Intealth ECFMG

Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates

Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (EPICSM)

Special Instructions and FAQs for Applicants to the Bahamas Medical Council


Special Instructions


ECFMG partners with the Bahamas Medical Council to primary-source verify the medical education credentials of internationally educated physicians applying for registration in the Bahamas. If you are a graduate of a medical school other than the University of the West Indies, you must have certain required medical education credentials verified through EPIC prior to submitting your application to the Council.

To have your credentials verified through EPIC in support of an application to the Bahamas Medical Council, complete the following steps:

Step 1 - Establish an EPIC Account.

See Getting Started with EPIC for complete instructions. Once ECFMG has processed your request and established your EPIC Account, ECFMG will e-mail you login information so you can access your EPIC Account.

Step 2 - Confirm your identity with EPIC.

See Confirming Your Identity with EPIC for detailed information. Confirming your identity with EPIC requires you to submit an EPIC Identification Form (EIF). Once this form has been accepted by ECFMG, you will be able to upload credentials required by the Council for primary-source verification.

Step 3 - Upload each credential required by the Council and select the Bahamas Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report once the credential is verified.

Log in to your EPIC Account and upload the credentials required by the Bahamas Medical Council for primary-source verification. As you upload each credential, be sure to select the Bahamas Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report once the credential is verified. Because the Council has requested to be notified when their applicants’ credentials have been sent for verification through EPIC, a notification will be provided to the Council when your credential is sent for verification. This notification will include a copy of the credential that you have submitted for verification.

Please note: It is very important that you select the Bahamas Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report for each required credential, as you upload it. If you do, the Council will be notified when your credential is sent for verification and an EPIC Report on that credential will automatically be sent to the Council when the credential is verified. If you do not select the Bahamas Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report on a credential at the time you upload it, you will be required to send an EPIC Report to the Council once your credential is verified.

If your credentials have already been primary-source verified by ECFMG for ECFMG Certification or through ECFMG’s International Credentials Services (EICS), you do not need to upload the credentials that were previously verified by ECFMG. These credentials will be added to your EPIC Portfolio at no cost. Simply provide your ECFMG/USMLE ID and/or EICS ID when you establish your EPIC Account. ECFMG will review your file typically within 10 business days; if your file is acceptable, ECFMG will add your previously verified credentials to your EPIC Portfolio. You can then log in to EPIC and request that EPIC Reports for those credentials be provided to the Council.

Step 4 - Make note of your EPIC ID.

When your request to establish an EPIC Account has been processed, ECFMG will send your EPIC ID to you via e-mail. Your EPIC ID is also located on the right-hand side of any page in your EPIC Account, just underneath the main menu bar. It can also be located in the “Biographics” sub-tab under the “My Profile” tab of your account.

Step 5 - Ensure reports on all required, verified credentials have been sent to the Council.

If you selected the Bahamas Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report when a credential was uploaded, that report will be sent to the Council automatically when the credential is verified.

If you did not select the Bahamas Medical Council to receive an EPIC Report at the time you uploaded a credential, you must go to the “My Reports” tab in your EPIC Account and request an EPIC Report for the Council. Be sure to select Bahamas Medical Council from the drop-down list when sending your report.

Step 6 - After all required credentials have been verified, and EPIC Reports for those credentials have been sent to the Council, submit your application to the Council.

Once reports on all of your required credentials have been sent to the Council, you can submit your application to the Council. You should not submit your application to the Council until all of your required credentials have been verified and EPIC verification reports on those credentials have been sent to the Council. The Council will not consider your application until all required credentials have been verified and all EPIC Reports on your verified credentials have been sent to the Council.

Credentials Required by the Bahamas Medical Council

The following credentials are required by the Bahamas Medical Council and must be verified through EPIC:

  • Primary Medical Qualification (upload to EPIC as Final Medical Diploma)
  • Evidence of completion of Postgraduate Internship (upload to EPIC as Postgraduate Medical Education Credential)
  • Evidence of completion of supervised postgraduate rotational medical practice (upload to EPIC as Postgraduate Medical Education Credential)
  • Specialist Qualification, if applying for licensure as a Specialist
  • Medical Registration Certificates or Licenses to Practice Medicine for any authorities with which the applicant was previously registered/licensed

For more information on the credentials verified through EPIC, see Using EPIC

Questions? Contact Us!

If you have any questions regarding EPIC and the EPIC verification process, please contact EPIC at info@ecfmgepic.org or +1 (215) 966-3900. Telephone assistance is available Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time in the United States.

If you have questions regarding the Bahamas Medical Council’s application process, please contact the Bahamas Medical Council at info@bahamasmedicalcouncil.org or +1 (242) 323-0342. Telephone assistance is available Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time in the Bahamas.

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Frequently Asked Questions


Please also read the general Frequently Asked Questions for Physicians.

About Applying to the Bahamas Medical Council

1. I am applying to the Bahamas Medical Council for registration; do I need to use EPIC?

Applicants who obtained their medical qualifications at a medical school other than the University of the West Indies are required to create an EPIC Account and have all necessary medical education credentials primary-source verified through EPIC prior to submitting their application for registration to the Bahamas Medical Council.

