To practise homeopathy in India, you need a licence from the State Medical Council for Homoeopathy in the state where you live. State registrations feed into the National Register maintained by the National Commission for Homoeopathy (NCH). Licences must be updated every five years. The rules are set out in the NCH registration regulations of 2022.
The law behind registration
The National Commission for Homoeopathy Act, 2020 replaced the Homoeopathy Central Council Act, 1973. Registration now works under the NCH (Manner of Preparation and Maintenance of National Register for Practitioner of Homoeopathy) Regulations, 2022, published in the Gazette of India and in force from 13 December 2022. Those regulations replaced the older 1983 registration rules.
Step 1: Check your eligibility
Anyone holding a homeopathy qualification recognised by the Homoeopathy Education Board, or listed in the Second or Third Schedule of the old 1973 Act, is eligible for a licence from the State Medical Council for Homoeopathy where they reside. A BHMS from a recognised college meets this requirement.
Step 2: Apply to your State Medical Council for Homoeopathy
Your first registration is with your state council, not with NCH directly. Two conditions are worth knowing:
– The council must confirm you are not already registered with another state council.
– If you apply more than a year after qualifying, you must give an undertaking that you hold no licence from any other state or UT.
Document requirements and fees vary by state, so check your own council’s current checklist. For reference, NCH’s own direct-registration form asks for proof of date of birth, an internship completion certificate, an attested copy of the degree certificate, proof of address, Aadhaar and a photograph.
If your state has no council yet: NCH registers the practitioner directly through its Board of Ethics and Registration for Homoeopathy (BERH), after verifying the qualification with the awarding authority and the address through the police.
Step 3: Your name enters the National Register
You don’t apply to the National Register separately. BERH builds it from the lists supplied by state councils, plus direct registrations, and state councils must send updated lists every quarter.
Step 4: Add postgraduate qualifications
If you complete an MD (Hom) or another recognised additional qualification, the state council enters it against your original registration after verification.
Renewal: every five years
Don’t miss this step. A licence must be updated every five years. If you don’t update it within six months of the due date, you lose the right to practise, and the right to employment based on that licence, until it is updated with the fee. If the delay goes beyond two years, the licence is cancelled and you must apply afresh. Put the renewal date in your calendar the day you get your certificate.
Practising in another state
A licence from any state council, or from NCH, lets you practise or work in any state or UT, but you must also enroll with that state’s council. The application is made in Form-5, and the council enrolls you in Form-6. This enrolment is not a fresh registration, and your original council updates your address.
ABDM Healthcare Professional Registry (HPR)
Registered homeopaths may enroll in the Healthcare Professional Registry under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission. For homeopaths working in government healthcare facilities, enrolment is mandatory. For other practitioners, the regulations make it optional.
A note on the National Exit Test
The regulation text published on the NCH website also refers to a National Exit Test (NExT) as a future basis for licensing. The Gazette text summarised here does not include it. Check the current status with NCH before relying on either version.
What about older registrations?
Licences granted by state councils, and names entered in the old Central Register by the former Central Council of Homoeopathy, remain valid unless cancelled.
FAQ
1) Is BHMS registration done with NCH or the state council?
With the State Medical Council for Homoeopathy where you reside. NCH registers directly only where no state council exists.
2) How often must a homeopathy licence be renewed?
Every five years, under the NCH registration regulations of 2022.
3) Can I practise homeopathy in another state with my registration?
Yes, but you must also enroll with that state’s council, using Form-5.
4) Is HPR registration mandatory for homeopaths?
It is mandatory for homeopaths in government facilities and optional for others under the 2022 regulations.