RACGP Exam Dates: 2026 Sitting Calendar and Deadlines

Current RACGP exam dates for 2026 and 2027, including AKT, KFP, and CCE sitting windows, enrolment deadlines, and where to check official updates.

3 September 2026

You’re probably staring at the RACGP (Royal Australian College of General Practitioners) exam dates page with a roster open in another tab, trying to work out which sitting you can still enter and whether your hospital term will survive the enrolment cutoff. That’s the right problem to solve. The sitting weekend matters, but the enrolment deadline is the date that can make or break your plan.

The mistake most registrars make is treating the calendar like a list of exam weekends. It isn’t. It’s a timeline of commitments, with AKT (Applied Knowledge Test), KFP (Key Feature Problems), and CCE (Clinical Competency Exam) each running on different lead times, different delivery formats, and different leave implications. If you get that wrong, you end up negotiating roster swaps too late, or worse, missing the enrolment window and losing a whole semester.

Where things stand as this page was last checked (September 2026): the January 2026 and July 2026 AKT/KFP sittings, and the June 2026 CCE, have already been held. Enrolment for the November 2026 CCE closed on 31 August 2026. The window that is actually open for new enrolments right now is the January 2027 AKT/KFP cycle, covered below — RACGP opened enrolment for it on 3 September 2026 and it closes 1 October 2026. Always confirm current status on RACGP’s own exam dates and enrolments page before you act, because a calendar page like this one goes stale the moment a new cycle opens.

Table of Contents

• Planning Your RACGP Exam Year
• How the RACGP Exam Calendar Took Shape
  • What that means for candidates
• The Three Fellowship Exams at a Glance
  • Fast locator for each exam
• 2026 AKT and KFP Sitting and Enrolment Dates
  • The dates that actually matter
• 2026 CCE Delivery and Enrolment Dates
  • Why the whole block matters
• Enrolment Lead Times You Need to Plan Around
  • Work backwards from the cutoff, not the exam day
• Why the Calendar Is Biannual and What 2027 Looks Like
• Local Venue, 11am Sitting, and Other Date Traps
  • The three things people forget
• Regional and Pathway Variations Worth Knowing
  • Check your pathway before you rely on the standard calendar
• Quick Reference for the Next 12 Months
• Where to Check Official RACGP Updates
  • Keep your sources tight
• Common RACGP Exam Timing Questions Answered

Planning Your RACGP Exam Year

If you’re in a GPT3 or CGT-style placement year, start planning your RACGP exam year from the first week of the term, not after your current rotation settles. The college schedule is built around two sittings a year for the written components and two sittings a year for the clinical component, so your job is to decide early which semester you’re targeting and then work backwards from there. That means leave, study blocks, and roster requests all need to be anchored to the enrolment cutoff, not the sitting weekend.

If you’re in a hospital-heavy term, you need even more lead time than someone with a flexible general practice placement. Your roster is usually harder to move, and if your term includes nights, relief shifts, or ward cover, you won’t want to discover a clash after the college has already closed enrolments. The practical move is simple, lock in your preferred semester, then protect the two or three weeks around your study peak before the exam.

Practical rule: if you haven’t checked the enrolment date, you haven’t actually planned the exam.

Use this article as a side-by-side map of when you must act and when you’ll sit. That matters more than any single weekend because the college doesn’t care when your leave request went in, it cares whether your enrolment landed before the published deadline. If you’re still working through your training pathway choices, the structure of the Australian GP training system is worth reading alongside this plan, and the overview at CliniRoo’s RACGP basic training guide is a useful companion while you map your year.

How the RACGP Exam Calendar Took Shape

The current biannual RACGP exam structure didn’t appear out of nowhere. RACGP’s own historical timeline records the college’s founding council meeting in March 1958, its first open college examination in 1968, and the granting of its Royal Charter on 24 March 1969. That history matters because it explains why the calendar is formal, scheduled, and conservative rather than ad hoc. RACGP historical timeline

The exam system now works as a set of linked assessment parts rather than one big end-of-training hurdle. AKT and KFP sit together in their own written testing rhythm, while CCE runs as a separate clinical event across two consecutive weekends in each semester. That split is not cosmetic. It reflects the operational reality of running written assessment, marking, and clinical circuits at scale across Australia.

