Department of Health Abu Dhabi (DOH): Licensing Guide 2026

Doctors who want to work in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain or Al Dhafra need a professional licence from the Department of Health Abu Dhabi (DOH). The DOH is the regulator of the healthcare sector in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi: it sets the standards facilities must meet, licenses healthcare professionals and runs the licensing examinations. Many recruiters still call its licence the "HAAD licence", after the authority's earlier name.

This page summarises the DOH route for physicians in 2026. For salaries, visas and a comparison with Dubai and the Northern Emirates, see working as a doctor in the UAE.

Key facts

What the DOH does

For healthcare professionals, the DOH decides who may hold which title (general practitioner, specialist, consultant and so on), checks qualifications and experience, administers the licensing examination and issues the licence. It publishes Professional Qualification Requirements for physicians, dentists, nurses, pharmacists, allied health and traditional and complementary medicine practitioners.

The PQR is a shared UAE document. The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP), the DOH, the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) and the Sharjah Health Authority (SHA) issue a unified PQR that serves as the basis for assessing applicants' documents, with emphasis on educational standards, experience and licensure. Requirements therefore look very similar across the UAE, but each authority runs its own application and licence.

Requirements for physicians

For physicians, the DOH requires:

• Medical degree. You must have graduated from a recognised allopathic medical school.
• Internship. A 12-month internship after graduation is required.
• Title-specific experience. Specialist and consultant titles depend on the tier of your postgraduate qualification and on years of post-qualification experience.

Two general conditions apply:

• You must meet the PQR and, where applicable, the examination requirement.
• If you rely on a licence that has expired or been cancelled, it must not be more than six months past expiry when you apply.

Expect the usual Gulf documents too: degree and internship certificates, experience letters, current licences and a certificate of good standing, all subject to primary source verification.

The DOH examination

Healthcare professionals must pass the DOH examination to obtain a licence. Exemptions include:

• UAE nationals and children of Emirati women.
• Professionals already licensed by another UAE authority who meet that authority's requirements, provided they have not exceeded the permitted number of attempts.

The written exam is booked as part of the TAMM application, which lists separate fee for the written exam for physicians. Whether you also need an oral or other assessment depends on your title.

Our DOH exam page covers format and preparation, and you can practise with exam-style questions in the MediFlow app.

Applying through TAMM, step by step

New licences are handled on TAMM, the Abu Dhabi government services platform, under Register a New Licence for a Healthcare Professional:

1. Check the PQR for your profession and title.
2. Log in to TAMM with UAE PASS.
3. Submit the application and upload the required documents, which TAMM lists as including your passport, a personal photo and academic qualifications.
4. Complete primary source verification and any examination required for your title.
5. Pay the fees shown in TAMM.
6. Receive the licence decision. TAMM lists a processing time of about three months, depending on the case.

If you already hold or held a DOH licence and are moving to a new Abu Dhabi facility, TAMM offers a separate Re-issue a Healthcare Professional Licence service for currently or previously DOH-licensed professionals.

Unsure whether Abu Dhabi, Dubai or a Northern Emirate is the right first licence for you? MediFlow's GCC licensing service can help at /get-licensed/.

Document checklist

Before you open the TAMM application, gather the following.

• Passport copy and a recent personal photo.
• Medical degree certificate and, where available, transcripts.
• Internship completion certificate covering the 12 months after graduation.
• Postgraduate qualification certificates for specialist or consultant titles.
• Experience letters from each employer, with dates and full-time status.
• Current licence or registration from your country of practice and a certificate of good standing.
• Any exam exemption evidence, such as a licence from another UAE authority that has not been expired for more than six months.

Keep scanned copies in one folder with consistent file names. The same documents are reused for primary source verification and for the licence application, and a mismatch in names or dates is a common reason for queries.

How DOH fits with the other UAE regulators

Because the PQR is shared by MOHAP, DOH, DHA and SHA, many requirements carry over between emirates. What does not carry over automatically is the licence itself: a DOH licence lets you work in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, while Dubai and the Northern Emirates have their own licensing processes. If you already hold a licence elsewhere in the UAE, the DOH may exempt you from the exam under defined conditions, including not having exceeded the permitted attempts. Decide early which emirate your employer is in, and apply to that authority first.

Fees (as of October 2026)

TAMM lists separate fees for the written exam (with a higher fee for physicians, dentists and pharmacists than for other categories) and for issuing the licence. Budget separately for primary source verification.

Typical mistakes

• Applying with an expired licence beyond six months. It no longer counts towards an exemption.
• Assuming an exam exemption. Exemptions depend on your licence status and attempt history at other UAE authorities.
• Skipping the specialty tables. Specialist and consultant titles depend on qualification tier and experience.
• Confusing new and re-issue services. They are different TAMM services with different processing times.

Next steps

• Read the DOH exam guide and start practising in the MediFlow app.
• Check your title in the DOH PQR.
• Compare the UAE regulators in working as a doctor in the UAE.

Contact and official links

• Website: doh.gov.ae
• PQR: DOH Professional Qualification Requirements
• Physician PQR: DOH PQR for physicians
• Application: TAMM new healthcare professional licence