS training after MBBS in Europe covers that route in detail.

Which English test scores does the GMC accept for PLAB 1?

The GMC IELTS page adds one useful rule. If you miss the score in one part, the GMC accepts an IELTS One Skill Retake for that part, as long as the full test was on computer and the retake is within 60 days. You enter the test report form number in GMC Online under My Tests, and verification takes up to two working days. The GMC OET page asks you to select the General Medical Council as the recognising organisation in your OET account so scores can be verified without delay.

What happens if your English evidence expires because February 2027 moved?

This is the rule that catches people. Your IELTS or OET must be valid on the day of the exam. A candidate whose certificate runs out in March 2027 and who had planned to sit in Chennai in February now has no Indian venue in time.

The GMC gives three ways out on its 2027 changes page. You can sit the November 2026 exam at your preferred international venue, which for most readers of this post is now too late to book. You can sit the February 2027 exam in a UK or EU city such as Dublin or London, which means a visa and a flight. Or, if your English evidence expires between 1 February and 31 May 2027, you can email plab@gmc-uk.org and ask the GMC to extend its validity so you can sit in May 2027. The request must reach the GMC by 19 March 2027 so there is time to process it.

For a certificate that expires after 31 May 2027 there is no extension to ask for, because you can book May 2027 in Bangalore, Mumbai or New Delhi while it is still valid.

How do you book PLAB 1 for 2027, step by step?

1. Create a GMC Online account on the GMC website using your own details. Only the account holder may use the account, and the GMC treats sharing login details with an agent or coaching centre as misconduct that can affect your registration later.

2. Add your primary medical qualification details so the GMC can check that your degree and medical school are acceptable.

3. Sit IELTS Academic or OET Medicine if you have not already, then enter the test report form number or OET candidate number under My Tests. Wait up to two working days for verification.

4. Open the PLAB booking service in My Tests once your English evidence shows as verified. The service lists every sitting and venue with places, and shows when new places are due to open.

5. Choose a sitting and venue. For 2027, choose May, August or November if you want Bangalore, Mumbai or New Delhi, and February only if you can travel to the UK or EU.

6. Pay GBP 283 by card. The booking is confirmed in your account, and the venue address follows from the British Council or VICTVS closer to the date.

7. If your circumstances change, cancel through the booking service. Cancelling more than 42 days before the exam costs GBP 28.30; cancelling 42 days or less before the exam forfeits the full GBP 283. To change a date you must cancel first and then book again.

The GMC says on its cancellation page that it will consider a full refund of the cancellation fee for visa refusal, new travel restrictions, illness or bereavement, with evidence sent after you cancel.

How much does PLAB cost in 2027 in rupees?

The GMC lists every charge on its fees for doctors page. The figures below apply from 1 April 2026 and are the fees a 2027 candidate pays. Rupee conversions use the ECB reference rates of 5 November 2026 and will move with the exchange rate.

On top of the GMC fees, budget for the IELTS or OET test fee, a trip to Manchester for PLAB 2 with a UK visitor visa, and the Skilled Worker visa and health surcharge once you have a job. Our post on UK doctor salary per month puts those costs next to what a foundation year doctor earns.

What is the PLAB 1 pass rate, and how is the pass mark set?

The GMC publishes five years of results on its PLAB pass rates page. Candidate numbers almost doubled between 2021 and 2023 and then fell sharply in 2025, which is the drop in demand behind the 2027 venue cuts.

There is no fixed pass mark. The GMC sets it for each paper with the Angoff method plus one standard error of measurement, so the standard stays level while the paper changes. Your result shows your score, the pass score for that paper, the average score, and your percentage in each of ten clinical areas taken from the MLA content map, such as cardiorespiratory, child health and mental health. That breakdown is the most useful study guide you will get if you need a second attempt.

What happens after PLAB 1, and what if you fail?

