<p>Feedback is an essential learning tool in the professional development of doctors. Its importance extends from the undergraduate years to the advanced stages of medical practice. However, there are many barriers that prevent learners and teachers from engaging in the feedback process. In contrast to the traditional model of feedback as ‘given by teachers’ and learners expected to passively receive and use it, feedback literacy places the responsibility on learners. It is gained by constant, purposeful and coherent iterative practice. The development of medical competencies is a multi-layered process during which the learners’ skills in feedback literacy (seeking, generating, processing and acting on feedback) and self-reflection become progressively sophisticated. Trainers themselves need to possess a high level of feedback literacy to effectively support learners. To maximise the powerful impact of feedback on achievement, feedback literacy should be embedded throughout the trajectory of competency-based medical education.</p>