2. When do I need to start using EPIC?

If you graduated from a medical school other than the University of the West Indies, you will need to create an EPIC Account and have all necessary medical education credentials primary-source verified through EPIC prior to submitting your application for registration to the Bahamas Medical Council beginning January 1, 2016.

3. I’ve already submitted an application for registration to the Bahamas Medical Council; do I need to have my credentials primary-source verified through EPIC?

If you submitted your application to the Bahamas Medical Council prior to January 1, 2016, you do not need to create an EPIC Account and have your credentials primary-source verified through EPIC. If you submit your application on or after January 1, 2016, you must create an EPIC Account, have all the required credentials primary-source verified through EPIC, and request reports on your verified credentials for the Bahamas Medical Council before submitting your application to the Council.

4. I’ve already submitted my credentials directly to the Council; do I still need to submit them through EPIC?

If you submitted your credentials to the Council and applied for registration prior to January 1, 2016, you do not need to resubmit your credentials through EPIC.

5. Which credentials do I need to submit to the Council through EPIC?

The following credentials are required by the Bahamas Medical Council and must be verified through EPIC:

  • Primary Medical Qualification (upload to EPIC as Final Medical Diploma)
  • Evidence of completion of Postgraduate Internship (upload to EPIC as Postgraduate Medical Education Credential)
  • Evidence of completion of supervised postgraduate rotational medical practice (upload to EPIC as Postgraduate Medical Education Credential)
  • Specialist Qualification, if applying for licensure as a Specialist
  • Medical Registration Certificates or Licenses to Practice Medicine for any authorities with which the applicant was previously registered/licensed

For more information on required credentials, please contact the Bahamas Medical Council at info@bahamasmedicalcouncil.org or +1 (242) 323-0342. Telephone assistance is available Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time in the Bahamas.

6. How far in advance of applying for registration to the Council do I need to upload my credentials to EPIC?

We recommend that you create an EPIC Account and upload your credentials to EPIC as soon as possible after you have decided to apply to the Council. Through EPIC, your credentials are verified directly with the issuing institution. The time required to complete the verification of credentials varies and depends on a number of factors, including the time it takes for the issuing institution to respond to our verification requests.

About Using EPIC

1. Will I have access to my medical credentials after I apply to the Council?

Yes. The credentials that you upload to EPIC remain available to you as part of your EPIC Portfolio. You can use EPIC to send copies of these credentials along with reports verifying their authenticity to organizations worldwide at any time throughout your career.

2. Will the Council have access to my EPIC Portfolio?

No. The Council will not have direct access to your EPIC Portfolio. The Council will have access only to the credentials, notifications, and verification reports that you make available to them through EPIC.

3. How does ECFMG provide my EPIC ID?

When your request to establish an EPIC Account has been processed, ECFMG will send your EPIC ID to you via e-mail. Your EPIC ID also will be available in your EPIC Account. For information on establishing an EPIC Account, please see Getting Started with EPIC.

To obtain your EPIC ID, log in to your EPIC Account. Your EPIC ID can be found on the right-hand side of any page in your account, just underneath the main menu bar. It can also be located in the “Biographics” sub-tab under the “My Profile” tab of your account.

4. I requested that an EPIC Report be sent to the Council. How do I know if the Council received the verification report and a copy of my credential?

When an EPIC Report is sent to the Council, the Council will have access to the report and a copy of your credential through the EPIC Report Portal. If you need to confirm whether the Council has accessed your report through the Report Portal, please contact the Council.

5. Can I select the Council to receive EPIC Reports only once, or should I do it for every credential individually?

An EPIC Report will only be sent for a credential if you indicate a report should be sent to the Council for that credential. You should request an EPIC Report for the Council for each credential required by the Council.

6. Do I need to use EPIC when applying to the Council if my credentials have already been verified by ECFMG for a purpose other than applying to the Council?

If you are applying to the Council on or after January 1, 2016 , and your credentials have already been primary-source verified by ECFMG for ECFMG Certification or through ECFMG’s International Credentials Services (EICS), you will need to create an EPIC Account and use EPIC to provide your credentials and verification reports to the Council. However, you will not need to upload the credentials that were previously verified by ECFMG; they will be added to your EPIC Account at no cost. Simply provide your ECFMG/USMLE ID and/or EICS ID when you establish your EPIC Account. ECFMG will review your file typically within 10 business days; if your file is acceptable, ECFMG will add your previously verified credentials to your EPIC Portfolio. You can then log in to EPIC and request that EPIC Reports for those credentials be provided to the Council.

7. If I have questions or problems regarding EPIC, should I contact EPIC or the Council?

If you have questions regarding EPIC’s services—such as creating an EPIC Account, uploading your credentials, managing your portfolio, the verification process, sending verification reports, or fees—please contact EPIC at info@ecfmgepic.org or +1 (215) 966-3900. Telephone assistance is available Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time in the United States.

If you have questions regarding applying to the Bahamas Medical Council, please contact the Council at info@bahamasmedicalcouncil.org or +1 (242) 323-0342. Telephone assistance is available Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time in the Bahamas.

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[Last update: March 21, 2023]

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