The General Optical Council (Continuing Professional Development) Rules Order of Council 2021

PART 8 RESTORATION OF REGISTRATION OR ENTRY RELATING TO A SPECIALTY

Restoration of registration

26.—(1) This rule applies where the registrar has received an application for a person’s name to be restored to the register under—

(a) rule 3(1)(b) of the Registration Rules (restoration following removal by the registrar), or

(b) section 13K(1) (restoration following erasure of a name on a direction of the Fitness to Practise Committee).

(2) In the case of an application to which paragraph (1) applies, an applicant must have obtained—

(a) 12 general CPD points in the 12 months prior to the month in which the application is received, or

(b) if the first entry of the applicant’s name in the register of optometrists or in the register of dispensing opticians was made in the 12 months preceding the month in which the application is received, a number of general CPD points equivalent to the number of whole months between (and not including) the month in which that first entry was made and the month in which the application is received.

(3) The events undertaken for the purposes of obtaining the CPD points required under paragraph (2) must comply with the CPD requirements under rules 13, 14, and 15.

Restoration of entry relating to a specialty

27.—(1) This rule applies where the registrar has received an application for a person’s entry relating to a specialty to be restored to the register under—

(a) rule 4(1)(b) of the Registration Rules (restoration following removal by the registrar), or

(b) section 13K(1) (restoration following removal of an entry on a direction of the Fitness to Practise Committee).

(2) Subject to paragraph (3) in the case of an application to which paragraph (1) applies, an applicant must have obtained—

(a) 6 specialist CPD points in the 12 months prior to the month in which the application is received, or

(b) if the first entry relating to the specialty against the applicant’s name in the register of optometrists or in the register of dispensing opticians was made in the 12 months preceding the month in which the application is received, a number of specialist CPD points equivalent to half the number of whole months between (and not including) the month in which that first entry was made and the month in which the application is received.

(3) Where a person makes an application for restoration of an entry relating to more than one specialty—

(a) paragraph (2) applies as if the application was for the restoration of just one specialty, and

(b) for the purposes of paragraph (2)(b) the date of the first entry must be the earliest date upon which an entry for a specialty was made in the 12 month period preceding the month in which the application was received.

(4) If the number of specialist CPD points which must have been obtained, as determined in accordance with paragraph (2), would include any fraction of a whole number, the number of specialist CPD points which must have been obtained is the nearest whole number below the number so determined.

(5) The events undertaken for the purposes of obtaining the CPD points required under paragraph (2) must comply with the CPD requirements under rules 13, 14, and 15.