If you pass, you can book PLAB 2 straight away in GMC Online. PLAB 2 is a practical exam at the GMC's two assessment centres in Manchester, and you must pass it within two years of the date you sat PLAB 1, counted from the exam date and not the result date. Once you pass both parts you apply for full registration with a licence to practise, and after that the job search starts. Our guide to working in the UK after MBBS covers that stage.

If you fail, you can book again as long as you still meet the English and degree conditions. The GMC allows four attempts at PLAB 1. After a fourth fail you can apply for a fifth and final attempt, but only after 12 months of full time clinical practice or a clinical postgraduate qualification completed within the previous two years, with structured reports from supervising doctors. Observerships and clinical attachments do not count. A fifth fail ends eligibility for good.

The GMC no longer rechecks papers by hand, but you can appeal a result. If war, serious illness, pregnancy, travel restrictions or compulsory military service stop you sitting within your eligibility period, the GMC asks you to contact it early so it can consider an earlier date or an extension.

How does PLAB 1 in 2027 differ from 2026?

A worked example: planning PLAB 1 from Hyderabad in 2027

For example, take Ananya. She finishes her internship in Hyderabad in March 2027 and sat OET Medicine in June 2025, so her certificate expires in June 2027.

Her first plan was PLAB 1 in Hyderabad in February 2027. Under the 2027 changes that sitting runs only in the UK and EU, and Hyderabad is off the list for good. She does not want the cost of a Dublin trip just for a written exam.

She checks the booking service in GMC Online in December 2026 and finds the May 2027 sitting in Bangalore. Her OET is still valid in May, so she needs no extension. She books in January 2027, before places tighten, and pays GBP 283.

She sits in Bangalore in May 2027, gets her result six weeks later, and books PLAB 2 in Manchester for the autumn. Her two year clock to pass PLAB 2 runs from the May 2027 exam date.

Three things to notice from Ananya's case. Her OET expiry decided her sitting, not the other way round. Booking early mattered because the GMC closes bookings two to six weeks before the date and Bangalore now serves three former venues. And she sat PLAB 1 within a few months of finishing internship, which is when the clinical material is freshest.

How does PLAB compare with USMLE and the other routes?

PLAB is the cheapest of the big licensing exams. The two GMC exam fees together come to about Rs. 1.7 lakh, against several lakh for the USMLE steps and the ECFMG pathway, which we set out in USMLE after MBBS from India. The trade off is the UK job market: the GMC repeats on every booking page that the number of PLAB places has nothing to do with the number of NHS vacancies, and foundation and training posts are competitive. Our comparison of which exam is required after MBBS abroad puts PLAB, USMLE, AMC and the Gulf exams side by side, and the UK country page covers studying medicine in the UK itself.

A student still at the NEET stage who is weighing the UK against practice in India will find the India side of the comparison on NEETsheet's guide to how to become a doctor in India after NEET and its breakdown of doctor salaries in India.

Frequently asked questions about PLAB 1 in 2027

Sources

• GMC, Changes to PLAB 1 in 2027

• GMC, PLAB 1 guide: when and where can I take PLAB 1

• GMC, PLAB 1 guide: what is the PLAB 1 exam

• GMC, PLAB 1 guide: information on booking a PLAB 1 place

• GMC, PLAB 1 guide: your results, with exam and result dates

• GMC, PLAB 1 guide: what do you do after you get your results

• GMC, PLAB 1 guide: are you eligible for an additional attempt

• GMC, PLAB 1 guide: cancelling or amending your booking

• GMC, Fees for doctors, including PLAB and cancellation fees from 1 April 2026

• GMC, Evidence of your knowledge of English: IELTS

• GMC, Evidence of your knowledge of English: OET

• GMC, Acceptable overseas qualifications for doctors

• GMC, Recent pass rates for PLAB 1 and PLAB 2

• GMC, PLAB 2 guide: when and where can you take PLAB 2

• European Central Bank, euro reference exchange rate for the pound sterling

• European Central Bank, euro reference exchange rate for the Indian rupee