Health and Care Worker visa: who can get it and what it costs

A Health and Care Worker visa lets medical professionals come to the UK, or stay in the UK, to do an eligible job with the NHS, an NHS supplier or in adult social care (GOV.UK). It has a list of eligible job codes and a £25,000 salary minimum. The visa fee is £324 or £628, and there is no healthcare surcharge.

Who can get a Health and Care Worker visa?

You must meet all of these (GOV.UK):

• you are a qualified doctor, nurse, health professional or adult social care professional
• your job is eligible for this visa
• you will work for a UK health and care sector employer approved by the Home Office
• you will be paid the minimum salary or the going rate for the work, whichever is higher
• you have a certificate of sponsorship from your employer

You must have a confirmed job offer before you apply. Your employer must also make sure your job pays at least the minimum wage and follows the UK rules for hours of work. If not, your application will be refused.

Which jobs are eligible?

You can apply if your job is in one of these occupation codes (SOC codes):

• 1171 health services and public health managers and directors
• 1232 residential, day and domiciliary care managers and proprietors
• 2113 biochemists and biomedical scientists
• 2114 physical scientists
• 2211 generalist medical practitioners
• 2212 specialist medical practitioners
• 2221 physiotherapists
• 2222 occupational therapists
• 2223 speech and language therapists
• 2224 psychotherapists and cognitive behaviour therapists
• 2225 clinical psychologists
• 2226 other psychologists
• 2229 therapy professionals not elsewhere classified
• 2231 midwifery nurses
• 2232 registered community nurses
• 2233 registered specialist nurses
• 2234 registered nurse practitioners
• 2235 registered mental health nurses
• 2236 registered children’s nurses
• 2237 other registered nursing professionals
• 2251 pharmacists
• 2252 optometrists
• 2253 dental practitioners
• 2254 medical radiographers
• 2255 paramedics
• 2256 podiatrists
• 2259 other health professionals not elsewhere classified
• 2461 social workers
• 3111 laboratory technicians
• 3212 pharmaceutical technicians
• 6131 nursing auxiliaries and assistants

If you are extending, updating or switching, your job can also be in the “medium skilled” codes 6135 (care workers and home carers) and 6136 (senior care workers). If you are switching from a different visa, you must have worked legally in your job for your sponsor for at least 3 months. See care workers.

If you are extending or updating, and you got your certificate of sponsorship before 22 July 2025, your job can also be in one of these codes:

• 1231 (health care practice managers)
• 3211 (dispensing opticians)
• 3213 (medical and dental technicians)
• 3219 (health associate professionals not elsewhere classified)
• 6132 (ambulance staff, excluding paramedics)
• 6133 (dental nurses)

You must also have held one or more Health and Care Worker visas or Skilled Worker visas without a break since you got that certificate.

Find a code on SOC codes.

Who must my employer be?

You must have a job offer from one of these:

• the NHS
• an organisation providing medical services to the NHS
• an organisation providing adult social care

If your employer is not approved, they can apply for a sponsor licence if they are eligible. The licence fee is £611 for small businesses and charities, or £1,682 for medium and large organisations. Processing usually takes around 8 weeks.

If you are a care worker (6135) or senior care worker (6136) working in England, your employer must be registered with the Care Quality Commission.

What salary do I need?

You will usually need to be paid at least £25,000, or the going rate if that is higher. The going rate is a set pay figure for the job’s occupation code. For most jobs it comes from the national pay scales for eligible healthcare jobs, listed by NHS pay band and area of the UK. See health and education rates.

