Google Reviews for Doctors in India: What the 2026 NMC Rules Allow

Last updated: 24 October 2026. This guide was rewritten after the National Medical Commission issued new advertising guidelines on 6 October 2026. Earlier versions suggested ways to ask patients for reviews; that advice no longer fits the rules.

Google reviews are still one of the first things a new patient reads about a clinic. What has changed is what a doctor may do about them. The NMC’s Guidelines on Ethical Advertising and Public Communication, effective from 6 October 2026, put patient reviews and testimonials squarely inside the advertising rules. This guide explains what that means in practice.

What the guidelines say about reviews

Three parts of the NMC public notice matter most here:

• Explanation V (clause 3.2): no doctor or hospital may solicit, buy, procure or manipulate fake, paid or misleading reviews, ratings or testimonials, and a doctor may not request or share patient testimonials, recommendations, endorsements or reviews for professional promotion on social media.
• Clause 8.1(xi): a doctor may not use or permit patients, employees, celebrities, influencers or any third party to promote their services through testimonials or endorsements, or use an intermediary to do indirectly what they cannot do directly.
• Clause 6.2: patient consent does not make a prohibited testimonial or promotional patient story acceptable.

What this means for asking patients to review you

The guidelines clearly rule out review campaigns: posting your review link on Instagram or Facebook, sending WhatsApp broadcasts asking for reviews, or offering anything in return. They do not spell out whether a quiet, neutral mention at the clinic counts as a request for promotion. The NMC can issue clarifications under clause 12, and until it does, the cautious course is not to ask patients for reviews at all.

That is a real change for clinics used to review drives. But a clinic that keeps its Google profile accurate and treats patients well will still collect reviews, because many patients leave them unprompted.

What you can still do

• Keep your Google Business Profile accurate: correct name, address, phone, hours, doctors and services.
• Reply to reviews, positive and critical, in a plain, private-minded way (see below).
• Report reviews that are fake, abusive or posted by someone who was never a patient, through Google’s own tools.
• Show your doctors’ names, qualifications and registration numbers clearly, which is what patients use to judge a clinic now that testimonials are off the table.

How to reply to reviews

Thank patients for positive reviews in a few plain words. For a critical review, stay calm, apologise for the experience where appropriate, and invite the person to contact the clinic directly. Never confirm that someone was your patient, and never discuss treatment details in a public reply. Patient privacy applies even when the patient has posted publicly.

What not to do

• Do not ask for reviews on social media or in WhatsApp broadcasts.
• Do not offer discounts, gifts or any reward for reviews.
• Do not write reviews yourself, or ask staff, family or an agency to do so.
• Do not show review screenshots, star ratings or testimonials on your website or social pages as promotion.
• Do not pay for rankings, followers or engagement on any platform.

A note for dentists

Dentists are regulated by the National Dental Commission, not the NMC, so these guidelines do not apply to them directly. The dental profession’s own code of ethics also restricts solicitation, so the same cautious approach is sensible. See our guide to digital marketing for dentists.

This article is general information, not legal advice. If you are unsure how the guidelines apply to your clinic, check with your State Medical Council or a lawyer.