Transitioning to retirement
Find out what you need to do when considering retirement, the benefits available to retired fellows, and the opportunities to retain your involvement in the college.
The college is here to support you through your life-long learning journey and recognises as you transition to retirement there are a number of elements to consider.
A "fully retired" fellow is a fellow who has ceased practising all forms of clinical medicine, medico-legal work and clinical support activities (such as administration, teaching and research). A retired fellow may or may not decide to maintain medical registration.
Medical registration
You'll need to change your registration status with your national regulator. The process differs from country, so please refer to the relevant regulator's website.
In Australia
If you plan to continue to see patients, be on medical committees or use your professional knowledge to work in management, administration, education, research, or an advisory position in any way, you must retain your full specialist registration with the Medical Board of Australia (MBA).
If you wish to retire (cease practising all forms of clinical medicine) and not renew your medical registration, you can select "not to renew" on your reminder notice or ignore the reminder notices.
More information
In New Zealand
If you are retiring from medical practice and are not intending to practise again in the future, the Medical Council of New Zealand (MCNZ) advises that you cancel your registration.
There is no charge to do this. If you change your mind later, you can apply for restoration to the register. This is a straightforward process provided you meet the MCNZ's fitness for registration requirements.
More information
Maintaining your membership and fellowship
Fully retired fellows are no longer required to pay an annual subscription fee yet can still enjoy many of the benefits listed below in 'Benefits for retired fellows'. Please contact membership services should you wish to notify the colelge of your retirerment.
Concessions to membership fees
Once you've decided to retire, you can either advise us in writing or complete an online concession application which can be found here. For any queries relating to your subscription concession application, please email finance.
Medical registration
When considering retirement or deciding to retirement, you will need to change your registration status with your national regulator. The process differs from country, so please refer to the relevant regulator's website.
What about my CPD?
Your Continuing Professional Development (CPD) requirements depend on whether you’re maintaining some health-related activities and your medical registration status.
The medical board and council definitions of ‘practice’ are very broad and include any work that uses your medical skills and training, so a specialist anaesthetist or specialist pain medicine physician who works in administration, teaching or quality and safety with no direct patient care is still defined as ‘practising’ for registration purposes.
The requirements of the MBA and the MCNZ are therefore the same regardless of whether your practice involves direct patient care or not.
The ANZCA and FPM CPD program supports your medical registration requirements and can change upon retirement depending on your work status:
- If you’re no longer registered with the medical board/council or have non-practising registration (Australia), you do not need to do the ANZCA and FPM CPD Program.
- If you are practising in any way, even if it does not involve direct patient care, you’re required by the regulatory authorities to complete CPD.
- In Australia, if you have given up your specialist registration but have maintained your general registration, the MBA requires that you join a CPD home relevant to your scope of practice by January 2024. The ANZCA and FPM CPD program can cater to this, or you can consider a CPD home relevant to your needs.
- In New Zealand, if you are registered and practising in the general scope of practice only, please check the MCNZ website for your specific recertification requirements.
This area is nuanced, and we recommend that you check with the Medical Board of Australia/AHPRA or Medical Council of New Zealand.
Updating my CPD to practice without direct patient care
If you do maintain your medical registration but retire from clinical practice, you can amend your CPD status to ‘practice without direct patient care’.
If you undertake the CPD program ‘practice without direct patient care’, you are not required to complete one of the four mandatory practice evaluation activities, or an emergency response activity.
For full details on retirement and support please visit the How can I meet my CPD requirements - ‘I practice without direct patient care’.
If you wish to update your CPD participant status, please contact us:
Email cpd@anzca.edu.au
Phone +61 3 9510 6299
Benefits for retired fellows
The college gratefully acknowledges the contributions that retired fellows have made to the college and their profession and provides the following specific ongoing benefits for retired fellows:
- Complimentary registration at ANZCA annual scientific meetings.
- Invitation to complimentary retired anaesthetists’ luncheons, which provide an ideal opportunity to catch up with old friends and make new acquaintances.
- Complimentary continuing professional development.
- Access to ANZCA Library services and resources, such as online journals and textbooks and article requests.
- Regular communications to keep you in the loop, such as the ANZCA Bulletin, and ANZCA E-Newsletter. Please contact us if you'd like to change the communications that you receive.
These benefits are in addition to the many benefits of fellowship that continue to be provided when you retire. Many of these can be found here.