Health and Care Worker visa

The Health and Care Worker visa is the route most internationally trained health professionals use to work in the UK. GOV.UK describes it as a visa that allows medical professionals to come to or stay in the UK to do an eligible job with the NHS, an NHS supplier or in adult social care. It sits inside the Skilled Worker rules but has lower fees, a faster usual decision time and an exemption from the Immigration Health Surcharge.

GOV.UK says the visa can last up to 5 years before you need to extend it, you can extend it as many times as you like while you still meet the rules, and after 5 years you may be able to apply to settle permanently through indefinite leave to remain.

GOV.UK lists the core conditions. You must:

• be a qualified doctor, nurse, health professional or adult social care professional
• work in an eligible health or social care job, identified by its occupation code
• work for a UK employer approved by the Home Office, known as a licensed sponsor
• have a certificate of sponsorship from that employer
• be paid the minimum salary for the work, usually at least £25,000 or the going rate if higher
• prove English to at least CEFR level B2, unless exempt

The employer must be the NHS, an organisation providing medical services to the NHS, or an organisation providing adult social care. If your employer is none of these, GOV.UK points you to the Skilled Worker visa instead. In practice, employers expect you to be registered with, or on the way to registration with, your regulator, such as the GMC, NMC or HCPC.

Care workers. GOV.UK says care workers (code 6135) and senior care workers (code 6136) can only use these codes when extending, updating or switching to the visa, so new applications from abroad in those roles are not possible. In England the employer must also be registered with the Care Quality Commission.

1. Secure registration progress with your regulator and a job offer from an eligible employer.
2. Receive your certificate of sponsorship and check the job title, occupation code and salary on it.
3. Apply online within 3 months of getting the certificate. You can apply up to 3 months before your start date.
4. Prove your identity and upload your documents, including English evidence and, if your employer does not certify maintenance, proof of £1,270 in savings.

Our Health and Care Worker visa guide covers occupation codes, dependants and switching in detail.

GOV.UK states the application fee is £324 per person for a visa of up to 3 years and £628 per person for more than 3 years. There is no health surcharge for you or your dependants. You will usually get a decision within 3 weeks once you have applied online, proved your identity and provided your documents, and faster decisions may be available for an extra fee.

Since 8 January 2026 new applicants need English at level B2. GOV.UK says people who held this visa before that date and are extending or updating need level B1 and do not need to prove their English again.

• Wrong occupation code or salary on the certificate, which can lead to refusal.
• Starting in a lower role, such as a nursing assistant while awaiting NMC registration, which changes the code, the salary test and the rules on bringing dependants.
• Changing employer without updating the visa. GOV.UK says you cannot change jobs or employer unless you update your visa.
• Assuming settlement rules are fixed. The government has announced reforms to settlement, so check GOV.UK when you plan your long-term timeline.