Health and Care Worker visa
The Health and Care Visa is for healthcare professionals and workers from around the world to come to work in the UK health and social care sector.
For applicants, the Health and Care Worker visa benefits include fast-tracked entry to the UK, reduced visa fees, and exemption from the Immigration Health Surcharge. It also includes the support of a dedicated team within UKVI in processing visa applications for migrants and their dependent families.
In early 2023, the UK government announced £15 million in funding to help health and care sector employers hire from overseas under the Health and Care worker route.
In this guide, we look at the essential requirements for the Health and Care visa, including eligibility criteria and the application process, Health & Care visa costs and processing times.
The Health and Care Visa: What is It?
The Health and Care visa allows qualified foreign employees with specialised skills to enter the UK and work for authorised firms in certain positions. Specific healthcare professionals, including physicians, registered nurses, chemists, and carers for adults, are eligible for the visa.
By providing an inviting pathway for foreign nationals to come to the UK for employment and be joined by immediate family members, with the opportunity to reside in the UK permanently, the visa is aimed to assist in solving the skills problem within the UK healthcare industry.
Successful candidates may work in the UK for up to five years and request their visa extended as often as they'd like, providing they continue to meet the requirements.
After five years, those on Health and Care visas may also apply for UK indefinite leave to stay. With ILR status, you may change companies and jobs without needing to apply for extra visas since you are no longer subject to UK immigration control and are not constrained by visa sponsorship regulations.
Who is eligible for the Health and Care visa?
Qualified doctors, nurses, health professionals and adult social care professionals can apply for the Health and Care Worker visa.
It is open to individuals applying under the skilled worker route for entry clearance or leave to remain who will be taking up a job offer in one of the occupations specified within a prescribed list of Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes.
Before determining if your occupation is eligible, you must have its four-digit occupation code.
Ask your employer for the occupation code if you already have a job offer.
The list of eligible professions is subject to change and, at present, includes the following:
4-digit SOC code |
Eligible job roles |
| 1181 | Health services and public health managers and directors |
| 1242 | Residential, day and domiciliary care managers and proprietors |
| 2112 | Biological scientists and biochemists |
| 2113 | Physical scientists |
| 2211 | Medical practitioners |
| 2212 | Psychologists |
| 2213 | Pharmacists |
| 2214 | Ophthalmic opticians |
| 2215 | Dental practitioners |
| 2217 | Medical radiographers |
| 2218 | Podiatrists |
| 2219 | Health professionals not elsewhere classified, e.g. audiologists, and occupational health advisers |
| 2221 | Physiotherapists |
| 2222 | Occupational therapists |
| 2223 | Speech and language therapists |
| 2229 | Therapy professionals not elsewhere classified, e.g. osteopaths and psychotherapists |
| 2231 | Nurses |
| 2232 | Midwives |
| 2442 | Social workers |
| 3111 | Laboratory technicians |
| 3213 | Paramedics |
| 3216 | Dispensing opticians |
| 3217 | Pharmaceutical technicians |
| 3218 | Medical and dental technicians |
| 3219 | Health associate professionals not elsewhere classified |
| 6141 | Nursing auxiliaries and assistants |
| 6143 | Dental nurses |
| 6145 | Care workers & home carers |
| 6146 | Senior care workers |
As well as the role coming under one of the above SOC categories, an applicant must also have been offered employment from a licenced sponsor to qualify for the visa. The sponsoring organisation must also be an NHS body or trust, a medical services provider to the NHS, an organisation providing adult social care, or one of several other medical and social care organisations listed in the official guidance. This could include, for example, someone who is employed or engaged by, or registered with one of the following industry bodies:
- General Chiropractic Council
- General Dental Council
- General Medical Council
- General Optical Council
- General Osteopathic Council
- General Pharmaceutical Council
- Health and Care Professions Council
- Northern Ireland Social Care Council
- Nursing and Midwifery Council
- Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland
- Scottish Social Services Council
- Social Care Wales
If your UK sponsor is a private organisation that provides healthcare services commissioned by the NHS, an explanation and possibly documentary evidence of the contractual arrangements with the NHS will also need to be provided as proof of your eligibility for a Health and Care Worker visa.
