Negotiations will begin with immediate effect and apply to all NHS consultants in England Northern Ireland, and junior doctors across the UK.
NHS Employers said a successful negotiation will modernise the old contracts. It will seek to remove barriers in terms and conditions that make it difficult to ensure doctors are present over more of the week.
The new contracts will also address "outdated" elements around how doctors are rewarded.
NHS Employers chief executive Dean Royles called the beginning of negotiations a "once in a generation opportunity".
"We are pleased that doctors have entered negotiations. They know employers' warnings that there is no additional funding in the NHS are not a negotiating bluff," Royles said.
"They know that there is compelling evidence to ensure more consultants are present in our hospitals during the evening and at weekends. And they know that the longer negotiations take, the more pressing the issues become.
"We hope doctors will enter the negotiations with the same pace and purpose as we will and that we make rapid progress."
The negotiations will include:
- Seeking contractual changes to facilitate seven-day services
- Reforming local and national Clinical Excellence Awards schemes.
- Reviewing pay progression to seek to enhance the provision of safe, high quality care, to reflect the professional development of the consultant and to reward a well-motivated, stable workforce while ensuring it is affordable.
- Reforming the junior doctors contract to ensure that it is safe, fair and affordable.
- Promoting professionalism and an environment where doctors in training are engaged and valued.
