346 vets removed from the Register for non-payment of fees

The RCVS has removed 346 veterinary surgeons from the Register for non-payment of their annual renewal fee.

The final deadline for paying the fee was 31 May 2019, with the 346 who did not pay being removed on 1 June 2019, compared to 308 last year. Those who have been removed from the Register but have subsequently paid to be restored are not named on the list.

The RCVS sent reminders to members of the profession, including emails, text messages, and letters, reminding them that the fee was due. Additional letters were sent to those for whom we do not hold an email address or mobile telephone number.

A list of those who have not paid their fee has now been published and can be found on the RCVS website. Practices are encouraged to check the list to ensure that no employees are named.

Anyone removed from the Register can no longer call themselves a veterinary surgeon, use the postnominals MRCVS or carry out acts of veterinary surgery – to do so would be in breach of the Veterinary Surgeons Act and therefore illegal.

We would also like to remind veterinary surgeons that, although paying the fee is required to remain on the Register, to complete their registration in full they need to confirm they are compliant with the continuing professional development (CPD) requirement and complete the criminal disclosures form. Both of these are required by the Code of Professional Conduct and can be completed on the ‘My Account’ area.

Anyone with queries about completing the registration process should contact our Registration Department on 020 7202 0707 or [email protected].

900 vets are yet to complete their annual renewal declarations

Over 900 vets have yet to complete their annual renewal declarations and are therefore not compliant with the Code of Professional Conduct, despite having renewed their registration by paying their annual fees. The annual declaration of CPD compliance and of any criminal convictions, cautions or adverse findings, is an important part of the annual renewal process and has been a Code requirement for a number of years now.

The deadline for completing the declarations was 1 June 2019, and we are urging all vets who have not yet completed this part of the process to do so as soon as possible so that they can become compliant with the Code. The Registration Department, in collaboration with the Professional Conduct Department, will be contacting all of these vets to inform them of the situatuon. In the meantime, vets can still complete their declarations online in the RCVS My Account area or by contacting the Registration Department on 020 7202 0707.

The above section regarding annual renewal declarations was added to this news story 28 June 2019.