Do I need a TB test for a UK visa?

You need a TB test for a UK visa if you are coming to the UK for 6 months or more, have lived in a listed country for 6 months or more, and lived there within the last 6 months. The test is a chest x-ray at a Home Office-approved clinic. You get a certificate that is valid for 6 months.

Who needs a TB test for a UK work visa?

You need a tuberculosis (TB) test if all of these are true:

• you are coming to the UK for 6 months or more
• you have lived in any of the listed countries for 6 months or more
• you were living there (or in another listed country) within the last 6 months

The Immigration Rules (Appendix Tuberculosis) word the rules slightly differently:

• You need a certificate for entry clearance “for more than 6 months” (TB1).
• The rule applies if you have been continuously in a listed country or countries for 6 months or more, including a period within the 6 months before the date you apply (TB2).

You do not need a TB test if you are:

• a diplomat accredited to the UK
• a returning UK resident who has not been away for more than 2 years
• coming on a scheme to support people from Ukraine

A decision maker can waive the requirement if you cannot get a certificate and it is reasonable to waive it in your case (TB5).

Which work visas mention a TB certificate?

The Immigration Rules ask for a certificate “if Appendix Tuberculosis applies” for entry clearance on these visas:

• Skilled Worker (SW 3.2)
• Senior or Specialist Worker (SNR 3.2)
• Graduate Trainee (GTR 3.2)
• UK Expansion Worker (UKX 3.2)
• Service Supplier (SSU 3.2)
• Secondment Worker (SEC 3.2)
• Scale-up Worker (SCU 3.2)
• Global Talent (GT 3.2)
• High Potential Individual (HPI 3.2)
• Innovator Founder (INNF 3.2)
• International Agreement (IA 3.2)
• Creative Worker (CRV 3.3)
• Charity Worker (CW 3.2)
• Religious Worker (RW 3.2)
• Government Authorised Exchange (GAE 3.2)
• Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS 3.2)

GOV.UK’s document lists for the same visas also mention TB test results. They also mention them for Health and Care Worker and India Young Professionals Scheme. The GOV.UK Seasonal Worker and Graduate pages, and the Seasonal Worker and Graduate appendices, do not mention a TB certificate.

Which countries are on the TB test list?

GOV.UK lists 102 countries. An asterisk (*) marks the 30 countries where there is no approved testing centre. If you live in one of these, GOV.UK says to get tested in another country.

Listed countries (A to Z, reading down each column)
Afghanistan	Ecuador	Malawi	Senegal
Algeria	Equatorial Guinea *	Malaysia	Sierra Leone
Angola	Eritrea *	Mali *	Solomon Islands
Armenia	Ethiopia	Marshall Islands *	Somalia *
Azerbaijan	Gabon *	Mauritania *	South Africa
Bangladesh	Gambia	Micronesia, Federated States of *	South Korea
Belarus	Georgia	Moldova	South Sudan *
Benin *	Ghana	Mongolia	Sri Lanka
Bhutan	Guatemala	Morocco	Sudan
Bolivia	Guinea *	Mozambique	Suriname *
Botswana	Guinea Bissau *	Myanmar (Burma)	Swaziland *
Brunei	Guyana	Namibia	Tajikistan
Burkina Faso *	Haiti	Nepal	Tanzania
Burundi	Hong Kong	Niger *	Togo *
Cambodia	India	Nigeria	Thailand
Cape Verde *	Indonesia	North Korea	Turkmenistan
Central African Republic *	Iraq	Pakistan	Tuvalu *
Chad	Kazakhstan	Palau *	Uganda
Cameroon	Kenya	Papua New Guinea	Ukraine
China	Kiribati *	Panama	Uzbekistan
Congo *	Kyrgyzstan *	Paraguay	Vanuatu
Côte d’Ivoire	Laos	Peru	Vietnam
Democratic Republic of the Congo	Lesotho *	Philippines	Zambia
Djibouti *	Liberia *	Russia	Zimbabwe
Dominican Republic	Macau *	Rwanda
East Timor *	Madagascar	São Tomé and Principe *

GOV.UK has a page for each country naming the approved clinics. They are collected under Home Office approved clinics.

GOV.UK also lists countries that are not on the TB list but have approved clinics: Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Egypt, El Salvador, Fiji, France, Germany, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Romania, Spain, Turkey, UAE and USA. It lists UK clinics too, for people who want to check they do not have TB and for British National (Overseas) visa applicants. The full list is at Countries where you need a TB test.

What does the TB test involve, and how long is it valid?

You have a chest x-ray. If the result is not clear, you may also be asked for a sputum sample (phlegm coughed up from your lungs). You do not need any other TB tests for your visa application.

You must be tested at a clinic that the Home Office has approved.

If the test shows you do not have TB, you get a certificate. It is valid for 6 months from the date of your x-ray. You include it with your visa application.

The Immigration Rules (Appendix Tuberculosis) set these rules for the certificate:

• It must be issued by a medical practitioner approved by the Secretary of State and listed on GOV.UK.
• It must confirm that you have been screened for active pulmonary tuberculosis and do not have it.
• It must be issued in the 6 months immediately before the date you apply.
• It must not have expired (TB3).
• You may be asked for a new certificate if yours expired more than 6 months before the date your application is considered (TB4).

What about children and pregnant women?

All children must see a clinician. The clinician decides whether the child needs a chest x-ray. Children under 11 will not normally have one. You take your child to an approved clinic in a listed country and complete a health questionnaire. If the clinician decides your child does not have TB, they give you a certificate for the child’s application.

Pregnant women have three choices:

• an x-ray with an extra shield in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters
• a sputum test (this may cost extra and take up to 8 weeks for results)
• waiting until after delivery

How does the TB test fit into a work visa application?

A TB certificate is one of the documents you may need to send. See how to get a UK work visa for the full steps and UK work visa requirements for the other conditions. For the Skilled Worker list, see the documents guide.