Administrative barriers are often placed in the way of talented international medical graduates who wish to work in the NHS. In particular, it can be difficult for them to join the specialist register. To streamline this process, and boost recruitment into the NHS, the General Medical Council should introduce a “green list” of countries whose doctors are given an automatic right to practise in the UK following the minimum necessary checks. In the short-term, the General Medical Council should undertake a review of the Certificate of Eligibility for Specialist Registration processes to ensure that the demands being made on international medical graduates are fair and proportionate.