Health and Care Visa UK For Australians

As an employer looking to recruit workers from Australia to your qualifying business you should ensure you meet the UK Home Office requirements to do so.

To employ and sponsor health and care workers from Australia, you must

• Hold a Sponsor Licence
• Be enrolled into the Care Quality Commission (CQC)
• Your business must meet the requirements of the visa scheme
• Be offering genuine job opportunities
• Have paid the related sponsoring fees, which vary depending on the size and type of your company

If you are unsure if your business qualifies to sponsor Health and Care Visa workers, contact Total Law for more information on the role of being a sponsor and holding a Sponsor Licence.

There are also requirements for Health and Care Worker Visa UK for your prospective employee to meet, including:

• Being qualified or having the correct experience as a nurse, doctor, other health professional, or adult social care professional.
• Have been provided with a Certificate of Sponsorship from you detailing the role they will undertake, the terms of their employment and the corresponding occupation code
• Be working in one of the eligible roles in the social or healthcare sector
• Have received a job offer from you.
• Meet the salary requirements, which can vary depending on the exact role they have been offered
• Meet the UK IELTS requirement, which is reading, writing, speaking and understanding English to a minimum of B1 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Language (CEFR) scale. If they have a degree-level academic qualification that was taught in English or they are from a majority English-speaking country such as Australia, then they are exempt from this requirement.
• The worker needs personal savings that prove they can support themselves upon arrival in the UK. They must have a minimum of £1,270 in their bank account to last 28 days. This must be present in their bank within 31 days before applying.

Qualifying roles for the Health and Care Worker Visa and their respective occupation code include:

• 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 that are ‘not elsewhere classified’, such as audiologists and occupational health advisers
• 2221: physiotherapists
• 2222: occupational therapists
• 2223: speech and language therapists
• 2229: therapy professionals that are ‘not elsewhere classified’, such as 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 and home carers
• 6146: senior care workers

Australian nationals are required to pay applicant fees when applying for a Health and Care Worker Visa. The Health and Care Worker Visa UK cost in the UK depends on the amount of time the applicant will be in the country:

• Visa lasting up to 3 years: £324
• Visa lasting 3 years and over: £628

These fees are the same whether your prospective employee applies from within the UK or outside the country. There may also be other fees for the visa applicant, including biometric processing and potentially translation fees if documents are not in English or Welsh.

Your future employee must start their application online and initially apply for the Skilled Worker Visa route. However, they will have the option to highlight they are applying for a qualifying role for the Health and Care Worker Visa.

As a part of the Health and Care Worker Visa application process, the applicant must prove their identity. It is possible for an applicant to have to do one of the following:

• Have their fingerprints and photographs taken at a visa application centre to obtain a biometric residence permit. There are seven visa application centres in Australia:
• Adelaide
• Brisbane
• Canberra
• Hobart
• Melbourne
• Perth
• Sydney
• The applicant can also use the UK Immigration: ID Check app to scan their ID document.

The UK immigration service may request the applicant to attend an appointment at a Visa Application Centre to submit their supporting documents, including their passport.

An application for a Health and Care Worker can be made up to three months before they travel to the UK and start working for your company. The application must be submitted on time and correctly; otherwise, any delays or requests for further information could impact your business plans.

Usually, a decision on a Health and Care Worker Visa application will be made within three weeks of being submitted from outside the UK, including Australia, and around eight weeks if the application is submitted from within the UK.

However, application processing may be delayed in some cases. Having a qualified immigration review the application to ensure that it is fully complete is advisable to ensure that your worker’s application is not delayed due to incomplete information or other errors.

They should also wait until their visa application has been fully approved before making travel plans to the UK.

It is possible for your worker to extend their stay in the UK and continue working for you by applying for a Health and Care Worker Visa renewal.

In order for them to do so they must meet the following requirements:

• Have the same job as when they were previously permitted to enter or stay in the UK.
• Their job is in the same occupation code as when they were previously permitted to enter or stay in the UK.
• Still working for the same employer who issued their Certificate of Sponsorship.
• Their salary continues to meet the necessary salary requirements.

If you are unsure of your worker’s eligibility for Health and Care Worker Visa renewal you may wish to consult a qualified immigration lawyer who can advise you both on the best way to proceed.