Skilled Worker Healthcare Application Guide

The Health and Care Worker Visa was established with the intention of luring qualified medical personnel from all over the globe to the United Kingdom in order to find employment there.

The Health and Care Worker visa provides applicants with a number of perks, including expedited entrance into the UK, reduced visa costs, and exemption from the Immigration Health Surcharge. 

In addition to that, it involves the assistance of a specialized staff working inside UKVI to handle visa applications for migrants and the families who rely on them.

The application process for the visa began on August 4, 2020, and it is a component of the new immigration system in the United Kingdom.

The essential requirements for this visa route are discussed in the following section, and they include eligibility requirements, the application procedure, the expenses of the Health & Care visa, and the processing periods.

Who may apply for a visa in the category of Health and Care?

It is possible to submit an application for the Health and Care Worker visa if you are a qualified physician, nurse, other health professionals, or adult social care worker.

It is available to those who are seeking entrance clearance or permission to stay under the skilled worker route and who will be taking up a job offer in one of the professions defined within a regulated list of Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes. 

To be eligible for the visa, an applicant must not only have a function that falls within one of the SOC categories listed above, but they also need to have been offered work by a licensed sponsor. 

 

In addition, the organization that is sponsoring the application must be either an NHS body or trust, a medical services supplier to the NHS, an organization that provides adult social care, or one of a number of other medical and social care organizations that are included in the official advice.

This might include, for instance, a person who is employed or engaged by, or registered with, one of the industrial organisations listed here:

• Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland
• Health and Care Professions Council
• Northern Ireland Social Care Council
• General Pharmaceutical Council
• Scottish Social Services Council
• Scottish Social Services Council
• Nursing and Midwifery Council
• General Chiropractic Council
• General Osteopathic Council
• General Medical Council
• General Optical Council
• General Dental Council
• Social Care Wales

You will not be eligible for the new Health and Care visa if you are not taking up a job role in one of the prescribed occupations for a designated organization. 

However, it is still possible for applicants who do not fall within the new visa route to apply under the standard Skilled Worker visa arrangements.

Health and Care Worker Visa Requirements

Here are the relevant criteria for the Health and Care visa, categorized:

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applicants must have a valid Certificate of Sponsorship from a UK-licensed sponsor. This means that a UK employer who is licensed to sponsor foreign workers must have offered them a job.

Qualifying job and a salary threshold

Applicants must have an offer for a qualifying job that meets the relevant salary threshold. The salary threshold varies depending on the job, but it is typically at least £25,600 per year. There are also some exceptions for jobs on the Shortage Occupation List or for new entrants to the job market.

Personal savings

In some cases, applicants must have sufficient personal savings to support themselves upon arrival in the UK. The amount required varies depending on the circumstances of the applicant.

English language proficiency

Applicants must have a good working knowledge of the English language. This means that they must be able to communicate effectively in English, both in spoken and written forms.

Travel requirements

Applicants must be able to show that they can travel to the UK and provide their travel history for the preceding 5 years.

Tuberculosis test results

If the applicant is from a country on the UK government’s list of countries with a high incidence of tuberculosis, they must have valid tuberculosis test results.

Criminal record certificate

If the applicant will be working with vulnerable people as a healthcare professional, they must provide a criminal record certificate from any country where they have lived for 12 months or more within the last 10 years. This is to ensure that they are not a risk to the safety of their patients.

Other requirements for eligibility

You will need to have a salary that is greater than the minimum wage threshold or the acceptance rate for the position that you have been given in order to satisfy the salary criterion, which is one of the eligibility requirements.

Certain candidates may furthermore be required to provide proof that they are able to sustain themselves financially. If you are applying from outside the country, you will need to demonstrate that you have had at least $1,270 in a bank account for at least 28 days in a row. 

Day 28 must occur no more than 31 days after the date on which you submitted your visa application. If you are applying for your visa from inside the UK and have had a valid visa for at least 12 months, you will be excluded from this financial need. 

If your company can pay your expenditures for the first month that you are in the country, you will also be exempt from this condition.

Requirements from the employer

Your potential new employer is the one who is going to be in charge of conveying to you the information that you are qualified to apply for a visa in the category of Health and Care Worker. 

You will be successful in accurately filling out the application form for the visa in this manner. In addition to this, the remark box on the CoS requires your company to offer a short explanation as to how you will satisfy the eligible visa role criteria in your new work. This must be done by your employer.

As additional evidence of your eligibility for a Health and Care Worker visa, you will be required to provide an explanation of the contractual arrangements with the National Health Service (NHS) if your UK sponsor is a private organization that delivers healthcare services that are commissioned by the NHS. 

If possible, you will also be required to provide documentary evidence of these arrangements.

Instructions For Application

Before you may submit an application for the Health and Care visa, your UK sponsor must first provide you with a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS). You will need this one-of-a-kind reference number in order to submit an application via the Home Office website.

The next step in the application process, once you have finished filling out all of the pertinent information, is to pay the required price. In addition to this, we will need you to substantiate your application with a number of other papers.

