15.2 Annual practising certificate
All clinicians, including doctors and nurses, require an annual practicing certificate (APC). If a clinician operates without an APC, they cannot lawfully practice, and are not covered by indemnity insurance or entitled to government funding.
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The practice ensures health practitioners/clinical team members maintain their annual practising certificate (APC). |
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The Annual Practising Certificate
All clinicians, including doctors and nurses, require an annual practicing certificate (APC).
If a clinician operates without an APC, they cannot lawfully practice, and are not covered by indemnity insurance or entitled to government funding.
To obtain accurate evidence of current APC status and conditions for GPs and nurses, search the MCNZ or NCNZ registers. (The links to these sites are also provided in the resources below). When providing evidence of APC’s in smartsheet, provide individual links for each health professional in the practice comments field (it is no longer necessary to upload hardcopies of APC’s.)
The practice needs to have a robust system to ensure all the clinicians in the workplace have a current APC.
Some ways of doing this could be to create registers or charts showing expiry dates of APCs, including those practicing under conditions, and set up task reminders.
Understanding Nurse Practitioner Regulation and Clinical Scope (added November 2025)
Nurse Practitioners Working in General Practice
In April 2017, the Nursing Council of New Zealand updated the nurse practitioner scope of practice and education programmes. Prior to this, nurse practitioners were registered with a defined area of practice. Today, nurse practitioners are registered under a general scope and are expected to self-regulate, practising within their area of education, competence, and experience.
This means the Nursing Council no longer includes a defined area of practice on a nurse practitioner’s Annual Practising Certificate (APC). Instead, nurse practitioners determine their own clinical scope based on their qualifications, experience, and ongoing professional development.
If a nurse practitioner transitions into a new area of clinical practice, it is expected that they will undertake appropriate education and training and seek mentorship to ensure they develop the necessary skills and competence for safe practice in that area.
Nurse practitioners work autonomously across a range of health settings, including primary care, aged care, and specialist services. In general practice, they may operate in a generalist model, managing acute and chronic conditions across the lifespan. In specialist settings, they function as advanced clinicians within multidisciplinary teams, independently managing care in areas such as mental health and addictions, cardiology, intensive care, nephrology, oncology, and palliative care.
Nurse practitioners renew their APC annually and are required to re-certify every three years, providing evidence of continued competence against the nurse practitioner competencies.
To support Foundation Standard assessors in understanding how a nurse practitioner’s clinical role aligns with their scope of practice, we encourage practices to complete the NP Scope of Practice Summary Form, available in the guidance resources. This form can be attached to the Smartsheet for Indicator 15.2.
Liability insurance
Professional liability insurance is not a requirement of the Foundation Standard. It is, however strongly recommended by professional associations that practices and clinicians take professional advice on their potential liabilities and insurance options.