Migratio United Kingdom · Guides · Find advisers · For advisers

Care worker visa in 2026: who can still apply

Under rule SW 6.1B, care workers (6135) and senior care workers (6136) can only apply for permission to stay, not for entry clearance from abroad. The rule allows either a switch after at least three months working legally for the sponsor, with an application before 22 July 2028, or an application by someone already holding permission in those codes.

Care work is one of the jobs the Skilled Worker rules now handle with a special provision. Most care workers cannot bring dependants unless they were employed in the role before 11 March 2024, and the Rules no longer allow an application for entry clearance from abroad in these codes. This guide sets out what the Rules and GOV.UK say about who can still apply, and under what conditions, as of 9 October 2026.

The Skilled Worker and Health and Care Worker visas share the same Rules: Appendix Skilled Worker. Care workers (SOC 2020 code 6135) and senior care workers (6136) are the "medium skilled" codes the Appendix handles with a special rule, SW 6.1B. A person's position can turn on the date they first worked for their sponsor, whether the sponsor is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), and whether they already hold a visa. This guide explains how those rules work. It does not say whether any particular worker qualifies.

Our guides on what happens when a sponsor's licence is revoked and on the 2026 rules for workers exploited by a sponsor cover situations where the sponsor relationship breaks down.

What changed and when

Three dates matter in the Rules and on GOV.UK.

  • 11 March 2024. Rule SW 6.1C refers to workers sponsored in the earlier SOC 2010 codes 6145 and 6146 "under the Rules in force before 11 March 2024". GOV.UK's Health and Care Worker page makes continuous employment as a care worker or senior care worker since before 11 March 2024 one of the conditions for bringing a partner or children, as described below.
  • 22 July 2025. Appendix Skilled Occupations puts 6135 and 6136 in its additional tables (1a and 2aa), which it says are open only to applicants granted Skilled Worker permission under the rules in place before 22 July 2025 and continuously permitted since, except where the Immigration Salary List option applies.
  • 22 July 2028. Rule SW 6.1B(a)(ii) requires, for the switching route, that "the date of application must be before 22 July 2028". The Immigration Salary List gives 22 July 2028 as the removal date for codes 6135 and 6136.

The result is that the Rules treat care work as a job that someone already in the UK may be able to move into, or stay in, rather than one for which a visa is granted from abroad.

Who can apply: rule SW 6.1B

Rule SW 6.1B governs both codes. It says that if the applicant is sponsored in code 6135 or 6136, "the application must be for permission to stay", and one of two things must be true.

Route (a): switching, with a deadline. The applicant must have been legally working for the sponsor in one of these codes for at least the three months ending on the date the certificate of sponsorship was issued, and the date of application must be before 22 July 2028.

Route (b): already holding Skilled Worker permission in these codes. The applicant must have permission as a Skilled Worker sponsored in code 6135 or 6136, or in the older SOC 2010 codes 6145 or 6146. Periods of overstaying are disregarded where the Exceptions for overstayers section of Part Suitability applies.

GOV.UK's Health and Care Worker page describes the same two situations for people extending, updating or switching: for switching, "you must have been working legally in your job for your sponsor for at least 3 months". The Rules word the three months by reference to the date the certificate was issued, so use the Rules as the legal test.

Who cannot switch. GOV.UK lists people who cannot apply to switch to the Health and Care Worker visa from inside the UK, for example those currently on a visit visa, a short-term student visa, a Parent of a Child Student visa, a seasonal worker visa, a domestic worker in a private household visa, on immigration bail, or given permission outside the Rules, for instance on compassionate grounds. GOV.UK says people in these categories must leave the UK and apply from abroad. For codes 6135 and 6136, rule SW 6.1B requires an application for permission to stay.

Students. GOV.UK says a person on a Student visa who is switching must also have completed the sponsored course, or have a job start date after the course finishes, or be studying for a PhD full time and have been for at least 24 months.

The sponsor must be registered with the CQC

For jobs in England, the sponsor needs to be registered with the Care Quality Commission. GOV.UK says the employer must be registered with the CQC if the worker is a care worker (6135) or senior care worker (6136) working in England. The Immigration Salary List entry says that, for jobs with a working location in England, the codes are only eligible where the sponsor holds CQC registration and is currently carrying on a regulated activity. It adds that private households or individuals, other than sole traders sponsoring someone to work for their business, cannot sponsor Skilled Worker applicants in code 6135.

When changing employer, GOV.UK says that if you change your employer and work in England, your new employer must be registered with the CQC. Rule SW 6.1C waives the CQC registration requirement in one case: where the applicant was granted permission in the old codes 6145 or 6146 before 11 March 2024, has been continuously sponsored in those codes or in 6135 and 6136 since, and is applying to continue working with the same sponsor as in their most recent grant.

Because the sponsor's status matters so much to the worker's permission, what happens if a licence is revoked is covered separately in our guide on revoked sponsor licences.

Salary

Codes 6135 and 6136 are among the "Health and Care ASHE salary jobs" listed in rule SW A1.1, together with 1171, 1231, 1232, 2113, 2114, 3111, 3211 and 3212, where the sponsor is a listed health or care body or the job involves regulated activities. SW 4.2(b) lets applicants for those jobs use the options with the lower floors (F to J) instead of the options with the £41,700 floor.

The relevant figures, read from the Rules and Appendix Skilled Occupations on 9 October 2026:

  • Option F: salary of at least £31,300 a year and the going rate for the code.
  • Option I (Immigration Salary List job): salary of at least £25,000 a year and the going rate. Codes 6135 and 6136 are on the Immigration Salary List until 22 July 2028.
  • Option J (new entrant): at least £25,000 and 70% of the going rate.
  • The Appendix shows the going rate for 6135 and 6136 in the options F to J table as £25,000. In the table for options A to E the going rate is £33,400.

