Phasing out of GMS1

More than 75% of practices in England are now using Register with a GP Surgery Service, the national solution for GP practices in England to take online registrations.

It’s free to use, quick for practices to process registrations and gives patients a more streamlined and consistent experience. Patients can register quickly and easily from a direct link on your practice website, in the NHS App, or on the NHS website. 

The service is designed to reduce the burden on GP surgeries by gathering patient information and matching them to their health records. It is also designed to significantly reduce the barriers for citizens wanting to access primary healthcare. The digital service means patients no longer need to travel to the practice multiple times to register, and the amount of paper being used will be greatly reduced – both having a positive impact on the environment. A full list of the features and benefits can be found here.

By 31 October 2024 all practices are required to adopt the online service and a new paper registration form.

The new paper form

A new paper form (PRF1) has been designed to complement the online service for use by those who are unable to use the digital service. We therefore expect the requirement for copies of the paper form to be very low. As such, they will not be printed and distributed by NHS England.

The GMS1 form is being phased out and will not be available to order, or access online from 31 October 2024.

Practices will be able to print the new form as required from September. Printing forms only as needed will mean you are always accessing the current version of the paper form which may change as new questions are added. The new form is available here.

Next steps

All GP surgeries in England must offer Register with a GP surgery service from 31 October 2024. If you haven’t already you can find out more and sign up here.

You’ll get a:

•              dedicated link to the service to add to your practice website

•              new version of the paper form

•              link on your practice profile in the NHS App and on the NHS website

Already signed up?

For those who have already signed up to the online service you can now access the new paper form here. You can also link to it on your own website.

We publish our roadmap on the NHS website where you can find out what we have recently done, and what’s coming next in the service. Please get in touch with us at england.register-gp-surgery.support@nhs.net if you need help setting the service up in your practice