Different salary rules apply to these codes: 1171, 1231, 1232, 2113, 2114, 3111, 3211, 3212, 6135 and 6136. The usual requirement for them is the higher of £31,300 a year and the lower going rate for the job. You can be paid less in these cases:

Case	What GOV.UK says
Job on the immigration salary list	At least £25,000 or the job’s full going rate, whichever is higher. No discounted rate applies
Under 26, studying or a recent graduate, or in professional training	70% of the lower going rate, and a salary of at least £25,000
Relevant STEM PhD	80% of the lower going rate, and a salary of at least £25,000
Relevant PhD in any other subject	90% of the lower going rate, and a salary of at least £28,200
Postdoctoral position in 2113 or 2114	70% of the lower going rate, and a salary of at least £25,000

If you are in the under 26 case or the postdoctoral case, your total stay in the UK cannot be more than 4 years. This includes any time on a Tier 2 (General) work visa. See going rates and salary thresholds for the wider system.

How much does the Health and Care Worker visa cost?

What you pay or need	Amount (GOV.UK)
Visa fee, stay of up to 3 years	£324 for each person
Visa fee, stay of more than 3 years	£628 for each person
Healthcare surcharge	None for you, your partner or your children
Money to support yourself	Usually at least £1,270, held for 28 days in a row
Money your partner needs to support themselves	£285
Money one child needs to support themselves	£315
Money each extra child needs to support themselves	£200

The fee is the same whether you apply from inside or outside the UK.

Day 28 of the 28-day period must be within 31 days of the day you apply. You usually do not need to show the money in either of these cases:

• you have been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months
• your employer can cover your costs in your first month, and your certificate of sponsorship says so

There is no fee for your biometric information (fingerprints and photo) if you are extending, updating or switching. See fees for the Skilled Worker comparison.

What level of English do I need?

You usually have to prove your English when you apply. The ways to prove it match the Skilled Worker visa.

• If you had this visa before 8 January 2026 and you are extending or updating it, you need level B1. You do not need to prove your English again.
• If you are switching from a Skilled Worker visa, you do not need to give proof again.
• If you are switching from a different visa, you need level B2.

See English language.

What documents do I need?

You give:

• your certificate of sponsorship reference number
• proof of English
• a valid passport
• your job title and salary
• your occupation code
• your employer’s name and sponsor licence number

You must give a criminal record certificate if you apply from outside the UK, unless your job is in 2113, 3111, 6132 or 2114. See documents.

What about my partner and children?

Dependants apply separately and pay the same fees (£324 or £628). There is no healthcare surcharge.

For care workers and senior care workers, a partner or child can join you or stay in some cases. One case is if you have been continually employed in the UK as a care worker or senior care worker on a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa since before 11 March 2024. Another is if they are a child born in the UK. There are other cases too. For “medium skilled” jobs the date is 22 July 2025.

If you switch as a care worker or senior care worker, your partner or children cannot switch as your dependants. See partner and children.

How do I apply?

You apply online using the Skilled Worker visa application. You are asked whether you are applying for a Health and Care Worker visa, and you choose “yes”. This applies from outside the UK, and to extending, updating or switching. You will usually get a decision within 3 weeks. See apply from outside the UK.

Your situation	What GOV.UK says
Extending	You have the same job, the same occupation code and the same employer, and you still meet the salary requirements
Updating	Needed if you change to a different employer, change occupation code (not in a graduate training programme) or leave an immigration salary list job for one that is not on the list
Switching	You cannot switch from a visit visa, short-term student visa, Parent of a Child Student visa, seasonal worker visa, domestic worker in a private household visa, immigration bail, or permission outside the immigration rules

If you change employer as a care worker or senior care worker working in England, your new employer must be registered with the Care Quality Commission.

If you switch, you can stay for as long as your employer is sponsoring you, up to 5 years at a time.

Can I take a second job?

You can do extra paid work as long as you still do the sponsored job. You can work up to 20 hours a week in another job or your own business if it is any of these:

• an eligible “higher skilled” code
• on the immigration salary list
• in the same sector and at the same level

You do not need to update your visa for overtime or NHS “bank shifts” for your sponsor. A second job of more than 20 hours a week needs a visa update. If you complete GP training, you can do 4 months of extra paid work. See second job.

Can I settle on a Health and Care Worker visa?

You may be able to apply to settle after 5 years in the UK. See settlement.