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United Kingdom

Work in the UK as an overseas doctor, nurse or AHP (2026)

The UK recruits doctors, nurses and allied health professionals from around the world. Here is the route, in order: registration, English, job offer, visa and pay.

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Overview

To work in the UK as an internationally trained health professional you need three things, usually in this order: registration with the regulator for your profession (the GMC, NMC, GDC, GPhC or HCPC), a job offer from a Home Office approved employer, and a Health and Care Worker visa, which costs £324 for up to three years or £628 for longer and exempts you and your family from the Immigration Health Surcharge.

The UK is one of the most common destinations for internationally trained health professionals. Most work in the NHS, which is publicly funded and free at the point of use for most services, and a smaller number work for private hospitals, clinics and care providers. The UK has a dedicated visa for health and care staff, the Health and Care Worker visa, which is cheaper than the standard work visa and exempts you and your family from the Immigration Health Surcharge.

This page is for you if you qualified outside the UK as a doctor, nurse, midwife, dentist, pharmacist or allied health professional (such as a physiotherapist, radiographer or paramedic) and want to work in the UK. It gives you the big picture. The regulator pages and profession pages on this site go into the detail for each profession.

The route has a fixed order. You first register with the professional regulator for your profession, which usually means proving your English, having your qualification assessed and, for some professions, passing exams. You then get a job offer from an employer that is licensed by the Home Office to sponsor workers, receive a certificate of sponsorship, and apply for your visa. Many employers start recruiting while your registration is still in progress, but you cannot practise under a protected title until you are registered.

What makes the UK different is that regulation is profession by profession and UK-wide. The General Medical Council registers doctors, the Nursing and Midwifery Council registers nurses, midwives and nursing associates, the General Dental Council registers dental professionals, the General Pharmaceutical Council registers pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, and the Health and Care Professions Council registers 15 allied health and care professions. Each sets its own English requirements, fees and assessment process.

Pay for most NHS staff other than doctors and dentists follows the Agenda for Change pay bands, so salaries are transparent and published. Your band depends on the job, not on your nationality, and pay progresses with time in the band. Settlement is also possible: after 5 years on a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa you may be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain if you meet the requirements.

Profession guides

The route for your profession in the United Kingdom: regulator, exams, fees and pay.

The health system

The NHS is run separately in each of the four nations: NHS England, NHS Scotland, NHS Wales and Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland. Professional regulation is UK-wide, so one registration lets you practise in any of the four nations.

In England, most NHS jobs are with NHS trusts (hospital, community, mental health and ambulance services). GP practices, community pharmacies and dental practices often provide NHS services under contract while being independent businesses.

The private (independent) sector includes private hospitals, clinics, diagnostic centres and care homes. Some private providers can sponsor visas, and organisations providing medical services to the NHS or adult social care can sponsor Health and Care Worker visas.

Agenda for Change is the national pay system under the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service. Jobs are placed in bands 1 to 9 (band 1 is closed to new entrants), and each band has set pay points. Doctors and dentists are paid under separate medical and dental contracts.

NHS Employers publishes the Agenda for Change pay scales after each year's pay award. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland make their own pay decisions, so figures there can differ from the scales on this page.

Staff working in and around London receive a High Cost Area Supplement on top of basic pay, at inner London, outer London and fringe rates.

Hospitals in the United Kingdom

Careers, pay and how to apply at hospitals that hire internationally trained staff.

Regulators in the United Kingdom

The route, step by step

  1. 1. Check that your profession is regulated and that you are eligible

    Find the regulator for your profession and read its international route. Most regulators require a recognised qualification gained outside the UK, current registration or good standing where you practise, and evidence of your training. Check the exact eligibility for your profession before you spend money on tests, because some qualifications are not accepted at all.

  2. 2. Prove your English

    Each regulator sets its own English requirement. Most accept IELTS and many accept OET, but scores and rules differ by regulator and profession, and test certificates usually expire after two years. Book early, because retakes and waiting for results are a common source of delay.

  3. 3. Have your qualification assessed and pass any required exams

    Depending on your profession, the regulator assesses your documents (as the HCPC does) or requires exams. For example, many international doctors take PLAB 1 and PLAB 2, and international nurses take the NMC test of competence (CBT and OSCE). Certified documents, translations and certificates of good standing from every regulator you have held a licence with are needed at this stage; missing or wrongly certified documents cause most delays.

  4. 4. Join the register

    When the regulator accepts you, you pay the registration fee and appear on the public register. Only then can you use the protected title for your profession. Keep your registration active and up to date, because employers and the Home Office check it.

