Health and Care Worker Visa UK

Applicants for the health and care worker visa must hold a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) issued by a qualified employer.

This is an electronic record that shows you are sponsored by a qualifying UK employer to do your job. Your CoS should provide details that prove you meet the requirements for the health and care worker visa. Your employer may have to provide additional information, such as proof of contract with the NHS.

The Immigration Skill Charge is a fee that UK-based sponsors will typically have to pay when sponsoring foreign workers.

It is a fee typically paid when assigning a certificate of sponsorship to each new foreign worker being sponsored for a job role.

As the Immigration Skills Charge only applies to the Skilled Worker Visa and the Senior or Specialist Worker visa, sponsors for workers on the Health and Care Worker visa do not need to pay this charge.

You’ll normally need to be paid at least £25,000 a year or the going rate for your job (whichever is higher) in order to be eligible for a Health and Care Worker visa.

However, you may have to meet a higher salary requirement of £29,000 (or the going rate for your job) if you work in one of the specified job occupation codes, such as health care practice manager, biochemists and biomedical scientist or pharmaceutical technician.

If you work in one of these roles, you may be able to be paid less than the minimum salary requirement if one of the following applies to you:

• You’re under 26, studying or a recent graduate, or in professional training
• You have a science, technology, engineering or maths PhD level qualification that’s relevant to your job
• You have a postdoctoral position in a scientific role

Note that in all cases, your minimum salary must be no lower than £25,000.

Application fees can vary depending on your specific situation and circumstances. Generally, the fees associated with the health and care worker visa are:

• £304 visa application fee for visa terms up to 3 years
• £590 visa application fee for terms of more than 3 years

The fee is the same for applying from inside or outside the UK.

In addition to application fees, you will need to maintain a minimum balance of £1,270 in your personal savings account.

You will usually receive a decision on your health and care worker visa application within 3 weeks after applying from inside the UK or online.

However, application processing may be delayed in some cases. Having a qualified immigration advisor look over your application prior to submission can ensure that it is complete and that your application is not delayed due to errors on your part. It is recommended that you wait until your visa application is approved before making travel plans to the UK.

Health and care visa holders are exempt from paying the immigration health surcharge during the visa application process. This is one of few visas in the UK where payment for healthcare services is not required.

If you are already a health and care visa holder and have worked in healthcare in the UK before 11 March 2024, your dependents may be able to join you in the UK and also be exempt from the Immigration Health Surcharge.

Any applicants after this time will not typically be able to bring dependents but will still be exempt from the surcharge themselves.

As of March 2024, family dependents are no longer automatically permitted for care workers (occupational code 6135) and senior care workers (occupational code 6136).

Otherwise, you may still qualify to bring dependents to the UK if you can show you can support them in the UK.

Other routes to bring dependents to the UK with you include Indefinite Leave to Remain and British Citizenship. If you or your spouse has one of these, you can apply instead for a Spouse Visa to join them.

Health and Care Worker visas last for up to 5 years at a time.

This visa can be extended as many times as you wish, as long as you still continue to meet the eligibility criteria.

The criteria for extensions are as follows. You must:

• Have the same job as when you were given your previous permission to enter or stay in the UK, with the same occupation code
• Still work for the employer who gave you your current certificate of sponsorship
• Still meet the salary requirements

You will need to pay the extension fee and verify your identity to the Home Office when applying for an extension.

Applications for extensions can be made online via the official gov.uk website.

Note that you will need to update or extend your visa every time you change jobs or employer.

After spending 5 years in the UK with a Health and Care Worker visa, you may be eligible for indefinite leave to remain (ILR).

With ILR, you will be able to settle permanently in the UK and also be free to work in any job you wish without being bound to the conditions of your visa.

To be eligible for ILR, you must fulfill the following criteria. You must:

• Have lived and worked in the UK for 5 years
  • You also must not have spent more than 180 days outside the UK in any 12 months period
• Still meet the salary requirements that were in place when you first applied for your visa
• Continue to be needed for your job and meet the salary requirements after you get indefinite leave to remain
• Pass the Life in the UK Test

Your family members can also apply for ILR with you, if they are eligible.

It costs £3,029 to apply for ILR in the UK.

You may be able to switch to this visa if you’re already in the UK on a different visa.

To be able to switch, you must meet all the basic eligibility for a Health and Care Worker visa, including having a valid job offer from a UK-based sponsor, meeting the minimum salary requirements and meeting the English language requirements.

If you wish to switch from a Student visa, note that one of the following must apply:

• You’ve completed the course you were sponsored to study
• Your job start date is after your course has finished
• You’re studying for a PhD full time, and have been for at least 24 months

In addition, you cannot apply to switch to this visa if you’re currently in the UK:

• On a visit visa
• On a short-term student visa
• On a Parent of a Child Student visa
• On a seasonal worker visa
• On a domestic worker in a private household visa
• On immigration bail
• Because you were given permission to stay outside the immigration rules, for example on compassionate grounds

If one of the following applies to your situation, you must first leave the UK and apply for a Health and Care Worker visa from outside the UK.

At Total Law, our expert team of dedicated immigration lawyers can help you to gain entry clearance into the UK to work as a health care worker.

Your personal advisor at Total Law will provide you with current information and updates that may affect your visa application.

For further information, contact us today at +44 (0) 333 305 9375 or use our online contact form to get in touch with our team of qualified immigration lawyers.