What that means for candidates

The college now has to run two separate planning problems each semester. Written exams need seat allocation and controlled delivery windows. Clinical exams need examiners, simulated patients, and venues lined up on fixed weekends. That is why candidates should expect enrolment windows to close well before the sitting date, rather than at the last minute.

The useful insight is this. The calendar is not designed around candidate convenience, it’s designed around administrative and assessment logistics. Once you accept that, the behaviour becomes predictable, and your planning gets easier. You stop asking, “When is the exam weekend?” and start asking, “When does the college need my enrolment, and what does that mean for leave?”

The Three Fellowship Exams at a Glance

AKT, KFP, and CCE are three different problems, so treat them differently. AKT is the Applied Knowledge Test, KFP is the Key Feature Problem exam, and CCE is the Clinical Competency Exam. The calendar only becomes useful when you stop lumping them together.

Fast locator for each exam

AKT is the one to read first if you need a fixed written sitting and a clear test-centre booking process. KFP usually follows the same written cycle, so if you’re preparing for one, you should assume the other sits nearby in the same semester. CCE is the one that needs the most calendar protection, because it runs over two weekends and brings a separate venue allocation process.

AKT and KFP are the easiest to underestimate because they look like “just another written exam” until you realise the booking process and sitting window are fixed in advance. CCE is the easiest to over-simplify because people talk about it as one weekend, when the actual commitment is the full two-weekend block. If you’ve ever tried to juggle placements and leave approvals, you already know why that distinction matters.

You don’t plan these exams around revision alone. You plan them around the calendar rules that control access to the exam itself.

2026 AKT and KFP Sitting and Enrolment Dates

For 2026, RACGP’s published timetable ran AKT on 16 January 2026 and 3 July 2026, with KFP on 17 January 2026 and 4 July 2026. Both of those sittings have now taken place — they’re included here as context for how the calendar behaves, not as a decision you still need to make. Official RACGP exam dates and enrolments page

The one that matters if you’re reading this now is the 2027.1 cycle: RACGP has confirmed AKT on 15 January 2027 and KFP on 16 January 2027, with enrolment open from 9am AEST (Australian Eastern Standard Time) on 3 September 2026 and closing 11:59pm AEST on 1 October 2026. That’s a live, currently-open enrolment window, not a forecast. Official RACGP exam dates and enrolments page

The dates that actually matter

The sitting weekend is only one part of the timeline. The enrolment cutoff controls whether you can enter the booking process. Once that cutoff passes, a late request is unlikely to rescue poor planning.

Official RACGP exam dates and enrolments page — the only source with current-cycle cutoff dates; a cycle that has already run typically drops off this page, which is why the 2026.1 cutoff above can’t be re-verified from RACGP’s live calendar.

If you’re planning against the 2027.1 cycle, put leave requests in before your hospital term is locked and well ahead of the 1 October 2026 cutoff.

The AKT and KFP exam-day guidance states that candidates select a preferred location at enrolment and receive a venue confirmation email approximately six weeks before the exam, and that both exams start at 11am local time at the assigned venue. Your location and sitting time therefore depend on the completed booking, not a later informal arrangement. RACGP general exam delivery information

For preparation material suited to a registrar schedule, CliniRoo’s exam preparation guide can support structured work before a fixed sitting window.

2026 CCE Delivery and Enrolment Dates

You cannot plan CCE around one exam day. The Clinical Competency Exam runs across two consecutive weekends each semester, and candidates should keep both weekends available until the RACGP allocates individual sessions. RACGP’s own 2026.1 CCE exam report confirms that cycle ran on 13, 14, 20 and 21 June 2026 — already held. The 2026.2 CCE is scheduled for 7 to 8 November and 14 to 15 November 2026; its enrolment window ran from 30 July 2026 to 31 August 2026 and has now closed, though the sitting itself is still ahead. Official RACGP exam dates and enrolments page

Why the whole block matters

CCE enrolment commits you to the full two-weekend assessment block. The college allocates sessions and venue details after enrolment, so do not request leave for only the weekend you expect to attend. RACGP’s own CCE page describes it as an online exam delivered via Zoom, made up of nine clinical cases across two consecutive weekends, with session details provided closer to the sitting. RACGP Clinical Competency Exam page

The cutoff matters more than the weekend itself. CCE requires examiner rosters, simulated patient coordination, and preparation of the online assessment process. Those arrangements explain why enrolment closes before delivery and why a late decision can leave you waiting for the next cycle.

