How to open a family doctor’s practice in 2026
A family doctor who works for themselves rather than in a state polyclinic gains what a state facility does not offer: their own patient base, direct payments from the state for every declaration, and the freedom to build the practice their own way. But between the decision “I want my own practice” and the first appointment lie several legal steps that must be taken in the right order. Miss one, and instead of seeing patients you spend months dealing with refusals. This material is Dextra Law’s step-by-step guide: what you need, how long it takes, and where people most often stumble.
First things first: there is no separate licence “for primary care”
A common mistake is to look for a special licence to provide primary medical care. There is none. A family doctor works under the general licence to carry out economic activity in medical practice, issued by the Ministry of Health. The same licence covers both a large clinic and a single sole-proprietor doctor’s practice — the difference is only in the declared specialties and scope.
You cannot carry out medical practice without a licence: it entails administrative liability, and the activity itself is considered unlawful. So the licence is not a formality at the end, but a condition without which you cannot see a single patient.
Who can open a practice: requirements for the doctor
There are two formats. A doctor can register as a sole proprietor (FOP) and practise independently, or set up a limited liability company (TOV) — which makes more sense when a clinic with hired staff is planned and the owner focuses on management. For a single practice, a sole proprietorship is usually chosen.
The law sets clear qualification requirements for a sole-proprietor doctor:
- Relevant education and specialty. A higher medical education diploma and a specialisation that entitles the holder to provide primary care — “general practice — family medicine”, “internal medicine” (therapy) or “paediatrics”.
- At least three years’ experience in the relevant specialty.
- A valid specialist’s certificate or a qualification-category document, plus continuing professional development records.
The business activity code (KVED) for registration is 86.21 “General medical practice”.
A family doctor’s practice: the essentials at a glance
| Parameter | Details |
|---|---|
| Licensing authority | Ministry of Health (MOZ) |
| Type of licence | General medical practice licence (there is no separate “primary care” one) |
| Form of business | Sole proprietor (FOP) or limited liability company (TOV) |
| Activity code (KVED) | 86.21 “General medical practice” |
| Requirements for the doctor | Relevant specialty + at least 3 years’ experience + specialist’s certificate |
| Sanitary-epidemiological certificate (SES) | Not required for primary care |
| Licence validity | Indefinite |
| Source of state income | NHSU payments under patient declarations |
Premises and equipment
The practice must correspond to the profile of activity — and this is checked. You will need documents for the premises (ownership or a lease) and a floor plan. Under the updated rules, the information now clearly states the status of the premises — residential or non-residential — and its location, so this is worth taking into account when choosing a site.
An important piece of good news specifically for family doctors: to provide primary medical care, a sanitary-epidemiological inspection certificate (SES certificate) is not required — unlike many other types of medical practice. This noticeably simplifies the start. The requirement for material and technical equipment remains, however: the practice must be fitted out in line with the equipment schedule for primary care, and the equipment needs documentation and compliance with maintenance or calibration requirements.
Note separately the accessibility requirement: the premises’ accessibility for people with reduced mobility is confirmed by a corresponding assessment, and it is receiving particular attention in 2026.
A step-by-step plan for opening a practice
The order of the steps is arranged so that each one builds on the previous, and you do not waste time.
- Registering as a sole proprietor (or company). You submit documents to the state registrar with KVED 86.21. Registering a sole proprietor takes a day or two.
- Preparing the premises and staff. Premises with a plan and documents confirming the right of use, equipment per the schedule, and a check of your own qualification documents.
- Obtaining the medical practice licence. You compile the information in the prescribed form (details of the premises, working hours, material and technical base, contracts for medical-waste disposal, and so on) and submit it to the Ministry of Health.
- Registering in the electronic healthcare system (eHealth / ESOZ). You register as a provider and as a doctor through a medical information system (MIS) — without this you cannot conclude declarations.
- Concluding declarations with patients. Patients choose you and sign declarations in the electronic system.
- Contract with the NHSU. You conclude a contract with the National Health Service of Ukraine to receive payment for the patients declared with you. This is done during defined contracting waves.
Formally, the licence is step three, but in practice starting the practice means completing the whole chain: without eHealth there are no declarations, and without declarations and an NHSU contract there are no payments.
How payment from the state works
The primary-care model is “money follows the patient”. A sole-proprietor doctor receives funds from the NHSU for each patient with whom a declaration is signed, under the Programme of Medical Guarantees. The amount depends on the patient’s age group: higher coefficients are set for children and older people, so the make-up of your patient base directly affects income. The more active declarations, the larger and more stable the cash flow, which the doctor uses at their own discretion — for rent, equipment, staff or development.
