The purpose of Out of Programme (OOP) is to allow a resident doctor/dentist to gain additional clinical experience, clinical training or to undertake a period of research outside the training programme to which they were appointed. Resident doctors/dentists may also request to take a career break or a pause in training.
Information on this page is for General Practice, Hospital and Community Care resident doctors, and dentists.
Foundation Doctors wishing to take time out, should follow the national UKFPO guided process for Time Out of Foundation Programme (TOFP). Details of how to request TOFP are available on the UKFPO website.
Notice Period
You must apply for time OOP by completing the application form at least 6 months in advance of the proposed start date.
Failure to comply with the 6 month notice rule may result in GMC approval being delayed and your time out of programme not being eligible to count towards the award of CCT.
Less than 6 months' notice may be considered in exceptional circumstances for some OOPC applications. Please refer to page 11 and 12 of the NHS England – North West's Out of Programme (OOP) Policy and Process document for further details.
Out of Programme Process and Policy Updated 5 November 2025
Acting Up as a Consultant (AUC) Guidance notes Hospital Specialties only
Before Applying
There are 5 categories of OOP, please refer to the 'Categories of OOP' section of NHS England – North West's Out of Programme (OOP) Policy and Process document for full details.
| Type | Length | Time counted towards training | |
|---|---|---|---|
| OOPC | Out of Programme for Career Break | Up to 12 months, or 24 months at the discretion of the Postgraduate Dean | No |
| OOPE | Out of Programme for Clinical Experience | Up to 12 months | No |
| OOPP | Out of Programme Pause (Hospital specialties only) | Up to 12 months | No, however competencies gained can be considered on return. |
| OOPR | Out of Programme for Clinical Research | Up to 3 years, or 4 years in exceptional circumstances | Specialty dependent - check with college |
| OOPT | Out of Programme for Clinical Training | Up to 12 months | Yes |
Acting Up as a Consultant
Hospital specialties only
There is a separate application process for Acting Up as a Consultant - please refer to the Acting Up as a Consultant (AUC) Application Form and AUC Guidance notes.
Resident doctors/dentists whose OOP applications are successful will be granted unpaid leave from the Lead Employer for the period of the OOP.
NHS England – North West and Lead Employer does not provide funding arrangements or secondments for periods out of programme, and therefore resident doctors must seek salary payments and terms and conditions of employment via the OOP host organisation.
Please refer to the 'Funding and Contractual Obligations' section of NHS England – North West's Out of Programme (OOP) Policy and Process document.
Dentists and resident doctors who wish to undertake a period of unpaid leave/OOP and wish to remain in the NHS Pension Scheme are now required to maintain their pension contributions.
Please refer to the 'NHS Pensions Guidance' section on page 13 of NHS England – North West's Out of Programme (OOP) Policy and Process document for further details.
If you are on a Tier 2 visa please read the 'Out of Programme (OOP) and your sponsorship' guidance
For the majority of resident doctors on a tier 2 visa going OOP, sponsorship will be withdrawn for the duration of the OOP. This will affect your employment status.
You must inform the National Overseas Sponsorship Team of any change in circumstances by completing a Reporting form or emailing england.sponsorship@nhs.net
The annual ARCP process applies to all resident doctors/dentists who are OOP and they must engage and submit the required information which may include attending an annual review if required.
Please refer to the 'ARCPs whilst OOP' section of NHS England – North West's Out of Programme (OOP) Policy and Process document for further details.
The Postgraduate/Dental Dean will remain the resident doctor’s Responsible Officer (RO) whilst they are OOP and the designated body is NHSE Education North West.
Please refer to the 'Revalidation' section of NHS England – North West's Out of Programme (OOP) Policy and Process document for further details.
If you have any specific queries relating to time out of programme, please contact your Specialty School Team.
Go to Specialty School's contact page
For further detailed information on time out of programme, please consult Section 3 (3.143 to 3.176) of the Gold Guide version 10 or Section 4 (4.30 to 4.47) of the Dental Gold Guide version 5.
For all queries relating to the NHS Pension Scheme, please contact your relevant payroll department.
Once you have completed the online OOP application form, you must send supporting documents/evidence to the relevant specialty school mailbox.
If your time out of programme is to count towards your CCT you may need to liaise with your relevant Royal College/Faculty to obtain a letter of support and recommendation.
All periods of unpaid leave/time out of programme that are intended to count towards CCT must also have the prospective approval of the GMC. The Specialty Schools teams will facilitate this, where relevant, once approval for the time out of programme has been granted.
If the time spent out of programme for research or training is not required to count towards the award of a CCT, then GMC approval or involvement is not necessary, but it should be noted that the GMC will NOT consider time out of programme towards a CCT if prior approval has not been given.
For more information on what is required for Royal College/Faculty support, please visit their website:
Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine
Joint Committee on Surgical Training (JCST)
Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Training Board (JRCPTB)
Royal College of Anaesthetists
Royal College of Emergency Medicine
Royal College of General Practitioners
Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
Royal College of Ophthalmologists
Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
Royal College of Pathologists (search for "OOP")
Royal College of Psychiatrists
Please ensure that you download and familiarise yourself with NHS England – North West's Out of Programme (OOP) Policy and Process document prior to making your application.
You must also use this application form to apply to extend an OOP period.
This is an updated OOP process implemented from November 2025. This will be piloted for 8 weeks until 30 January 2026. You will receive a short Microsoft Forms survey if you have applied during this period, and we would be grateful for your feedback from an applicant perspective.
It is recommended that you complete this form on a desktop/laptop. If using on a mobile device, please see below guidance on entering dates.
It is not possible to type in dates on this form when using a mobile device, however, it is not necessary to 'scroll' though months to reach the correct month and year.
To change month and year, click on the current month at the top right of the screen, this will allow you to move between months within the current year.
From this screen, clicking on the current year in the top left will allow you to change the year.
OOP Cancellation and Curtailment form
Acting Up as a Consultant (AUC) Application Form Hospital Specialties only
Out of Programme Pause (OOPP) Initiation and Scope of Practice Monitoring Form
Last updated: 17 November 2025