  5. 5. Get a job offer and a certificate of sponsorship

    Apply to employers that hold a Home Office sponsor licence: the NHS, organisations providing medical services to the NHS, or adult social care providers. Your employer gives you a certificate of sponsorship, an electronic record with a reference number, and you must apply for your visa within 3 months of getting it. Many NHS employers recruit internationally and may help with registration costs or relocation, but this varies by employer.

  6. 6. Apply for the Health and Care Worker visa

    Apply online up to 3 months before your start date. You need your certificate of sponsorship, proof of English (or an exemption), the application fee and, unless your employer certifies maintenance, at least £1,270 held for 28 days. GOV.UK says you will usually get a decision within 3 weeks of proving your identity and providing your documents.

  7. 7. Bring your family if eligible

    Your partner and children can usually apply as your dependants, using a family linking code to connect the applications. They must show their own maintenance funds unless exempt. Care workers, senior care workers and other 'medium skilled' roles have tighter dependant rules, so check GOV.UK for your occupation code.

  8. 8. Arrive, complete pre-employment checks and induction

    When you arrive, your employer completes its pre-employment checks, such as right-to-work and identity checks, and you start induction. Some regulators and employers have extra steps after arrival, so check what your regulator and employer expect. Register with a GP, open a bank account and keep your visa decision email and status details safe.

  9. 9. Build towards settlement

    After 5 years on a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa you may be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain, if you meet the salary requirements and pass the Life in the UK Test. Time outside the UK must not exceed 180 days in any 12 months, and time spent as a dependant does not count. Plan renewals of both your visa and your professional registration so neither lapses.

English tests

  • Each regulator sets its own English rules. Passing a test accepted by your regulator is a separate requirement from the visa English requirement, although GOV.UK says doctors, dentists, nurses and midwives who have passed an English assessment accepted by their regulator do not need to prove English again for the Health and Care Worker visa.
  • NMC (nurses and midwives): accepts only IELTS Academic and OET. Required scores are IELTS Academic 7 in listening, reading and speaking and 6.5 in writing, or OET grade B (350 or above) in listening, reading and speaking and C+ (300 or above) in writing. Scores from two sittings within 12 months of each other can be combined under the NMC's rules.
  • HCPC (allied health professions): accepts IELTS (Academic or General), TOEFL iBT and OET for six professions. IELTS 7.0 overall with no element below 6.5 for most professions, and 8.0 with no element below 7.5 for speech and language therapists. OET is accepted for chiropodists/podiatrists, dietitians, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, radiographers (1400, no element below 300) and speech and language therapists (1800, no element below 400).
  • GMC (doctors), GDC (dentists) and GPhC (pharmacists) set their own accepted tests and scores; check the regulator's English language page before booking a test.
  • Both the NMC and HCPC exempt some applicants based on where they trained or qualified, and test certificates generally need to be no more than two years old when the regulator assesses your application.
  • For the visa itself, if you do not have an exemption, a UK qualification or an English-taught degree confirmed by Ecctis, you must pass a Secure English Language Test (SELT) at CEFR level B2.

Visas

  • Health and Care Worker visa

    For qualified doctors, nurses, health professionals and adult social care professionals with an eligible job and a certificate of sponsorship from an approved NHS, NHS-supplier or adult social care employer. You usually need to be paid at least £25,000 or the national pay scale rate for your role, whichever applies. The application fee is £324 per person for up to 3 years or £628 per person for more than 3 years, the same inside or outside the UK. The visa lasts up to 5 years and can be extended.

    Read the guide

  • Immigration Health Surcharge exemption

    GOV.UK states that Health and Care Worker visa holders and their partners and children do not have to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge. You can use the NHS free of charge from the date your visa starts, but you still pay for some services such as prescriptions, dental treatment and eye tests where charges apply.

  • Skilled Worker visa

    The general sponsored work visa for eligible jobs with an approved employer. Skilled Worker applicants pay the Immigration Health Surcharge for each year of their stay. GOV.UK advises doctors, nurses and people working in health or adult social care to check whether they qualify for the Health and Care Worker visa instead, because it is cheaper and has no surcharge.

  • Partners and children (dependants)

    Your husband, wife, civil partner, unmarried partner (2 years together) and children under 18 can usually apply as dependants. They need £285 for a partner, £315 for one child and £200 for each additional child unless exempt. Care workers and senior care workers can only bring dependants in limited cases, for example if continuously employed in that role on a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa since before 11 March 2024.

