The healthcare worker visa was introduced late 2020 by the government of the UK as part of it’s response to the global Covid-19 pandemic which has added a lot of strain to health institutions globally.

The Health and Care visa is a special visa Category for qualified doctors, nurses and allied health professionals who have been trained to a recognised standard which has just been launched by the UK government to attract skilled workers in the health and care related sectors from all around the world to the country and it was announced July 14 2020 by the Home Secretary and Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.

Eligible Occupations

The professions that currently qualify for the Health and Care Visa along with their Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes as stated in the previous article are:

1181: health services and public health managers and directors
1242: residential, day and domiciliary care managers and proprietors
2112: biological scientists and biochemists
2113: physical scientists
2211: medical practitioners
2212: psychologists
2213: pharmacists
2214: ophthalmic opticians
2215: dental practitioners
2217: medical radiographers
2218: podiatrists
2219: health professionals that are ‘not elsewhere classified’, such as audiologists and occupational health advisers
2221: physiotherapists
2222: occupational therapists
2223: speech and language therapists
2229: therapy professionals that are ‘not elsewhere classified’, such as osteopaths and psychotherapists
2231: nurses
2232: midwives
2442: social workers
3111: laboratory technicians
3213: paramedics
3216: dispensing opticians
3217: pharmaceutical technicians
3218: medical and dental technicians
3219: health associate professionals not elsewhere classified
6141: nursing auxiliaries and assistants
6143: dental nurses
6146: senior care workers

So if you are an experienced and qualified worker in any of the above  fields, then you are on track to getting your work visa if you meet the other requirements.

Other requirements for eligibility:

1. You should have a valid certificate of sponsorship (CoS) which comes with a job offer from the UK National Health Service (NHS) or medical/adult social care services organization. You can apply for this kind of jobs on Shortage Jobs.
2. The salary accompanying your job offer must pass a specific threshold at least £30,000
3. Travel history over the past 5 years (Old passports can show this)
4. You should have savings to support yourself in the UK
5. You should have a good knowledge of English – pass IELTS/other English test, have an academic qualification taught in English or be from an English speaking country.
6. People working with vulnerable people should be able to provide criminal record certificates
7. You should be able to provide a Tuberculosis test (for relevant countries)

Advantage of the Healthcare worker Visa

The health and care visa, as a special visa category has a few benefits when compared with other work visa categories  and they are:

1. You don’t need to pay the immigration health surcharge which usually costs £400 per year
2. It costs less than other work visas
3. You can stay for as long as 5 years
4. Health & Care visas are processed faster (3 weeks) than other work visas.

How to apply for the Healthcare Worker visa

Step 1 – Apply for a job: Before anything else, you need to have a job offer in a relevant field. This would be the most difficult and time consuming aspect of this process but we are making it easy with this website where we post only jobs that would get you a work visa. Feel free to browse our list of UK Health sector jobs.

Step 2 – Get hired and obtain your CoS: When you have been successfully hired, you would be issued with a Certificate of Sponsorship by your UK sponsor which will contain a unique reference number

Step 3 – Apply online for your Visa: Visit the UK Visas and Immigration service (UKVI) Website and select Tier 2 as your visa type. Complete your application, upload required documents and pay online.

Step 4 – Create & attend a VAC appointment: You would be directed to the Visa application center (VAC) closest to you to create an appointment to have your bio metrics taken if it isn’t possible to use biometrics from a previous application. You might also be advised to enrol using an ID app.

Step 5 – Wait for a decision: Luckily, decisions for this Visa are expedited so you only have to wait for 3 weeks all things being equal.

Step 6 – Submit passport for visa

Documents you need to provide

There are documents that you would need to submit at the application stage and they are as follows:

• Your International passport. Current and old copies (for travel history)
• Certificate of Sponsorship
• Bank Statement showing £945 90 days before you apply (this can be waived if your Certificate of Sponsorship states that your employer would support you  A-rated sponsor)
• Proof of English Knowledge
• Tuberculosis test result
• Criminal record certificate

What you would spend to get the healthcare worker visa?

The Health and Care visa costs considerably less than other work visa categories and the costs are as follows:

Up to 3 years – £232
3 years and more – £464

For citizens of Turkey and Macedonia, the costs are as follows:

Up to 3 years – £177
3 years and more – £409

What is the processing time?

Markedly, applications for the Health and Care visa are fast-tracked by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) and most applicants can expect a decision on their application within 3 weeks from the date they submit their biometrics.

Can you bring family?

You can apply for the your immediate family to join you while making your application for the Health and care visa. Eligible family members include your husband, wife, civil partner or unmarried partner and any children under 18.

You can also add children over 18 if they are already with you as a dependant at the point where you make your application.

If you are already in the UK when making your application, your sponsor would have to give written confirmation that your family members are eligible based on your occupation.

How to find latest eligible jobs for the Health & Care Visa.

Hopefully this wasn’t too long because we have finally come to the end of this.

The process for getting this visa is really straightforward with the most difficult part being getting an employer to issue the COS.

Finally, Shortage Jobs is a dedicated portal setup to allow you search for jobs that can give you work visas from all over the world in a single place.

You can find vetted jobs to give you a Certificate of sponsorship for the Healthcare workers visa by visiting our website or following us on Twitter or Telegram.