Posted:  November 1, 2024

The co-sponsors of the United States Medical Licensing Examination® (USMLE®), the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) and NBME, are developing plans to centralize all USMLE service functions. As part of these plans, USMLE services currently provided to international medical students and graduates (IMGs) by ECFMG®, a division of Intealth™, will transition to the USMLE co-sponsors.

This change will consolidate all USMLE examinee services, including exam registration, score report delivery, and USMLE customer service, with the USMLE co-sponsors. The goal of this change is to streamline the examinee journey and to create a more consistent and efficient examinee experience. 

The transition of USMLE services is expected to take place no earlier than mid-2025. Until then, ECFMG will continue to provide USMLE services to IMGs.  

Please note that this change does not affect the requirements for ECFMG Certification. After the transition of services takes effect, ECFMG will continue to determine whether IMGs are eligible for ECFMG Certification, and eligibility for Certification will continue to be a core requirement for IMGs to take USMLE. ECFMG will share information on Certification eligibility with the USMLE co-sponsors for the purposes of registration. Step 1 and Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK) will continue to be required by ECFMG to meet the medical science examination requirement for Certification.  

The USMLE program will release additional information, including more details on the timing of this transition and other related developments, in the first quarter of 2025. Please continue to monitor USMLE.org for program updates.