Usually, yes. While you are on the NMC register you must tell the NMC if you are charged with a criminal offence, cautioned or convicted, as soon as you can. When you apply to join the register or renew your registration, you must declare any cautions or convictions unless they are protected. The NMC's guidance describes not telling it about a conviction or caution as a clear breach of the Code.
Key takeaways
- On the register: tell the NMC about a charge, caution, conditional discharge or conviction as soon as you can.
- At registration and renewal: declare cautions and convictions unless they are protected.
- Fixed penalty notices for speeding and parking tickets do not need a self-referral.
- Keep the declaration short, factual and honest, and take advice if you are unsure.
If you have been given a police caution, you might have been told it is not a conviction and that it will not affect you. For nurses, midwives and nursing associates the position is different. This article sets out what the NMC's guidance says. It is general information, not legal advice, and an adviser can check how it applies to you.
What do I have to tell the NMC: charges, cautions or convictions?
There are two separate duties in the NMC's guidance on criminal convictions and cautions.
- While you are on the register: you need to let the NMC know if you are charged with a criminal offence, are convicted or receive a caution. The guidance says the Code expects you to tell the NMC about a charge, caution, conditional discharge or criminal conviction as soon as you can.
- When you apply to join or renew your registration: you must declare any cautions or convictions, unless they are a protected caution or conviction.
The NMC's self-referral examples confirm the first duty: a nurse charged with an offence does need to self-refer, because paragraph 23.2 of the Code requires you to tell the NMC as soon as you can about any charge against you.
What is a protected caution or conviction?
The NMC's guidance says protected cautions and convictions do not need to be declared when you apply to join the register or renew your registration. Its convictions guidance does not set out the rules on which cautions and convictions count as protected, and we will not guess at them here. Whether yours is protected depends on the details, so check with your union, a regulatory solicitor or the NMC before you rely on it.
Notice too that the guidance describes the protected exception for declarations at registration and renewal. It does not describe the same exception for a new charge, caution or conviction while you are on the register. If you have just been cautioned, take it that the NMC needs to know, and get advice if you are unsure.
Do I need to declare a speeding ticket or parking fine?
No. The NMC's self-referral examples say it does not investigate fixed penalty notices, such as a fixed penalty for speeding, or parking penalty charges. A caution or a charge is different.
When should I tell the NMC about a caution?
As soon as you can. Do not wait until your next renewal or revalidation. If you are charged, tell the NMC at that point rather than waiting for the outcome. Section 23 of the Code also covers telling the NMC or your employer about cautions or convictions, and the NMC notes that most employment contracts will require you to tell your employer promptly.
What happens after I declare a caution?
The NMC says that criminal offending after you joined the register will not affect your entry on the register, but it will consider the possible effect on your fitness to practise, even if the offending itself was not serious. It will almost always take a case to a panel where someone has been convicted of a specified offence or given a custodial sentence, including a suspended sentence. In other cases it looks closely at the circumstances, including whether the conduct happened in professional practice, whether it suggests a risk to the public, and whether it could undermine public confidence.
If it decides the matter could be serious enough to affect your fitness to practise, it will seek police information to verify the details. Across all types of case, 72% of NMC screening decisions in 2024-25 were to close the case.
What if I did not declare a caution in the past?
Take advice quickly. The NMC says that if there is evidence a professional was dishonest about criminal offending when they applied to join or renew their registration, it will have to carry out a full investigation. It also says that keeping a charge, caution or conviction from it may affect your fitness to practise. The risk of leaving it is that an oversight later looks like concealment. A representative can help you correct the record in the right way.
How should I word a declaration to the NMC?
Short, factual and honest. Include:
- What the caution, charge or conviction was for, and the date.
- The police force or court involved, and any outcome or sentence.
- Whether you have told your employer.
- One or two sentences of context, without excuses.
- What you have done since, and that you understand why the NMC needs to know.
Illustrative wording only, not a real case:
I am writing to tell you that on [date] I accepted a police caution from [force] for [offence]. I have informed my line manager. I understand why this matters to my registration and I am happy to provide any further information you need.
Avoid long explanations of why you were not to blame, and do not describe facts you dispute without advice. Keep a copy of everything you send.
When should I get legal advice?
Before you declare, if you can. Your union (RCN, RCM, Unison or Unite), professional indemnity provider or a regulatory solicitor can check whether a caution is protected and how to word your declaration. The NMC also suggests talking to your union before you self-refer. See should I self-refer to the NMC? and drink driving and the NMC.
If this is weighing on you, the NMC's Careline offers free, confidential support, 24 hours a day, on 0800 587 7396, from a provider independent of the NMC.
Frequently asked questions
No, but the NMC treats both as things you need to tell it about. While you are on the register you should tell the NMC about a caution as soon as you can, just as you would a charge or conviction.
When you renew, the NMC asks you to declare any cautions or convictions unless they are protected. If you are unsure whether yours is protected, check with your union, a regulatory solicitor or the NMC before you rely on it.
Not automatically. The NMC looks at the circumstances of each case, including whether it happened in professional practice and whether there is a risk to the public. Many cases are closed without action.
Take advice and correct the record promptly. The NMC says evidence of dishonesty about criminal offending at application or renewal leads to a full investigation, so how and when you correct it matters.
