Some doctors have been slugged with double registration fees and pushed into financial stress because AHPRA refused to introduce pro-rata fees, an investigation by the National Health Practitioner Ombudsman claims.

The investigation was prompted by complaints from three doctors.

The issue is simply that if a doctor needs to be registered a few months before the September annual renewal date, they still have to pay for the full year, usually around $1000 for most doctors.

But then they are hit with another fee to be registered after the renewal date.