Working Overseas

If you want to register as a veterinarian in another country, you may be asked to provide a letter of good standing.

About the letter of good standing

A letter of good standing confirms that:

  • you currently are, or have been registered with the Vet Council,
  • you are not the subject of any disciplinary enquiries, and
  • there are no disciplinary findings against you.

Getting a letter of good standing from the Vet Council

You can request a letter of good standing from us by logging into your MyVC portal and selecting the “Request a Letter of Good Standing” button on your profile page.

You will be directed you to a page where from the drop-down menu you select the regulatory authority (registration body) you would like the letter sent to. Add the item to the cart, proceed to checkout and pay the fee online.
Once your request and payment has been received, we will send the letter electronically directly to the overseas regulatory authority and a copy will be sent to you within 3-5 business days.

Please note: A letter of good standing is valid for 3 months from date of issue. For more information about letters of good standing, please contact our Team on +64 4 473 9600 or by email [email protected]

If you plan to work as a veterinarian overseas

If you plan to work as a veterinarian overseas, you will need to register with the appropriate regulatory body overseas. You should check with the authority about the process for getting registered. Most require, at a minimum:

  • proof of identity (notarised copy of passport, and photo)
  • proof of qualification (notarised copy of qualification)
  • proof of registration (a letter of good standing from the appropriate registration authority).

The regulatory authority in your country of destination will probably require a Letter of Good Standing from us. This states your date of registration, your current practising status, whether there has ever been a finding of professional misconduct against you, how you stand in relation to fee payment, and whether you are in "good standing" with us. In many jurisdictions this letter of good standing has a "shelf-life" of no more than three months, so you need to ensure it is reasonably current when you apply to be registered overseas.

Make sure that you keep us informed of any changes of address or a New Zealand contact address if you are travelling overseas. You may wish to have a non-practising status with us while overseas until you return, and then upgrade to full practising status. Many New Zealand veterinarians travel to the United Kingdom. The UK Registration body is the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. If you are travelling to Australia, each state or territory has its own registration board. If you wish to work in the Republic of Ireland and are a Massey graduate, you should check with the Veterinary Council of Ireland about your registration status. Not all Massey graduates are accepted for registration.

Please note: Veterinarians contemplating working overseas should take care to ensure that they obtain all appropriate permits and documentation before starting work. Particular care should be taken to ensure that foreign language documentation is fully understood and is everything that is required for work in that jurisdiction. We are aware of situations where NZ registered veterinarians have found themselves working without proper visas and work-permits because they took the advice of their employer on trust.

If you'll no longer be practising in New Zealand

If you plan to stop practising in New Zealand, please remember to advise us of your new contact details and update your practising status. You can do this by updating the "My Contact Details" section from your MyVC portal, or send the details to [email protected]

Returning to Work in NZ

If you are registered with us and want to return to work in New Zealand, you will have to apply for an Annual Practising Certificate (APC) by paying the annual practising fee and completing the APC form. You will also have to arrange with the registration bodies in the countries you worked in while overseas to provide letters of good standing.
Please contact us if you need more information.