To entice medical experts from all over the world to work in the UK healthcare industry, the Health and Care Worker Visa was created following recorded shortages of qualified staff in certain fields.
The Health and Care Worker visa offers applicants reduced visa fees, expedited entrance into the UK, and exemption from the Immigration Health Surcharge. Additionally, it includes the assistance of a committed team from UKVI in handling visa applications for immigrants and the families that depend on them.
Who can obtain a Health and Care visa?
The Health and Care Worker visa is open to qualified physicians, nurses, medical professionals, and adult social workers. It is available to anyone who are applying for entry clearance or leave to remain through the skilled worker route and who will be accepting a job offer in one of the professions listed in a predefined list of Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes.
The following occupations are currently on the list of eligible professions, This list is sorted by the most required and it is subject to change.
| # | Eligible job roles |
| 1 | Registered General Nurses |
| 2 | Registered Mental Health Nurses |
| 3 | Doctors |
| 4 | Surgeons |
| 5 | Medical practitioners |
| 6 | Psychologists |
| 7 | Social Workers |
| 8 | Ophthalmic opticians |
| 9 | Health Care Assistants/Auxiliary Nurses |
| 10 | Operational Therapists |
Additionally, the sponsoring organization must be one of the organizations providing adult social care, an NHS body or trust, a provider of medical services to the NHS, or one of the other health and social care providers named in the official advice. The following industry organizations’ employees, participants, or members may fall under this category:
- General Optical Council
- General Chiropractic Council
- General Dental Council
- General Medical Council
- Northern Ireland Social Care Council
- Nursing and Midwifery Council
- Scottish Social Services Council
- Social Care Wales
- General Osteopathic Council
- General Pharmaceutical Council
- Health and Care Professions Council
- Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland
If you are not taking up a job role in one of the prescribed occupations for a designated organization, you will not be eligible for the new Health and Care visa, though applicants who fall outside the new visa route may still apply under the standard Skilled Worker visa arrangements.
What are the requirements for a Health and Care Worker visa?
Under the Skilled Worker visa route, Health and Care visa applicants must meet all of the following criteria:
- A valid Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) from a UK licensed sponsor
- Have a qualifying job offer that meets the relevant salary threshold.
- Funding to support yourself once you arrive in the UK.
- Have a good fluency of the English language.
- You must be able to demonstrate your ability to travel, as well as provide your travel history for the previous five years.
- Negative Tuberculosis Certificate
- International Police Report
How to Apply for a Visa as a Health and Care Worker
To apply for the Health and Care visa, your UK sponsor must first assign you a CoS. This is a one-of-a-kind reference number that you will use to apply online at the Home Office website.
After you have completed all of the required information, the next step in the application process is to pay the applicable fee (see below). You will also be required to submit a number of documents in support of your application.
When the application is received, the Home Office will review the information and documents and may offer you one of two options:
- Schedule a biometrics appointment, If it is not possible to reuse any biometrics supplied with a previous application
- You will be instructed on how to enroll biometrics using an ID app.
Supporting documentation for the Health and Care Worker visa
- As with any UK visa application, you will need to provide various supporting documents, including, where applicable, the following:
- A statement or letter from your bank or building society demonstrating that you have sufficient personal savings, unless your CoS demonstrates that your A-rated sponsor can support you instead.
- Proof of your English proficiency
- A current, valid passport or travel document proving your ability to travel
- Expired passports or travel documents that demonstrate your travel history
- If you are from a listed country, your tuberculosis test results
- A certificate of criminal record.
Can my partner or dependents accompany me to the United Kingdom?
Immediate family members are eligible to accompany or join you in the UK if you apply for a Health and Care visa. This includes any dependent children and your spouse or partner.
If you are already in the UK and want your dependents to join you, your UK sponsor must provide written confirmation that your family member is eligible based on your occupation. This should take the form of a letter or email from the sponsor, outlining the organization for which you work and, if it is not an NHS body, how the organization qualifies.
VISA Application Costs and Processing Time
The Visa processing fee varies for different skilled worker positions, but it has been subsidised because it falls under the NHS Health sector which is one of the benefits. And analysis shows thatt with a Valid COS certificate, the rejection rate is quite low. So with that in mind, it is quite safe to pay for your visa processing and commence plans for migration when successful. The avarage Visa processing cost ranges from £247 to £480 depending on if its a first time application, previously denied application, COS being issued for over 3years etc.
The processing time for Visa applications falls between 2 Days for Super Priority Visas and 21 Days for standard applications.
