EMREE Exam (EMREE120): The Complete 2026 UAE Residency Guide
What the EMREE exam asks, who can sit it, the pass mark NIHS publishes, the December to March registration season, fees, attempts and an eight week study plan.
Every doctor who wants a residency seat in the UAE has to get through the same door. It is called EMREE, the Emirates Medical Residency Entrance Examination, and it is run by the National Institute for Health Specialties at UAE University rather than by any of the licensing authorities.
That last point catches people out more than anything else about this exam. EMREE is not a licence. Passing it does not let you work in a hospital. It is an entrance exam, and its only job is to decide who is eligible to compete for a residency training post. If you are looking for the exam that lets you practise in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, you want a different one, and there is a link further down that explains which.
This guide covers what EMREE is, who can sit it, what the paper looks like, what the pass mark really is, when registration opens, and how to prepare for it without wasting three months on the wrong material.
Who runs EMREE, and what it decides
EMREE is administered by the National Institute for Health Specialties, usually shortened to NIHS, which sits within the College of Medicine and Health Sciences at UAE University in Al Ain. Registration and results run through the university's medical board exams portal.
The exam is not limited to medical graduates. NIHS also runs entrance examinations for dental and pharmacy candidates on their own schedules, so when you read about exam dates, check that you are reading the calendar for your own stream.
Your EMREE score is what residency programmes look at when they decide whether to consider your application. A pass makes you eligible. It does not by itself place you in a programme, and it does not replace the interview, your documents, or your clinical references. Think of it as the entry ticket to the competition rather than the result of it.
Who is eligible for the EMREE exam
The core requirement is a bachelor's degree in general medicine from a recognised medical school, together with the supporting documents NIHS asks for at registration.
Two things surprise candidates here. The first is that final year students are allowed to sit the exam, which means you do not have to wait until graduation to get your score on record. The second is that the same route is open to final year dental and pharmacy students for their own versions of the paper.
If you have been out of clinical work for several years, you are still permitted to register, but be realistic about what programmes do with that information later. A long gap between graduation and application is something you will be asked about, and a strong EMREE score is one of the few things that answers the question for you.
EMREE exam format: what the paper looks like
NIHS does not publish a detailed public blueprint the way some licensing bodies do. What follows is the format candidates consistently report and what the exam listing itself specifies. Confirm the current details on your registration confirmation before you sit.
- 120 single best answer multiple choice questions
- Three hours, computer based
- Four to five options per question
- No negative marking, so an unanswered question and a wrong one cost you the same
The subject weighting matters more than the total:
| Subject area | Approximate share of the paper |
|---|---|
| Internal medicine and emergency medicine | 40% |
| Obstetrics and gynaecology | 20% |
| Paediatrics | 15% |
| General surgery | 15% |
| Psychiatry, ethics and preventive medicine | 10% |
Read that distribution again before you build a study plan. Two subjects account for something close to half the exam. Candidates who spread their revision evenly across every subject in the medical curriculum are the ones who run out of time on the areas that actually decide the result.
The EMREE pass mark, and why the number keeps changing
This is where a lot of the advice online goes wrong, including some of it that sounds confident.
NIHS states that the minimum passing mark is set periodically through standard setting rather than fixed forever. For the 2025 to 2026 cycle, the published passing mark for EMREE Medical was 60 percent. Earlier cycles have used different numbers, and future ones may too.
The practical takeaway is not the number itself. It is that you should never build a preparation plan aimed at scraping past a threshold that can move before you sit. Candidates who target 60 percent tend to arrive on exam day somewhere in the fifties. Aim for a mock score in the mid seventies and the published mark stops mattering to you.
EMREE exam dates, fees and the registration trap
EMREE runs in a season rather than on demand. Examinations are held between December and March each year for the medical stream, with several sittings inside that window.
The table below is the most recent calendar NIHS has published, covering the December 2025 to March 2026 cycle. Dates for the next cycle were not yet published at the time of writing. Use this one to understand the shape of the season, then check the NIHS calendar for your own year before you plan anything around it.
| Registration opens | Registration closes | Exam date | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Dec 2025 | 17 Dec 2025 | 21 Dec 2025 | 25 Dec 2025 |
| 10 Dec 2025 | 31 Dec 2025 | 4 Jan 2026 | 8 Jan 2026 |
| 10 Dec 2025 | 14 Jan 2026 | 18 Jan 2026 | 22 Jan 2026 |
| 2 Jan 2026 | 31 Jan 2026 | 1 Feb 2026 | 5 Feb 2026 |
| 2 Jan 2026 | 11 Feb 2026 | 15 Feb 2026 | 19 Feb 2026 |
| 2 Jan 2026 | 25 Feb 2026 | 1 Mar 2026 | 5 Mar 2026 |
| 2 Jan 2026 | 4 Mar 2026 | 8 Mar 2026 | 12 Mar 2026 |
| 17 Feb 2026 | 25 Feb 2026 | 14 Mar 2026 | 19 Mar 2026 |
| 23 Jan 2026 | 11 Mar 2026 | 15 Mar 2026 | 19 Mar 2026 |
| 23 Jan 2026 | 18 Mar 2026 | 22 Mar 2026 | 26 Mar 2026 |
Two patterns are worth taking from that table. Registration for the earliest sittings opens in the first half of December, and results follow roughly four days after you sit. Enrolment opens at 8:00 in the morning on the start date and closes at 11:59 at night on the closing date.
Three things about registration are worth knowing before you get there.
