How much does NMC registration cost for international nurses? Every fee in 2026

The NMC's own fees for an internationally trained nurse or midwife come to £1,226 if you pass each test first time. That is the NMC's published total, and it is made up of four fees: the £167 qualification evaluation fee, the £83 CBT, the £794 OSCE and the £182 registration fee. These are the fees following the NMC's increase on 1 October 2026; older guides still show the previous £140 evaluation and £153 registration fees.

After you are registered you pay an annual fee of £143 (for fee notices sent on or after 1 October 2026), which keeps you on the register. Revalidation every three years has no separate fee.

The NMC total does not include costs outside the NMC: an English language test, police clearances, document translations, travel to a UK test centre for the OSCE, and, if you are moving to the UK, the Health and Care Worker visa (£324 for up to three years or £628 for longer, per person). Resits add more: from £50 for a CBT numeracy resit to £794 for a full OSCE resit.

In practice, many internationally recruited nurses do not pay all of this themselves. NHS and other employers who recruit from overseas often pay or reimburse some costs, most commonly the OSCE and the visa, but what they cover varies and some reclaim it under a repayment clause if you leave early. This guide lists every fee from the official sources, what resits add, the costs the NMC total leaves out, what the government's Code of Practice says employers may and may not reclaim, and how to keep the total down. For the full route, see our page on NMC registration for nurses and midwives trained abroad.

Fee	Amount	Paid to	When	Refundable?
Qualification evaluation	£167	NMC	When you submit the eligibility and qualification application	No, even if you are found not eligible
CBT (first sitting)	£83	Pearson VUE	When you book, after the NMC authorises you	Per Pearson VUE's policy
OSCE (first sitting)	£794	The UK test centre	When you book	Per the test centre's policy
Registration	£182	NMC	When you submit the registration application	In certain circumstances (see below)
NMC total, first-time passes	£1,226
Annual fee	£143	NMC	Every year after registration	No

Source: the NMC's costs page for applicants trained outside the UK, its evaluation and registration fee pages, and its annual fee page. The NMC notes that the total "could be higher if you need to resit tests" and does not include the visa, flights, accommodation or travel in the UK.

If you hold a relevant European qualification eligible for automatic recognition, the NMC says you do not need the Test of Competence, so the CBT and OSCE fees do not apply. Most nurses trained outside Europe do need it. Our guides to the NMC CBT and the NMC OSCE explain each test.

The NMC allows three attempts at each test within one application. You resit only what you failed, and the fee depends on how much you resit:

Resit	Fee
CBT numeracy (Part A) only	£50
CBT clinical (Part B) only	£70
CBT both parts	£83
OSCE, up to 7 stations failed	£397
OSCE, 8 or more stations failed	£794

Some worked totals, NMC fees only:

• One CBT clinical resit: £1,226 + £70 = £1,296.
• One OSCE partial resit: £1,226 + £397 = £1,623.
• Two OSCE partial resits: £1,226 + £397 + £397 = £2,020.
• One full OSCE resit: £1,226 + £794 = £2,020.

After a third failed attempt the application closes. You wait at least six months and then make a new application, which means paying the fees for a new application, including the non-refundable evaluation fee and the full test fee. Our guide on NMC CBT and OSCE retake rules covers the limits and what a fail means for your visa.

These costs are real but vary by country, provider and personal circumstances, so we describe them without inventing figures. Check the current price with the provider before you budget.

• English language test. The NMC accepts IELTS Academic (7 in reading, listening and speaking, 6.5 in writing) or OET (B in reading, listening and speaking, C+ in writing). The fee is set by the test provider and varies by country. Results are valid for two years, so a slow application can mean paying twice. If you trained in English or have recent practice in a majority English-speaking country, you may not need a test. Our IELTS or OET guide compares the two, and the English test score checker tests your results against the NMC's rules.
• Police clearances. The NMC needs a police clearance from each country where you have lived for 12 months or more in the last ten years, and a DBS check if you have lived in the UK for three months or more. Each issuing authority sets its own fee.
• Translations. Documents not in English need certified English translations, which you bring to your ID check.
• Health declaration. A registered medical practitioner must confirm they assessed your health in the last twelve months. If this is not part of your usual care, a doctor may charge for the assessment.
• Travel and accommodation for the OSCE. The OSCE is held only at approved UK test centres. If your employer does not arrange it, budget for travel and a night or two near the centre, and again for any resit, which must be at the same centre.
• A follow-up ID check. If your ID check cannot be completed on the OSCE day because your application was not submitted, the NMC says a further in-person appointment is required at your own expense.
• Preparation. The NMC's preparation materials and the Pearson VUE practice test are free. Paid courses and question banks are optional.