For roster planning, protect both weekends in your leave request, then confirm your allocated session when the college releases it. If you are comparing pathways or working out how CCE fits into your broader training year, CliniRoo’s page on medical specialties in Australia provides relevant Australian specialty context. Check the Official RACGP exam dates and enrolments page for the current enrolment windows and any later updates.

Enrolment Lead Times You Need to Plan Around

The cleanest way to think about RACGP timing is simple, enrol first, sit later. But don’t plan against a rule-of-thumb gap — the real gap between enrolment closing and the sitting date has varied by cycle. For AKT/KFP, enrolment closed 23 April 2026 for the 3–4 July 2026 sitting (around ten weeks), and closes 1 October 2026 for the 15–16 January 2027 sitting (around fifteen weeks). For CCE, enrolment closed 31 August 2026 for the 7 November 2026 delivery weekend (around ten weeks). Always check the cutoff for your specific cycle on RACGP’s exam dates and enrolments page rather than counting backwards from the sitting date — the gap is not fixed, and working from a wrong assumed lead time is exactly how a candidate misses the real cutoff.

Work backwards from the cutoff, not the exam day

Here’s the mistake that catches registrars again and again. Someone circles the exam weekend, books annual leave near the sitting, then realises the enrolment closed weeks earlier. By then, the roster is set, the booking system is shut, and they’re staring at the next semester.

The reason for the different lead times is straightforward. Written exams need seat allocation and capacity balancing, while CCE needs a clinical circuit built from scratch. That means the written components are about venue access, and CCE is about staffing the assessment itself.

Practical rule: once the enrolment window opens, check your roster and submit leave before you get comfortable with the study plan.

If you’re trying to keep prep structured, a resource that mirrors exam timing can help. The point isn’t to cram harder. It’s to organise study into blocks that match the actual deadline, not the weekend you’d prefer.

Why the Calendar Is Biannual and What 2027 Looks Like

The practical planning rule is two linked deadlines: enrolment first, sitting second. The twice-yearly pattern reflects the college’s need to manage candidate volume, marking turnaround, and clinical exam logistics. AKT and KFP require controlled question delivery and marking, while CCE requires examiners, role players, and venues across a clinical circuit.

That structure gives registrars a reliable training rhythm. Supervisors can anticipate leave requests, hospitals can prepare for roster changes, and candidates can build revision blocks around a known cycle. Miss one semester, however, and the practical consequence is a wait for the next full sitting cycle, not a spare exam weekend.

The published 2027 timetable confirms 2027.1 AKT on 15 January 2027 and 2027.1 KFP on 16 January 2027 — enrolment is open now and closes 1 October 2026. RACGP describes the 2027.1 CCE as expected in June 2027, with specific dates still to be finalised and due to be published before the end of 2026 — treat that one as a planning signal, not a confirmed date. Confirm the final details on the Official RACGP exam dates and enrolments page.

The practical rule is simple. Treat the calendar as a recurring annual planning system, then choose your target semester before enrolment opens. Put the sitting date, study blocks, leave request, and roster discussion on one plan. The exam weekend matters, but the earlier enrolment cutoff determines whether you can enter that cycle at all.

Local Venue, 11am Sitting, and Other Date Traps

The biggest trap is assuming RACGP dates are just a weekend you can circle in isolation. They aren’t. The college materials make clear that candidates are assigned a local venue, and AKT and KFP are delivered in a way that means you’re not choosing a casual seat somewhere convenient to your friends. Your exam location is part of the booking system, not a negotiable preference.

The three things people forget

First, local venue assignment matters because it can change your commute and your leave timing. Second, the 11am local-time sitting rule for AKT and KFP means your day can start very differently depending on where you live. RACGP general exam delivery information Third — and this is an inference from the twice-yearly cadence rather than a directly quoted RACGP resit policy — AKT and KFP are only offered twice a year, so a missed or failed sitting is not something you resit inside the same semester; it pushes you into the next scheduled cycle. Confirm the exact rules for special consideration and deferral on RACGP’s Fellowship exams hub (see “Sitting your exams” > “Special arrangements”) before assuming this applies to your situation.

Don’t plan study leave around the day you’d like to sit. Plan it around the rules that control when you can actually enter the exam.