Health and Care visa or Skilled Worker visa?
While the Skilled Worker visa is open to workers in eligible occupations across many areas of the economy, the Health and Care Worker Visa is limited explicitly to medical professionals and individuals working in eligible health and care roles.
Suppose you must take up a job role in a prescribed occupation for a designated organisation. In that case, you will not be eligible for the new Health and Care visa. However, it remains open to applicants who fall outside the visa requirements to apply under the Skilled Worker visa, provided they meet the visa criteria.
There are many advantages to the Health and Care route over the Skilled Worker visa, including fast-tracked processing of visa applications, lower application fees and an exemption from the Immigration Health Surcharge.
What are the Health and Care Worker visa requirements?
The Health and Care visa applicants have to meet all the relevant criteria under the Skilled Worker visa route, which are:
- Have a valid Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) from a UK-licensed sponsor
- Have the offer of a qualifying job that meets the relevant salary threshold
- In some cases, to have sufficient personal savings so that you can support yourself on arrival in the UK
- Have an excellent working knowledge of the English language
- Be able to show that you can travel, as well as provide your travel history over the preceding five years
- Have valid tuberculosis test results, if you are from a listed country
- Be able to provide a criminal record certificate from any country where you have lived for 12 months or more within the last ten years if you will be working with vulnerable people as a healthcare professional.
As a prospective employee, your new employer will be responsible for informing you that you are eligible for the Health and Care Worker visa. In this way, you can correctly complete the visa application form. Your employer will also need to provide a brief explanation in the note field of the CoS, setting out how you will meet the eligible visa role requirement in your new job.
Health and care worker visa minimum salary
As part of the eligibility criteria, you must meet the salary requirement. This means you must be paid at least the minimum salary threshold or the appropriate ‘going rate’ for the job you have been offered, whichever is higher. The Home Office assigns every eligible role a going rate.
Typically, you will be required to earn at least £26,200 per year or £10.75 per hour. If the going rate for your role is more significant than both, you will be required to be paid at least the going rate.
For example, if the role's salary is £25,000 per year, but the going rate is £26,800, you would not meet the salary requirement.
In some cases, you may still be able to apply for a Health and Care visa even if your salary is lower than the required level. The rules allow you to be paid between 70% – 90% of the going rate for your position if you earn at least £20,480 annually and one of the following applies:
- You have an offer for a job in a shortage occupation
- You are under 26 and are studying, a recent graduate or in professional training
- You have a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) PhD relevant to the job you have been offered
- Your role is a postdoctoral scientific position
Maintenance requirement
Some applicants will also have evidence that they can financially support themselves. If you are applying from overseas, you must prove you have had £1,270 in your bank account for at least 28 consecutive days. Day 28 must be within 31 days of the date you applied for your visa.
You will be exempt from this financial requirement if you are applying from within the UK and have held a valid visa for at least 12 months, or if your sponsor is A-rated, it may submit a letter of support confirming they can cover your costs for the first month you are in the country.
English language requirement
Unless you are exempt, for example, because you are a national of a majority English-speaking country, to prove your knowledge of English, you will usually need to show that you have passed an approved English language test with at least CEFR level B1 in reading, writing, speaking and listening, or have an academic qualification that was taught in English and is recognised by UK NARIC as being equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree, master’s degree or PhD.
If you are applying as a doctor, dentist, nurse or midwife, you can rely on the assessment of your professional body as proof of your language ability.
How to apply for the Health and Care Worker visa
To apply for the Health and Care visa, your UK sponsor must assign you a CoS. You use This unique reference number to apply online on the Home Office website.
Once you have completed all the relevant information, the next stage of the application process is to pay the appropriate fee (see below). Please provide various documents for your application.
On receipt of the application, the Home Office will assess the information and documents, and you may be offered either:
- book a biometrics appointment if it is not possible to reuse any biometrics supplied with a previous application, or
- you will be advised how to enrol biometrics using an ID app.