What changed in 2026: two important resolutions
In 2026, medical licensing stopped being a one-off “get it and forget it” procedure and became a continuous process of confirming compliance. Two resolutions set this out.
Resolution No. 781: updated Licensing Conditions
The updated Licensing Conditions for medical practice have been in force since 8 January 2026. A single electronic Licensing Register of the Ministry of Health has been introduced, the requirements for the information have been clarified (in particular the status of the premises — residential or non-residential), and interaction with the licensing authority has become fully digital. The key deadline: those who obtained a licence before 8 January 2026 were required to submit updated information in the new form by 8 July 2026. For those opening a practice now, this means the documents are prepared to the new rules from the outset.
Resolution No. 813: differentiated licensing
The next stage of the reform was adopted on 24 June 2026 and takes effect on 1 September 2026. The core idea is differentiated licensing: the licence must clearly reflect the specific types of care and specialties that the doctor or facility actually provides (primary, emergency, specialised, palliative, rehabilitation). In addition, attention to patients’ rights has been strengthened — in particular the state guarantees of priority service for war veterans and other privileged categories, which is worth reflecting in the practice’s internal procedures.
Obligations after opening
Obtaining the licence is not the finish line, but the transition into a regime of continuous compliance. The most important points:
- Keeping the licence file current. Changes to the data on which the licence was issued (place of activity, staff, equipment, list of services) must be reported to the Ministry of Health — as a rule, within a month of the change.
- Working within eHealth. Handling electronic medical records, electronic referrals and prescriptions through the MIS.
- Staffing documents. Keeping certificates and continuing-professional-development records valid, and using correct job titles per the staffing schedule.
- Material and technical base. Equipment matching the profile, documentation for the equipment, and compliance with maintenance and calibration deadlines.
Late notification of changes is one of the most common causes of remarks and even suspension of the licence. So keeping the data current is worth handling systematically.
Why doctors get refused: typical mistakes
- the premises were chosen and renovated, but they do not match the profile or the documents for them are incomplete;
- the doctor lacks the required experience or a valid specialist’s certificate;
- the information submitted to the Ministry of Health does not match the actual state of the practice;
- the updated 2026 requirements were ignored, or the 8 July deadline for existing licensees was missed;
- the practice opened but got “stuck” at eHealth registration or the NHSU contract — so the practice effectively brings in no income.
How Dextra Law supports opening a practice
In medical licensing, a lawyer is needed not to “file the papers” but to take the doctor through the whole chain without refusals or delays. Dextra Law takes on:
- Choice of form and registration. We help decide between a sole proprietorship and a company, and register the entity with the correct activity code and tax system.
- Checking the premises and staff. We assess the premises for compliance before the lease or renovation and check the doctor’s qualification documents.
- Obtaining the licence. We prepare the information in the updated form, submit it to the Ministry of Health and support it through to entry in the Licensing Register.
- Launching the practice. We support eHealth registration, the start of declarations and the conclusion of the NHSU contract.
- Compliance with the 2026 requirements. We bring the documents into line with Resolutions No. 781 and No. 813 and help existing doctors meet the deadlines.
Instead of spending months assembling the procedure from scattered requirements and risking a refusal, you get a ready-made route and a team that walks it with you.
Frequently asked questions
No. There is no separate licence for primary medical care — a family doctor works under the general medical practice licence issued by the Ministry of Health.
Yes. This is the most common format for a single practice. You need a relevant specialty (general practice — family medicine, internal medicine or paediatrics), at least three years’ experience and a valid specialist’s certificate.
To provide primary medical care, a sanitary-epidemiological inspection certificate is not required. This is one reason why opening a primary-care practice is simpler than many other medical fields.
Through a contract with the NHSU: the service pays for each patient with whom a declaration is signed, under the Programme of Medical Guarantees. The amount depends on the patient’s age group.
Those who obtained a licence before 8 January 2026 had to submit updated information to the Ministry of Health in the new form — this is required by Resolution No. 781.
It introduces differentiated licensing: the licence must reflect the specific types of care and specialties actually provided. It also strengthens patients’ rights, in particular priority service for veterans.
Registering a sole proprietor takes a day or two, but the overall timeline depends on the readiness of the premises, the staffing documents and passing licensing plus connecting to eHealth and the NHSU. What usually takes longest is preparing the premises and documents, not the review itself.
Planning to open a family doctor’s practice?
The Dextra Law team will take you through the entire path — from registration and the licence to declarations and the NHSU contract — taking the new 2026 requirements into account. Contact us and we will draw up a clear action plan with deadlines for your practice.
