GCC health authorities
Ten authorities license healthcare professionals across the six GCC countries, and the one you apply to depends on the emirate or country you will practise in - not on your profession. Compare them all below.
DOH
Department of Health Abu DhabiAbu Dhabi, Al Ain, Al Dhafra
The Department of Health (DOH) regulates all healthcare professionals and facilities in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Formerly known as HAAD, DOH oversees licensing, health insurance, and public health policy for Abu Dhabi.
DHA
Dubai Health AuthorityDubai
Dubai Health Authority (DHA) is the regulatory body for healthcare professionals and facilities in the Emirate of Dubai. DHA oversees licensing, health insurance, and both public and private health sectors.
DCAS
Dubai Corporation for Ambulance ServicesDubai (Emergency Medical Services)
DCAS regulates and licenses emergency medical professionals in Dubai, including EMTs, paramedics, advanced paramedics, air and marine paramedics, first aid instructors, ALS instructors, and medical dispatchers. DCAS operates its own licensing and examination process independent of DHA.
MOHAP
Ministry of Health and PreventionNorthern Emirates (Sharjah*, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah) - *Note: Sharjah now also has its own authority (SHA)
MOHAP is the federal health authority covering the Northern Emirates and federal healthcare institutions. It handles professional licensing, pharmaceutical regulation, and national health policy.
SHA
Sharjah Health AuthorityEmirate of Sharjah
Sharjah Health Authority (SHA) regulates healthcare professionals and facilities in the Emirate of Sharjah. SHA has its own licensing portal and issues professional licenses independently from MOHAP. The authority also oversees Sharjah Healthcare City (SHCC).
Which authority should you apply to?
Your licensing authority is decided by where you will work, not by your profession. In the UAE alone there are five: DHA covers Dubai, DOH covers Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Al Dhafra, MOHAP covers the northern emirates, SHA licenses independently in Sharjah, and DCAS handles Dubai emergency medical services.
The other five countries each run a single national regulator: SCFHS in Saudi Arabia, QCHP in Qatar, NHRA in Bahrain, MOH Oman and MOH Kuwait.
A licence is not portable between authorities: moving from Dubai to Abu Dhabi means a fresh DOH application. Every authority requires Dataflow primary source verification first, and most require a licensing exam - check yours with our Prometric exam checker or browse practice question banks.
What every GCC authority requires, and where they differ
| Authority | Covers | Exam route | PSV |
|---|---|---|---|
| DHA | Dubai (excluding DHCC free zone) | Prometric CBT | Dataflow |
| DOH | Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Al Dhafra | Pearson VUE CBT | Dataflow |
| MOHAP | Ajman, Fujairah, RAK, UAQ | Prometric CBT | Dataflow |
| SHA | Sharjah | Prometric CBT | Dataflow |
| DCAS | Dubai emergency medical services | Authority assessment | Dataflow |
| SCFHS | Saudi Arabia (national) | Prometric / Pearson VUE | Dataflow |
| QCHP | Qatar (national) | Prometric CBT | Dataflow |
| NHRA | Bahrain (national) | Prometric CBT | Dataflow |
| MOH Oman / OMSB | Oman (national) | Prometric CBT, then oral viva | Dataflow |
| MOH Kuwait | Kuwait (national) | Authority exam / interview | Dataflow |
Exam route is the general rule for the authority. Whether your specific title requires an exam depends on the title and grade - several senior and consultant grades are assessed by interview or oral panel instead of a written paper. Check yours with the Prometric exam checker.
Questions candidates ask before choosing
Can I hold licences in two emirates at once? Yes. Nothing stops you holding, say, a DHA and a DOH licence simultaneously, and clinicians who cover sites in both emirates routinely do. Each is a separate application with its own fee, and each must be renewed on its own cycle.
Does passing one authority’s exam count for another? Not automatically. What is shared is the attempt limit - the Unified Professional Qualification Requirements cap you at three attempts across all UAE authorities combined, so failing twice at DHA leaves you one attempt at DOH, not three. Some authorities grant exemptions for holders of recognised international qualifications; the exemption rules differ by authority.
Is my Dataflow report reusable? Usually yes within its validity window, and this is the single biggest time saver available. A report issued for one authority can often be shared with another rather than re-verified from scratch - worth confirming before you pay twice. See the Dataflow verification guide and the cost calculator.
Which is fastest? Processing time depends far more on how clean your documents are than on the authority. The slowest step is almost always primary source verification of a degree or a previous employer that is slow to respond - not the regulator’s own review. Our timeline calculator estimates yours from your document set.
Do I need a job offer first? It varies. Some authorities issue an eligibility or assessment outcome that you can obtain before securing employment, while the licence itself is activated against a facility. That distinction matters when you are planning a move, and it is covered per country on the country pages.