The removal of the bereavement exclusion criterion from major depressive disorder (MDD) in the 5th edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders generated concerns of over-diagnosing grief. Eight Australian General Practitioners (GPs) were interviewed to explore their application of MDD criteria to recently-bereaved individuals. Thematic analysis found GPs were unaware of the change and reluctant to apply MDD criteria two weeks post-bereavement. Depressive symptoms were viewed as natural grief, with diagnostic labels seen as unnecessary for patient-centered care. Our findings suggest new MDD criteria not being strictly applied by GPs, or no anticipated over-inflation of MDD diagnoses post-bereavement.