Health and Care Worker visa supporting documents.
As with any UK visa application, you will need to provide various documents and information in support, including, where relevant, the following:
- A current, valid passport or travel document to prove you can travel
- Any expired passports or travel documents to show your travel history
- Your Certificate of Sponsorship (reference number) from your employer
- Your employer’s name and sponsor licence reference number
- Job details, including job title, SOC code and salary
- A statement or letter from your bank or building society showing you have enough personal savings unless your CoS shows your A-rated sponsor can support you instead
- Proof of your knowledge of English
- Your tuberculosis test results if you are from a listed country
- A criminal record certificate, unless your role is exempt
- If you are applying with dependants, proof of your relationship, such as your marriage certificate for your spouse and birth certificates for your children
Can my partner or dependents join me in the UK?
When applying for a Health and Care visa, immediate family members will be eligible to accompany or join you in the UK on this route. This includes your spouse or partner and any dependent children.
Suppose you are already in the UK and want your dependents to join you. In that case, your UK sponsor must provide written confirmation that your family member is eligible based on your occupation. This should be in the form of a letter or email from the sponsor, setting out the organisation you work for and, if not an NHS body, how the organisation qualifies.
What are the Health and Care Worker visa costs?
The Health and Care visa comes with a reduced visa application fee compared to that paid by other skilled workers.
The fees apply to applicants and dependents and are the same for leave to enter the UK or to remain in the UK to those who qualify under this visa.
| Health and Care Worker visa applications made outside the UK | |
| Skilled Worker – Health and Care Visa – where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for three years or less – principal applicant and dependants | £247 |
| Skilled Worker – Health and Care Visa – where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for over three years – principal applicant and dependants | £479 |
| Skilled Worker – Shortage Occupation – Health and Care Visa – where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for three years or less – principal applicant and dependants | £247 |
| Skilled Worker – Shortage Occupation – Health and Care Visa – where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for over three years – principal applicant and dependants | £479 |
| Health and Care visa applications made within the UK | |
| Skilled Worker – Health and Care Worker Visa – where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for three years or less – principal applicant and dependants | £247 |
| Skilled Worker – Health and Care Visa – where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for over three years -principal applicant and dependants | £479 |
| Skilled Worker – Shortage Occupation – Health and Care Visa – where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for three years or less – principal applicant and dependants | £247 |
| Skilled Worker – Shortage Occupation – Health and Care Visa – where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for over three years – principal applicant and dependants | £479 |
The reduced visa fees also apply to dependants.
Applicants and dependants eligible to apply under this visa are exempt from paying the Immigration Health Surcharge.
Frontline health and social care workers who are not eligible for the new Health and Care Visa will pay the Immigration Health Surcharge but should benefit from a reimbursement scheme. This is in recognition of the contribution of those who have come to the UK to work during the pandemic.
What are the Health and Care visa processing times?
Upon receipt, your Health and Care Worker visa application will be prioritised and fast-tracked by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI).
As a result, most healthcare professionals applying on this route can usually expect a decision on their application within three weeks from the date they provide their biometric information. This is substantially quicker than the current timeframe for skilled worker visa processing, which can be 8-20 weeks. However, UKVI processing does continue to be subject to delays following the pandemic and prioritisation of Ukrainian scheme applications, so it is recommended to take advice on current processing times when making your application.
Support is also available through a dedicated NHS support and visa processing team, enabling visa applicants and sponsors to contact UKVI’s specialist team if they have any issues with the application process or eligibility for the Health and Care visa.
Taking on additional work or a second job
In February 2023, the Home Office removed the 20-hour cap on extra work for sponsored workers with a Health and Care Visa.
Typically, sponsored employees are permitted to work in their primary sponsored role and up to 20 hours of additional work. Supplemental employment must be in the same profession and professional level as the primary or shortage occupation. Additional employment is not required to be with a licenced sponsor, and the Home Office is not required to be notified of the additional role.