  • Indefinite leave to remain (settlement)

    After 5 years living and working in the UK on a Health and Care Worker, Skilled Worker or similar visa, you may be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain. You must meet the salary requirements, still be needed by your employer, and pass the Life in the UK Test if you are 18 to 64. The fee is £3,226 per person, and a decision usually takes up to 6 months unless you pay for priority.

Pay

NHS Agenda for Change annual pay scales for 2026/27, effective from 1 April 2026, as published by NHS Employers on 12 February 2026. Figures are basic annual pay before any High Cost Area Supplement. Bands 5 to 8a have an entry, intermediate and top point; you move up after the years stated by NHS Employers. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland set their own pay, so check with your employer there.

  • Band 2

    £25,272

    Entry and top point are the same.

  • Band 3

    £25,760 to £27,476

    Top point after 2 years.

  • Band 4

    £28,392 to £31,157

    Top point after 3 years.

  • Band 5

    £32,073 to £39,043

    Intermediate point £34,592 after 2 years, top after a further 2 years.

  • Band 6

    £39,959 to £48,117

    Intermediate point £42,170 after 2 years, top after a further 3 years.

  • Band 7

    £49,387 to £56,515

    Intermediate point £51,932 after 2 years, top after a further 3 years.

  • Band 8a

    £57,528 to £64,750

    Intermediate point £60,417 after 2 years, top after a further 3 years.

  • Inner London High Cost Area Supplement

    20% of basic salary

    Subject to a minimum of £5,794 and a maximum of £8,746 a year (2026/27). Outer London and fringe rates are lower.

See your NHS band and annual pay

Pay for your profession: Doctors · Nurses · Midwives · Dentists · Pharmacists · Physiotherapists

Key terms in the United Kingdom

The permits, numbers and bodies you will meet on the way, each explained in plain English.

Questions

Start with your regulator: the GMC for doctors, the NMC for nurses and midwives, the GDC for dentists, the GPhC for pharmacists or the HCPC for allied health professions. You need to be registered, or well on the way, before most employers will sponsor your visa.

No. GOV.UK states that you, your partner and your children do not have to pay the healthcare surcharge on a Health and Care Worker visa. You can use the NHS from the date your visa starts, although some services, like prescriptions and dental treatment, still carry charges.

The application fee is £324 per person if you are coming for up to 3 years and £628 per person for more than 3 years. You also usually need £1,270 in savings held for 28 days, unless your employer certifies maintenance on your certificate of sponsorship.

You will usually need to be paid at least £25,000, or the going rate for your job if that is higher. For most NHS clinical roles, the salary is checked against the national pay scales for eligible healthcare jobs, listed by NHS pay band. Some occupation codes, such as biomedical scientists and laboratory technicians, have different salary rules.

That depends on the job you are offered, not on your nationality. Each NHS job is advertised at a set band; for example, Band 5 is £32,073 to £39,043 in 2026/27. Experienced staff may be appointed to a higher band if the job is graded at that level, and practice varies by employer.

Usually yes. Your partner and children under 18 can apply as dependants and do not pay the health surcharge. The exceptions are care workers, senior care workers and other 'medium skilled' roles, where dependants are only allowed in limited circumstances.

GOV.UK says you will usually get a decision within 3 weeks once you have applied online, proved your identity and provided your documents. You can apply up to 3 months before your start date, and you may be able to pay for a faster decision.

Doctors, dentists, nurses and midwives who have passed an English assessment accepted by their regulator do not need to prove English again for the visa. Other professions need to meet the visa English requirement at CEFR B2, for example with a Secure English Language Test or an English-taught degree confirmed by Ecctis, unless they are from an exempt country.

After 5 years on a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa you may be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain. You need to meet the salary requirements, pass the Life in the UK Test if aged 18 to 64, and not have spent more than 180 days outside the UK in any 12 months. The fee is £3,226 per person.

Yes. The GMC, NMC, GDC, GPhC and HCPC are UK-wide regulators, so registration lets you practise in all four nations. Pay and employment terms can differ between nations because each runs its own health service.

It can if it holds a Home Office sponsor licence. For the Health and Care Worker visa, the employer must be the NHS, an organisation providing medical services to the NHS, or an adult social care provider; other licensed employers would sponsor you on a Skilled Worker visa, which carries the health surcharge.

No. The code of practice for international recruitment, last updated on 27 March 2025, says international health and social care staff must not be charged fees for recruitment services relating to getting a job in the UK. Any repayment clause in your contract must be transparent, proportionate, time-limited and flexible. NHS Employers keeps an ethical recruiters list of agencies that have agreed to follow the code, but being on it does not make an agency a preferred supplier.

Sources

Keep exploring

Registering and working in the United Kingdom