Seats are limited and allocated first come, first served. The popular dates go early. If a specific sitting matters to you because of visa timing or a programme deadline, be at the portal on the morning enrolment opens.
The fee is AED 1,000 per attempt, excluding tax. Budget for the possibility of more than one sitting rather than assuming a single pass.
There are no refunds. Registering for a date you are not ready for costs you the money and the attempt.
Because the season is fixed, your preparation clock is fixed too. If you intend to sit in the December to March window, serious revision needs to begin in September or October. There is no rolling schedule to fall back on if you miss it.
Attempts, and how long an EMREE pass is worth
You may attempt EMREE up to three times within one academic year. Once you have passed, no further attempts are permitted in that same academic year, so you cannot sit again immediately to improve a borderline score.
Results are valid for a maximum of two years. That gives you two application cycles from a single pass, which is useful if your documents or visa timeline are not ready in the same year you sit.
The combination of these two rules is why a borderline pass is a worse outcome than it looks. You carry that score for two years, you cannot improve it during the year you earned it, and it goes in front of programmes that are comparing you against other candidates. Passing is the minimum. Passing well is the point.
EMREE is not a licence, and this catches people out
A doctor who passes EMREE and matches into a UAE residency programme still has to be licensed to work. Licensing runs through the health authority for the emirate you are working in, which is DHA in Dubai, DOH in Abu Dhabi, or MOHAP for the northern emirates. Each has its own examination and its own registration process.
If you are unclear which of those applies to you, our guide comparing DHA, MOHAP and DOH explains who each authority covers and which one to start with.
You will also need your qualifications primary source verified before any authority processes your file, and that is a separate timeline that runs in parallel rather than after. Our DataFlow verification guide covers what documents to gather and how long each stage takes, and the good standing certificate guide explains the one document candidates most often request too late.
Start those processes while you are studying, not after your result arrives. Verification does not care that you are busy.
How to prepare for EMREE in one season
Eight to twelve weeks of consistent work is enough for most candidates who are currently in clinical practice. Longer if you have been out of medicine for a while.
Weeks 1 to 4: build coverage where the marks are
Internal medicine and emergency medicine first, since they carry the largest share of the paper. Work in questions rather than textbooks. Reading a chapter feels productive and teaches you far less per hour than answering thirty questions and studying why you got six of them wrong.
Weeks 5 to 8: fill the middle
Obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics and general surgery. Keep returning to your weak topics from the first block rather than treating them as finished.
Weeks 9 onward: exam conditions only
Full length papers, 120 questions, three hours, no pausing and no checking answers as you go. The gap between people who know the material and people who pass is almost always pacing. Three hours for 120 questions is ninety seconds each, and that includes the long clinical stems.
Track two numbers as you go. Your score, obviously, and your accuracy on first attempt questions you have never seen. The second is the honest one. Repeating a bank until you recognise the questions produces a rising score and no real improvement.
Where candidates lose marks
- Studying in curriculum order instead of blueprint order. Anatomy is not 40 percent of this exam. Internal medicine is.
- Practising untimed. Every candidate who runs out of time practised untimed.
- Ignoring ethics and preventive medicine. It is a small share of the paper and the easiest share to secure, because the reasoning is consistent and the material is finite.
- Registering before being ready. Seats are limited, the fee does not come back, and one of your three attempts for the year is gone.
- Leaving documents until after the result. Verification and good standing take weeks. Programmes have deadlines.
Frequently asked questions
What is the EMREE exam?
EMREE is the Emirates Medical Residency Entrance Examination, run by the National Institute for Health Specialties at UAE University. It is the entrance exam for medical residency programmes in the UAE, and it is separate from the licensing exams run by DHA, DOH and MOHAP.
What is the EMREE pass mark?
NIHS sets the minimum passing mark through standard setting and reviews it periodically. The published mark for the 2025 to 2026 medical cycle was 60 percent. Because it can change, prepare to score well above it rather than to meet it.
How many questions are on the EMREE exam?
Candidates report 120 single best answer multiple choice questions across three hours, with no negative marking for wrong answers.
When is the EMREE exam held?
The medical stream runs between December and March each year, with several sittings inside that window. Each sitting has its own enrolment period, and seats are allocated on a first come, first served basis.
How much does the EMREE exam cost?
The examination fee is AED 1,000 per attempt, excluding tax. Registrations are non refundable.
How many times can I sit EMREE?
Up to three attempts within one academic year. Once you pass, you cannot sit again in the same academic year. Results remain valid for a maximum of two years.
Does passing EMREE let me work as a doctor in the UAE?
No. EMREE is an entrance exam for residency training. To practise you also need a licence from the relevant health authority, which means DHA in Dubai, DOH in Abu Dhabi or MOHAP for the northern emirates.
Prepare with questions written for this paper
General question banks are built for licensing exams and they do not follow the EMREE weighting. Our EMREE practice bank is built to the exam's own distribution, with 5,722 explained questions and full length timed mocks that run at 120 questions in three hours, so exam day is not the first time you sit the real thing.
Every question carries a written explanation, because knowing that option C was correct teaches you nothing on its own.
If you are also preparing for a licensing exam in the same year, the specialist internal medicine, paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology and general surgery banks cover the same clinical ground from the licensing angle.
Not sure which exam you need to sit first? Send us your degree, your graduation year and the emirate you are aiming for, and we will map the sequence for you.
Practice banks for this exam
Chapter-wise MCQs with a written explanation on every question, and timed mocks at the real pass mark.