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A Health and Care Worker visa allows medical professionals to come to or stay in the UK to do an eligible job with the NHS, an NHS supplier or in adult social care.
If you or your family member started living in the UK by 31 December 2020, you may be able to apply to the free EU Settlement Scheme.
The deadline to apply was 30 June 2021 for most people. You can still apply if either:
Check if you can still apply to the EU Settlement Scheme.
Otherwise you need a visa to work in the UK.
Irish citizens do not need to apply for a visa or to the EU Settlement Scheme.
To qualify for a Health and Care Worker visa, you must:
Check if your job is eligible.
You must have a confirmed job offer before you apply for your visa.
You must be able to speak, read, write and understand English. You’ll usually need to prove your knowledge of English when you apply.
You may be eligible for another type of visa to work in the UK.
Your visa can last for up to 5 years before you need to extend it. You’ll need to apply to extend or update your visa when it expires or if you change jobs or employer.
You can apply to extend your visa as many times as you like as long as you still meet the eligibility requirements.
After 5 years, you may be able to apply to settle permanently in the UK (also known as ‘indefinite leave to remain’). This gives you the right to live, work and study here for as long as you like, and apply for benefits if you’re eligible.
You must apply online.
How you apply depends on whether you’re:
If you want to change your job or employer, you must apply to update your visa.
You can include your partner and children in your application to stay in the UK if they are eligible.
You can apply for a visa up to 3 months before the day you are due to start work in the UK. This date is listed on your certificate of sponsorship.
As part of your application, you’ll need to prove your identity and provide your documents.
You may need to allow extra time if you need an appointment to do this. You’ll find out if you need one when you start your application.
Once you’ve applied online, proved your identity and provided your documents, you’ll usually get a decision on your visa within 3 weeks.
You may be able to pay to get a faster decision. How you do this depends on whether you’re outside the UK or inside the UK.
You, your partner or children will each need to:
Check how much money you’ll need.
You – and your partner or children – will not have to pay the healthcare surcharge.
You can:
You cannot:
If your application is successful, you’ll get a full list of what you can and cannot do with a Health and Care Worker visa.
Don’t include personal or financial information like your National Insurance number or credit card details.
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