Brazil Makes Enamed Test Mandatory for New Doctors

Overview

• President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed the law on November 6 that requires passing the Enamed as a condition for medical registration for students who entered medical school on or after June 19, 2026.
• The exam is now a three-stage progress test, given at the end of years two, four and six, with scores accumulated across stages and a heavier weight on the final sixth-year assessment to determine proficiency.
• A newly created National Commission will set technical criteria and cutoffs and will include eight members with four seats for the Federal Council of Medicine, while the Instituto Nacional de Estudos e Pesquisas Educacionais (Inep) will administer the tests.
• Institutions with poor Enamed results can face Ministry of Education supervision, limits on new intakes or course closure, the law creates an 'Inscrição de Egresso de Medicina' for graduates who lack clinical authorization, and Lula vetoed a proposed 2% levy on schools using SUS facilities.
• The commission and its subcommittees must still be appointed to define minimum scores, weights and procedures so the first full application of the new licensure model is scheduled for 2028 and will shape oversight of rapidly expanding private medical programs.