Most internationally recruited nurses come on the Health and Care Worker visa. GOV.UK states:

Item	Amount
Application fee, up to 3 years	£324 per person
Application fee, more than 3 years	£628 per person
Immigration health surcharge	Not payable on this visa
Personal savings	At least £1,270, unless your sponsor certifies maintenance on your certificate of sponsorship

The fee is the same whether you apply from inside or outside the UK, and each family member pays their own application fee. GOV.UK says the immigration health surcharge is not required on a Health and Care Worker visa application. Our Health and Care Worker visa guide covers eligibility and dependants, and the visa cost calculator adds up the fees for your family. This is general information, not immigration advice.

Annual fee. £143 a year for notices sent on or after 1 October 2026; if your notice was sent before then, you pay £120. You can pay through MyNMC by annual or quarterly Direct Debit from a UK bank account, or by single card payment. The NMC says that if you do not pay on time, your registration automatically lapses, and readmission can take two to six weeks.

Revalidation. Every three years you revalidate. There is no separate revalidation fee, but the NMC cannot process your revalidation until your annual fee is paid. Our guide to NMC revalidation for international nurses explains the requirements.

Tax relief. GOV.UK says you can claim tax relief on professional membership fees you must pay to do your job, paid to an approved body, for the current tax year and the four previous ones, with evidence of what you paid. Fees your employer paid for you do not qualify.

Indemnity. Most NHS employers provide professional indemnity cover for their employees. If you are self-employed, the NMC says you need to arrange your own.

The costs do not arrive at once. Knowing the order helps you plan cash flow, especially if your employer reimburses some items only after you start.

Stage	What you pay	Typical payer
Before you apply	English test (unless exempt), police clearances, translations, health assessment	Usually you
Eligibility and qualification application	£167 evaluation fee	Usually you
After the NMC authorises the Test of Competence	£83 CBT, plus any resit	Usually you; some employers reimburse
Registration application	£182 registration fee	Varies by employer
Job offer and visa	£324 or £628 per person, plus savings unless your sponsor certifies maintenance	Varies; the Code leaves visa fees to the employer's discretion
After arrival	£794 OSCE, plus any resit and travel	Often the employer, sometimes under a repayment clause
Each year once registered	£143 annual fee	You, with tax relief available

The NMC says you can sit the CBT and OSCE in either order, but most internationally recruited nurses sit the CBT at home and the OSCE after arriving, which is why the largest single fee usually falls after you have a job. The registration timeline calculator estimates when each stage is likely to fall for you.

• Midwives pay the same NMC fees: £167 evaluation, £83 midwifery CBT, £794 midwifery OSCE and £182 registration, with the same resit fees. See our page on working as a midwife in the UK.
• A relevant European qualification eligible for automatic recognition: the NMC says you do not need the Test of Competence, so you avoid the CBT and OSCE fees. The evaluation and registration fees still apply.
• English exemption: if your nursing qualification was taught and examined in English, or you have at least a year of recent practice in a majority English-speaking country, the NMC may accept that instead of a test, which removes one of the larger variable costs.
• Already in the UK on another visa: switching or updating to a Health and Care Worker visa costs the same application fee whether you apply from inside or outside the UK, GOV.UK says.
• A new application after a closure: if your application closes after three failed attempts, or for inactivity, the evaluation fee is not refunded and a new application brings new fees.

Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands and the USA all have different fee structures for nurses trained abroad. The nursing hub compares the routes if cost is part of your decision.

There is no single national rule on which costs an NHS employer pays for an international nurse. Offers vary, so read yours line by line. The government's Code of Practice gives the clearest official picture. It lists relocation expenses, visa fees and regulatory exam fees as the kinds of costs an employer may have paid for a recruit and may reclaim, which reflects what employers typically pay upfront. Individual offers commonly cover some mix of the OSCE fee and preparation, the visa fee, flights and temporary accommodation; some also cover the CBT or the NMC fees, and some cover none. Ask for the list in writing before you accept.

