DHA Exam for BAMS Doctors: Eligibility, Fees, and Exam Pattern (2026)

The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) regulates every healthcare professional who wants to practice in Dubai, and that includes Ayurvedic doctors holding a Bachelor of Ayurveda, Medicine, and Surgery (BAMS) degree. If you are researching the DHA exam for BAMS doctors or the Dubai Health Authority exam for BAMS doctors more broadly, the first thing to understand is that your application does not follow the same track as an MBBS graduate.

DHA licenses BAMS doctors under its Traditional, Complementary, and Alternative Medicine (TCAM) category. This is confirmed in DHA’s own Professional Qualification Requirements (PQR) document, which sets out a separate chapter for TCAM healthcare professionals, distinct from the chapter for Physicians (the track MBBS and other allopathic doctors go through). Most generic “DHA exam for doctors” guides online are written for this Physician track, which is why BAMS applicants often get confused about which eligibility rules and exam pattern actually apply to them.

Get My university Shortlist in 60 Secs

0%

Choose your dream country

Please select a country

UK

USA

Germany

Australia

Ireland

New Zealand

Canada

UAE

France

Sweden

Italy

Other

When do you want to study abroad?

Please select an option

Recommended Jan 2027

Sep 2027

2028 or later

2028 or later

What's your highest level of education?

Please select an option

Bachelor's

Master's

MBBS / MD

Diploma

12th Grade

10th Grade

Have you completed Class 12th?

Please select an option

Yes

No

What was your Class 12 CGPA/percentage?

Please enter a valid CGPA/percentage (0-100)

Are you a student or a parent/guardian?

Please select an option

Student

Parent/Guardian

Other

What do you want to study?

Please select a course

Select your current city

Please select your city

 

Please Enter Your Name

 

IN +91 UAE +971 QA +974 SA +966 KW +965 OM +968 BH +973

Please Enter a Valid Number

 

Please Enter Your Email

How Leap will help you

Personalised University Shortlist

Express Applications with Quicker Admits

End-to-End Application Support

Continue

Source: DHA Professional Qualification Requirements (PQR), TCAM chapter.

In short: the DHA exam for Ayurvedic doctors assesses your clinical knowledge within the Ayurveda scope of practice defined by DHA's TCAM code, not general medicine or surgery.

Before you can sit the DHA exam for BAMS doctors, you need to clear an eligibility review. DHA exam eligibility for BAMS doctors depends on your degree, internship, and prior registration. Based on DHA's TCAM licensure requirements, you will generally need:

• A BAMS degree (or recognized equivalent) from an institution recognized by the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM)
• Completion of your mandatory one-year clinical internship
• A valid registration or practice license from your State Council of Indian Medicine
• Relevant post-qualification clinical experience in Ayurveda (requirements can vary by case, so check your specific eligibility outcome once you register on the Sheryan portal)
• At least 2 years of post-qualification clinical experience in Ayurveda, per DHA's PQR requirements for TCAM practitioners
• A Good Standing Certificate from your state medical council confirming no disciplinary action against you
• A valid Basic Life Support (BLS) certificate, a standard DHA licensure requirement across professional categories

Because DHA assesses TCAM applications individually, your BAMS exam eligibility outcome is generated only after document submission, not before. This process is a common source of confusion among applicants searching for DHA exam requirements for doctors, since the eligibility review happens online through your Sheryan account rather than through a published checklist.

Whether you are checking DHA exam details for doctors in general or specifically for the Ayurveda/TCAM category, the required documents are broadly similar:

All of these go through DataFlow's Primary Source Verification (PSV), where DataFlow contacts your university and councils directly to confirm the documents are genuine. Indian applicants should budget 4 to 8 weeks for PSV alone, since Indian universities and state councils can take longer to respond than Gulf-based institutions.

If you are researching how to apply for the DHA exam for doctors, the process follows these steps:

1. Create an account on the DHA Sheryan portal (services.dha.gov.ae/sheryan).
2. Fill in your professional details and select the TCAM Ayurveda category
3. Upload the documents listed above
4. Submit your profile for DataFlow PSV
5. Once PSV clears and eligibility is confirmed, book your exam slot through Prometric
6. Appear for the computer-based exam at your nearest Prometric centre in India
7. On passing, complete the license activation step and pay the activation fee

Counselor insight: A lot of BAMS applicants submit their Sheryan application before double-checking that their state council registration certificate is current. An expired or soon-to-expire registration is one of the most common reasons PSV is delayed, so renew it before you start the DHA application, not after.