CCE has its own misconception problem. People sometimes talk as if the two weekends are interchangeable, but they’re not a spare duplicate sitting. They’re part of the same scheduled assessment block, and missing your assigned weekend doesn’t magically move you into the other one. The right move is to read the candidate handbook and sitting rules before you commit to any roster change.

Regional and Pathway Variations Worth Knowing

Not every registrar follows the exact same administrative path, even when the broad RACGP exam dates look identical on paper. Rural Pathway candidates — one of the two pathways on the Australian General Practice Training (AGPT) program, alongside the general pathway — generally sit the same AKT, KFP, and CCE calendar, but their placement blocks can make early leave approval more important.

Check your pathway before you rely on the standard calendar

International Medical Graduate (IMG — a doctor who trained outside Australia) candidates need to make sure comparability and eligibility steps are complete before enrolment closes, because eligibility is not something you want to discover too late. RACGP’s Fellowship Support Program is specifically an IMG pathway — a self-funded route to Fellowship for non-vocationally-registered doctors — so treat it as part of the IMG eligibility picture rather than a separate track. RACGP Fellowship Support Program

One claim worth correcting here: RACGP does not have a “New Zealand Faculty” — its nine faculties are all Australian. New Zealand-based general practice training runs through a separate college, the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners (RNZCGP), which has its own exam calendar. If you are training under RACGP’s fellowship (rather than RNZCGP’s) while based in New Zealand, you sit the same national AKT/KFP/CCE calendar as every other RACGP candidate — check your specific arrangement directly with RACGP rather than assuming a separate structure exists. If you’re in a remediation situation, you may be offered an off-cycle sitting in limited circumstances, but those dates aren’t part of the public standard calendar and need direct contact with the exams team.

The smartest habit is to verify your own pathway directly with RACGP before you start building a study calendar. A general rule that works for most registrars can still fail you if your admin route is slightly different, and that’s exactly how people lose a sitting they thought they had covered.

Quick Reference for the Next 12 Months

Use this as the one-page version of the calendar as it stood in September 2026. The point is not just the sitting weekend, it’s the date you must act by — so this table is split into what’s already gone and what you can still act on. Re-check the official page before relying on any row, because the live cycle changes as soon as RACGP opens the next one.

The pattern is obvious once it’s laid out properly. Written exams close well before the sitting, and CCE closes on its own separate timetable. That’s why so many candidates get caught out, they plan from the weekend backwards instead of from the enrolment cutoff forwards. Right now, the only cutoff still in front of you is 1 October 2026, for the January 2027 AKT and KFP sittings.

Where to Check Official RACGP Updates

Check your RACGP Enrolments portal login for your personal status, submitted forms, and any changes tied to your own application. Check the RACGP exam dates and enrolments page for published calendars and cutoff dates. Check the RACGP member enewsletter for short-notice venue or rule changes, because that’s often where operational changes appear first.

Keep your sources tight

gplearning and state faculty email lists can also surface local disruption notices earlier than a generic internet search. That matters if you’re trying to resolve a clash with a roster, a placement change, or a leave request. Third-party summaries are useful, but the portal is the source of record when the answer has real consequences.

If the official page and a blog post disagree, trust the official page. That’s not a minor preference, it’s the difference between a confirmed sitting and a cancelled plan.

Common RACGP Exam Timing Questions Answered

Late enrolments aren’t accepted after the cutoff, except under documented special consideration. Deferrals move you to a later sitting, but they don’t give you a free pass to ignore the deadline. Fees are handled through the enrolment process, so don’t assume a late decision will be simple to unwind.

Remediation sittings can sit outside the standard public calendar in limited circumstances, which is why direct contact with the exams team matters if you’re in that position. For normal planning, assume the published biannual cycle is the one you’re working to. That keeps your leave, revision, and roster requests honest.

If you’re building preparation blocks, use the four weeks before the written sitting as your high-intensity phase for KFP-style work, then taper around the actual booking and leave dates rather than the weekend itself. That’s the difference between feeling “busy” and being organised.

CliniRoo is building registrar-facing exam prep for written and clinical assessment on the Australian training pathway — the same planning mindset you need for RACGP dates, enrolment cutoffs, and study blocks. Nothing is on sale yet. If you want to be told when there is something to use, CliniRoo takes an email address and does nothing else with it.