The government's Code of Practice for international recruitment in England, updated 27 March 2025, sets the rules for employers that follow it:

• No fees to candidates for finding work. It is illegal under the Employment Agencies Act 1973 for recruitment organisations to charge you a fee for finding you a job, and employers following the Code will not use agencies that do. Report any that ask to the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate.
• Costs the employer must bear. The agency fee, the immigration skills charge, the sponsor licence fee, the certificate of sponsorship and interview costs cannot be passed to you.
• Visa fees are at the employer's discretion. The Code says employers may meet the visa fees incurred by a candidate.
• What a repayment clause can reclaim. Only "genuine, evidenced, auditable expenses" the employer paid for you, such as relocation expenses, visa fees and regulatory exam fees.
• Tapering. Rechargeable costs must reduce over time. The Code's example is 100% if you leave within 12 months, 50% within 13 to 24 months, 25% within 25 to 36 months, and nothing after 36 months.
• Fair recovery. No interest, an offer of a monthly repayment plan, no cash payments, and no charge for any part of supervised practice. Employers should consider waiving repayment case by case, for example where someone leaves because of bullying or discrimination.

So when an employer "pays" for your OSCE or visa, check whether it is a gift or a loan that is written off over time. Both are common, and both are allowed if they follow the Code.

• Evaluation fee (£167): the NMC says it is non-refundable "even if we determine that you're not eligible to apply or you don't gain registration".
• Registration fee (£182): refunded if you withdraw your application before registration is completed, if the NMC closes your application because you did not return the required supporting evidence within its deadline, or if you are found not to meet the registration requirements.
• CBT and OSCE fees: paid to Pearson VUE and the test centre, under their own rescheduling and cancellation policies. Read them before you book, especially if your travel or visa dates are uncertain.

Our guide on what to do if your NMC application is refused or closed explains which closures lead to a refund.

Pay NMC fees only through your MyNMC account, CBT fees only through Pearson VUE, and OSCE fees only through the test centre's own booking system. The NMC does not ask agents to collect its fees, and no third party can buy you a faster decision or a guaranteed test slot. If anyone asks you to pay an NMC, CBT or OSCE fee into a personal account, treat it as a scam and report it. Keep every receipt: you need them for reimbursement claims from your employer, for tax relief once you are working, and as evidence if a repayment clause is ever disputed.

These examples use only the official fees quoted in this guide. They leave out the variable costs (English test, police clearances, translations, travel) because those depend on your country and provider.

	A: Employer pays OSCE and visa	B: Self-funded, single applicant, visa up to 3 years	C: Self-funded, one OSCE partial resit
Evaluation	£167	£167	£167
CBT	£83	£83	£83
OSCE	Paid by employer	£794	£794 + £397
Registration	£182	£182	£182
Visa application	Paid by employer	£324	£324
Your official fees	£432	£1,550	£1,947

In example A, check whether the OSCE and visa costs are subject to a repayment clause. In examples B and C, also plan for £1,270 in savings unless your sponsor certifies maintenance. Add £324 or £628 for each family member applying with you. The registration cost estimator builds a budget for your own route.

1. Get your evidence ready before you apply. The NMC closes applications with no activity for three months, and the evaluation fee is non-refundable.
2. Time your English test. Results last two years and must be valid when your application joins the assessment queue.
3. Use the free official materials. The NMC's blueprints, test specifications, marking criteria and the Pearson VUE practice test are free.
4. Book only the resit you need. A partial CBT or OSCE resit costs far less than a full one.
5. Bring every original to the ID check. A follow-up appointment is at your own expense.
6. Ask what your employer covers, in writing, and how any repayment clause tapers.
7. Never pay a recruiter to find you a job. Under the Code, it is illegal for recruitment organisations to charge you for that.
8. Claim tax relief on your annual fee once you are working in the UK.

If you are in the Gulf, our guide on moving from a Gulf licence to UK registration covers the documents you will need from your GCC regulator, and our page on nursing in the UK covers pay and jobs once you are registered.