Nepali Doctors Seek Better Opportunities Abroad, Data Shows

Kathmandu. A frightening statistic has emerged that most Nepali doctors are choosing foreign countries as their employment destination in the lure of attractive service facilities.

Although the Nepal Medical Council provides about two thousand medical registration certificates (licenses) annually, it has been found that an equal number of doctors obtain a 'good character certificate' from the council to go abroad.

According to the council's data, 2,122 doctors obtained registration certificates in 2025. Surprisingly, in the same year, 268 more doctors than those who obtained licenses, i.e., 2,390 doctors, obtained good character certificates to go abroad.

According to Pradip Rizal, head of the character certificate authentication branch of the council, since 2020, a total of 13,140 doctors have obtained licenses, while 11,068 doctors have left after obtaining good character certificates to go abroad.

Naimit Registrar of the Council, Dr. Dipendra Pandey, says that doctors have been going abroad for the past 10 years for better service facilities and attractive salaries. According to him, due to fewer opportunities at the Medical Officer level in Nepal, they go abroad for postgraduate studies and to work in hospitals. Doctors primarily go to 23 countries, including the most popular ones like America, Britain, Maldives, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Australia, India, Canada, and Germany.

According to the council's data, 2,995 doctors have gone to America since 2020. After America, 2,637 have gone to Britain, 2,241 to Maldives, 848 to Australia, 720 to the United Arab Emirates, 918 to neighboring India, 148 to Canada, and 92 to Germany.

Looking at the annual figures, 869 doctors obtained good character certificates to go abroad in 2020. This number has been continuously increasing, reaching 1,327 in 2021, 1,954 in 2022, 2,318 in 2023, and 2,210 in 2024. 'Doctors obtain good character certificates for jobs and studies abroad,' said Naimit Registrar Pandey, 'but most doctors from Nepal obtain good character certificates for employment abroad rather than for studies.'

On the other hand, the number of doctors obtaining licenses from the council was 2,131 in 2020, 1,716 in 2021, 2,085 in 2022, 2,692 in 2023, and 2,394 in 2024. Due to fewer service facilities in Nepal, doctors are migrating abroad for employment. A total of 39,486 doctors have obtained licenses from the Nepal Medical Council so far.