Health and Care Visa holders are now permitted to work in supplementary employment for more than 20 hours per week, provided any hours worked beyond 20 are in a position that qualifies for a Health and Care Visa. If the worker already possesses a Health and Care visa, they will not be required to file for a visa change or notify the Home Office.
The change relates exclusively to Skilled Workers with a Health and Care Visa, such as qualified doctors, registered nurses, health professionals, and health and care professionals employed in adult social care.
Under the latest guidance, Health and Care Worker visa holders can take on a second, or additional, work or employment while in the UK, provided they continue to work in their sponsored role for their sponsor. Still, they may, in some circumstances, have to apply to update their visa to account for this change in status.
Health and Care Workers will not need to update their visas if:
- Their additional job also qualifies under the Health and Care Worker route – in which case, there are no restrictions on the hours they can work in this role.
- Their additional job is on the Shortage Occupation List – in which case, they can work up to 20 hours a week without updating their visa.
- Their additional job is an unpaid, voluntary role.
As such, Health and Care Workers will need to apply to the Home Office to update their visa if the additional role is not a Health and Care Worker or Shortage Occupation List role or if they intend to work more than 20 hours a week in an additional role which is on the Shortage Occupation List.
The worker must be assigned a new Certificate of Sponsorship from their second employer and provide supplementary information to the Home Office detailing why they want to change their current working status and permission.
The exemption is effective for six months and will be reassessed in August 2023. Current guidance indicates that the exemption will expire on 27 August 2023, when all Skilled Workers, including Health and Care visa holders, will be limited to 20 hours of extra work per week without the requirement to update their visa, provided the second role is either in the same occupation code and at the same level as their primary job or is on the Shortage Occupation List.
Changing jobs with a Health and Care visa
Health and Care workers must notify the Home Office when they change jobs or employers by applying to update their visas.
Specifically, you have to update your visa if:
- You are starting a new job with a new employer
- You are starting a new job which has a different occupation code to what is on your Certificate of Sponsorship, and you are not working as part of a graduate training programme
- You will no longer be working in a shortage occupation role – this refers to leaving a job on the shortage list and starting a job not on the list. It does not refer to when the government takes a role on the shortage list.
Can you extend your Health and Care Visa?
Health and Care visas are granted for up to five years. To remain in the UK lawfully, you may need to apply to extend your visa before it expires.
You can apply for an extension provided you continue to be eligible under the visa requirements. This means that you continue to be employed by the same sponsor that issued your current Certificate of Sponsorship, that you are still employed in the same role with the same occupation code as per your previous visa application, and that you continue to satisfy the salary threshold requirement.
After five years in the UK, you may wish to apply to settle under Indefinite Leave to Remain rather than applying to extend your status.
If your family are with you in the UK with dependant visas, they too will need to apply for an extension and how they continue to be eligible as dependants or apply for ILR before their visa expires.
Applying for ILR with a Health and Care visa
Health and Care workers who have lived in the UK for five years under the visa or in combination with other permitted work visa categories can become eligible to apply for ILR. You will be able to include time spent with lawful status under any combination of the following visas:
- Any Tier 1 visa – except Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur)
- Skilled Worker or Tier 2 (General)
- Health and Care
- Scale-up Worker
- T2 Minister of Religion or Tier 2 (Minister of Religion)
- International Sportsperson, T2 Sportsperson or Tier 2 (Sportsperson)
- Innovator
- Global Talent
- Representative of an Overseas Business
Your qualifying period begins on the date your initial application for entry clearance or leave to remain was approved. You can apply for ILR 28 days before the 5-year qualifying period expires.
Health and Care workers use the SET (O) application form for ILR. You will need to show that you meet the UK ILR requirements, which include:
- Living and working in the UK for a minimum of five years immediately preceding the date of your application
- Spending no more than 180 days outside the UK in any consecutive 12-month period during the qualifying five-year period of UK residence
- Continuing to be sponsored by your employer
- Continuing to meet the minimum salary threshold
- Passing the Life in the UK test
- Meeting the English language requirement
- Not failing under the general grounds for refusal
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