After an applicant submits their Health and Care visa application, the Home Office will assess the information and documents provided. If the Home Office determines that the applicant needs to provide biometric information, the applicant will be offered one of two options:

Book a biometrics appointment

If it is not possible to reuse any biometrics that was supplied with a previous application, the applicant will be offered the option to book a biometrics appointment. 

This means that the applicant will need to go to a designated location, such as a visa application centre or an embassy, to have their biometric information (fingerprints and a photograph) taken.

Enrol biometrics using an ID app

Alternatively, the applicant may be advised on how to enrol biometrics using an ID app. The app allows the applicant to take their own photograph and submit their fingerprints from their smartphone or tablet. 

This option is only available for certain nationalities and types of visas, and the Home Office will provide detailed instructions on how to use the app.

Health and Care Worker Visa Supporting Documentation

Personal savings

Applicants may need to provide a statement or letter from their bank or building society showing that they have enough personal savings to support themselves upon arrival in the UK. 

However, if their Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) shows that their A-rated sponsor can support them instead, they will not need to provide this documentation.

English language proficiency

Applicants must provide proof of their knowledge of English. This can be demonstrated through passing an approved English language test, having an academic qualification that was taught in English, or coming from a majority English-speaking country.

Valid passport or travel document

Applicants must provide a current, valid passport or travel document to prove that they are able to travel. This passport or travel document must have at least one blank page and be valid for at least six months after the applicant’s planned arrival in the UK.

Expired passports or travel documents

Applicants must provide any expired passports or travel documents to show their travel history for the preceding five years.

Tuberculosis test results

Applicants from certain countries must provide valid tuberculosis test results. The list of countries can be found on the UK government’s website.

Criminal record certificate

Applicants who will be working with vulnerable people as healthcare professionals must provide a criminal record certificate from any country where they have lived for 12 months or more within the last 10 years. This is to ensure that they are not a risk to the safety of their patients.

If you want to show that you can read, write, speak, and listen in English, you’ll need to take an approved English language test and get at least a CEFR level B1 in each of those areas, or you’ll need to have a degree that was taught in English and is recognized by UK NARIC as being equivalent to a UK bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree.

If you are looking for a position in the medical, dental, nursing, or midwifery fields, you may submit an evaluation from your professional organization as evidence of your language skills.

When Will I Get My Health and Care Visa When it Has Been Processed?

Your petition for a Health and Care Worker visa will, as soon as it is received by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), be given top priority and processed as quickly as possible.

As a consequence of this, the great majority of healthcare professionals who apply via this method may often anticipate receiving a decision on their application within three weeks of the day on which they provide their biometric information. 

This is a significant improvement over the standard processing period for skilled worker visas, which may take anywhere from eight to twenty weeks. 

However, the processing of applications by UKVI is still experiencing delays as a result of the pandemic and the prioritization of applications for the Ukrainian scheme. Because of this, it is strongly recommended that you seek advice on the current processing times before submitting your application.

Support is also available in the form of a dedicated NHS support and visa processing team. This enables visa applicants and sponsors to contact UKVI’s specialist team if they have any issues with the application process or with determining whether or not they are eligible for the Health and Care visa.

Are my dependents or my partner able to travel with me to the UK?

Any members of your immediate family who are eligible to accompany or join you in the UK on this route will be able to apply for a Health and Care visa at the same time you do. This includes your spouse or partner, as well as any children who are financially reliant on you.

If you are currently in the UK and would want your dependents to join you there, your UK sponsor will need to submit written confirmation that your family member is qualified to do so based on your profession. 

This is required if you want your dependents to join you after you have already moved there. This should be in the form of a letter or email from the sponsor, stating the organization for which you work and, if it is not an NHS body, how the organization qualifies. The letter or email should be addressed to the sponsor.

Healthcare Worker Visa Fee

Visa Type and CoS Duration	Application from outside the UK	Application from within the UK
Skilled Worker – Health and Care Visa – CoS issued for 3 years or less	£247 for main applicant and dependants	£247 for main applicant and dependants
Skilled Worker – Health and Care Visa – CoS issued for over 3 years	£479 for main applicant and dependants	£479 for main applicant and dependants
Skilled Worker – Shortage Occupation – Health and Care Visa – CoS issued for 3 years or less	£247 for main applicant and dependants	£247 for main applicant and dependants
Skilled Worker – Shortage Occupation – Health and Care Visa – CoS issued for over 3 years	£479 for main applicant and dependants	£479 for main applicant and dependants

Conclusion

Applying for a Health and Care Worker visa can be a complex process, and it is important to make sure that you meet all of the requirements and provide all of the necessary documents. 

The visa allows skilled healthcare professionals to come to the UK to work and contribute to the healthcare system, but it is important to follow the application guide and submit a complete and accurate application.

If you have any questions or need help with your Health and Care Worker visa application, I would suggest that you consider reaching out to Hire Brit, an experienced UK immigration consultancy that can guide you through the application process and provide you with the support you need. 

They can help you understand the requirements and gather the necessary documents, and they can also provide advice and guidance throughout the application process.