The DHA exam pattern for doctors, including the Ayurveda/TCAM category, follows this structure:

• Format: Multiple-choice questions (MCQs), computer-based test (CBT) delivered through Prometric
• Number of questions: 100
• Duration: 2 hours
• Pass score: around 60% (DHA can revise the exam format or pass score without updating its published guideline, so confirm your current pass mark on Sheryan before you book)
• Language: English
• Attempts allowed: Up to 3 attempts
• Content focus: Clinical knowledge, diagnosis, and treatment principles within the Ayurveda scope of practice recognized by DHA

Counselor insight: Don't prepare against the Physician Track's 150-question, 3-hour format. The TCAM Ayurveda exam is shorter, at 100 questions in 2 hours, so pacing practice built around the wrong format wastes prep time and can leave you rushing on exam day.

Source: DHA Healthcare Professional Licensing Assessment Guideline (CBT).

If you have come across the DHA exam pattern for MBBS doctors while researching, note that the MBBS/Physician category exam covers general medicine, surgery, and allied clinical subjects and is scored against a different passing threshold than the TCAM category. Don't prepare using MBBS-focused material if you are applying as a BAMS/Ayurveda candidate, since the question bank and clinical scope are different.

The DHA exam for doctors syllabus for the TCAM/Ayurveda category is built around your BAMS curriculum, with emphasis on:

• Fundamentals of Ayurveda (Samhita, Siddhanta)
• Dravyaguna (Ayurvedic pharmacology)
• Rasashastra and Bhaishajya Kalpana (Ayurvedic pharmaceutics)
• Kayachikitsa (internal medicine as per Ayurveda)
• Shalya and Shalakya Tantra (surgery and ENT/ophthalmology as per Ayurveda)
• Prasuti Tantra and Stri Roga (obstetrics and gynaecology)
• Swasthavritta (preventive and social medicine)
• Scope of practice and professional conduct rules for TCAM practitioners in Dubai (what you can prescribe, what you cannot sign off on, and referral obligations to allopathic doctors)

If you are wondering how to prepare for the DHA exam for doctors as a BAMS graduate, focus your revision on your core Ayurveda subjects first, then layer in DHA's specific scope-of-practice rules, since several DHA exam questions for BAMS doctors test whether you know what a TCAM practitioner is legally allowed to do in Dubai (for example, TCAM practitioners cannot alter a physician's prescription or treat communicable diseases independently).

A practical preparation approach:

• Revise your BAMS subjects using standard textbooks you already studied from, rather than generic "DHA prep" material built for MBBS doctors.
• Read DHA's published scope-of-practice document for TCAM Ayurveda practitioners at least once before your exam.
• Take timed mock tests to get used to the 100-question, 2-hour computer-based format.
• Keep your DataFlow and Sheryan documentation ready in parallel so you can avoid last-minute document pressure while studying.

Cost is usually the second-biggest question after eligibility when researching the DHA exam for BAMS doctors. Here is the fee breakup, converted at Rs. 26 per AED:

Counselor insight: The USD 180 fee applies specifically to the TCAM Ayurveda exam code, not the AED 1,080 or physician-track figures quoted on generic "DHA exam for doctors" pages, since those cover the Physician/GP exam (a different code and a higher fee). Always check the fee against your exam category on Sheryan rather than a number copied from a generic guide.

Source: DHA Healthcare Professional Licensing Assessment Guideline (CBT). The license activation amount is not separately published in the guideline; confirm the current figure on Sheryan before paying.

These figures are drawn from secondary sources rather than DHA's live fee schedule, so confirm the exact amount on your Sheryan dashboard before paying, since DataFlow and Prometric fees can be revised.

If your search also included a DHA license for Ayurvedic doctors alongside Gulf options more broadly, it helps to know that DHA (Dubai) and the TCAM-MOH exam (Oman, under that country's Ministry of Health) are separate licensing systems. Passing one does not automatically qualify you to practice under the other. Both require a BAMS degree, internship completion, and verified experience, but the application portals, fee structures, and scope-of-practice rules are specific to each authority. Decide your target country first, then apply through that authority's own portal rather than assuming a shared license.

Passing the exam is not the last step. You still need to complete license activation (the fee shown above), after which DHA issues an interim license while your physical license is processed. Only once your TCAM Ayurveda license is active can you take up a clinical role at a licensed Dubai facility.

1. Before you book the DHA exam for BAMS doctors, confirm you are applying under DHA's TCAM Ayurveda category, not the Physician/GP track, since the eligibility, syllabus, and exam pattern differ.
2. Budget both time (4 to 8 weeks for DataFlow PSV) and money (roughly Rs. 17,100 for the exam, plus about Rs. 26,000 for license activation) before you start.
3. Prepare using your BAMS subjects and DHA's TCAM scope-of-practice document rather than generic MBBS-focused DHA prep material.

Still working out your DHA exam eligibility as a BAMS graduate? Talk to a LeapScholar counselor to review your documents and plan your Dubai licensing timeline before registering with Prometric.