The GOV.UK Health and Care Worker page describes a minimum of "£31,300 per year, or the lower 'going rate' for your job, whichever is higher" for this group, with lower routes available to some applicants. Pay must also meet the wider rules on what counts as salary, the 48-hour cap and pay periods, set out in our salary threshold guide.

Fees, the surcharge and money to hold

A Health and Care Worker visa is applied for through the Skilled Worker application, where the applicant answers yes to the question about the Health and Care Worker visa. The fees, read on 9 October 2026, are:

  • Application fee: £324 for up to 3 years, £628 for more than 3 years, per person, the same inside or outside the UK, according to the Home Office fee table and GOV.UK.
  • Healthcare surcharge: none for the worker or dependants. GOV.UK says "You - and your partner or children - will not have to pay the healthcare surcharge."
  • Money to hold: at least £1,270 for 28 days in a row, with day 28 within 31 days of applying, unless exempt. GOV.UK says the requirement does not apply if you have been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months, or your employer certifies costs for the first month.

The sponsor's fees (licence, certificate, immigration skills charge) are in our Skilled Worker cost guide.

Faster decisions. Decisions are usually made within 3 weeks, according to GOV.UK, and a paid faster-decision service is available for some applications.

Partners and children

GOV.UK's Health and Care Worker page says a care worker's or senior care worker's partner and children may be able to apply to join them or stay as dependants only if one of these is true:

  • the worker has been continually employed in the UK as a care worker or senior care worker, and on a Health and Care Worker visa or a Skilled Worker visa, since before 11 March 2024;
  • the dependant is a child born in the UK;
  • the worker is the only living parent responsible for the child, and is applying for permission for the child to stay; or
  • the child's other parent is also sponsored as a care worker or senior care worker, and the application is for the child to stay.

The same page says that if a worker switches to the Health and Care Worker visa as a care worker or senior care worker, their partner or children cannot switch as their dependants to this visa. Instead their existing visa stays valid until its original end date. The cost of dependants is covered in our dependants guides.

Moving employer or extending

GOV.UK says a Health and Care Worker must apply to update their visa if they change to a different employer, if their job changes to a different occupation code (unless in a graduate training programme), or if they leave an Immigration Salary List job for one not on the list. A worker who stays in the same job when it is taken off the list does not need to apply again. An update needs a new certificate of sponsorship, and applications can be made up to 3 months before the new job starts. GOV.UK says the worker can carry on in their current job while the update is considered, if they applied before the visa expired, but should not start the new job until they have confirmation of the new permission.

To extend, GOV.UK says the worker must have the same job, in the same occupation code, for the employer who gave the current certificate, and still meet the salary requirements. As with every application on this route, the worker must not travel outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man until a decision, or the application will be withdrawn.

Our guides on switching sponsor and on changing employer cover the practical steps. If a sponsor stops trading or loses its licence, a deadline will usually run; see the guide on revoked licences.

Finding a regulated adviser

For a care worker, the difference between "can switch" and "cannot" can come down to dates: when work for the sponsor began, when the certificate was issued, and what permission the worker held before. If you want a regulated adviser to check these against your documents, GOV.UK explains how to find an immigration adviser, and only IAA-registered advisers, solicitors and other qualified persons can give immigration advice in England and Wales.

The Migratio directory lists IAA-registered advisers (with their level) and SRA-regulated solicitors, each with their regulator and registration number. Migratio is not regulated by the IAA or the SRA and does not give immigration advice. This page explains how the rules work; it does not tell you what to do in your case.

Questions people ask

Can I still get a care worker visa from outside the UK in 2026?

Not for care workers (6135) or senior care workers (6136). GOV.UK lists those codes only for people extending, updating or switching to the visa, and rule SW 6.1B says an application in those codes must be for permission to stay. Other health and care occupation codes remain open for entry clearance.

Can I switch to a care worker visa from another visa?

Rule SW 6.1B(a) allows it if you have been legally working for the sponsor in the code for at least the three months ending on the date the certificate was issued, and apply before 22 July 2028. Some visas, such as visit visas and short-term student visas, cannot be switched. Check the GOV.UK list.

Does a care worker sponsor have to be registered with the CQC?

GOV.UK says the employer must be registered with the Care Quality Commission if the worker is a care worker or senior care worker working in England. Rule SW 6.1C waives it only for a worker previously sponsored before 11 March 2024 who continues with the same sponsor.

Can care workers bring their family to the UK?

GOV.UK says only in listed cases, including continuous employment as a care worker on a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa since before 11 March 2024, a child born in the UK, a sole responsible parent, or a child whose other parent is also sponsored as a care worker.

How much does a care worker visa cost?

The application fee is £324 for up to 3 years and £628 for more than 3 years, with no healthcare surcharge for the worker or dependants. The worker usually needs £1,270 held for 28 days unless exempt, and dependants have their own funds requirements.

What salary does a care worker need on a Skilled Worker visa?

Codes 6135 and 6136 are Health and Care ASHE salary jobs, so options F to J apply: for example at least £31,300 and the going rate under option F, or at least £25,000 and the going rate under option I because the codes are on the Immigration Salary List until 22 July 2028. Read rule SW 4.4 and the tables for the full conditions.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-09.

Related guides

  • Care worker visas and dependants: the 11 March 2024 rule — GOV.UK says a partner and children outside the UK can apply to join a care worker or senior care worker only if the worker has been continually employed in that role on a Skilled Worker visa since before 11 March 2024, or the child was born in the UK. Different conditions apply to dependants already in the UK.
  • Care workers changing sponsor: the rules in 2026 — A care worker or senior care worker who wants a new sponsor applies to update their visa with a new certificate of sponsorship. The new employer must be registered with the Care Quality Commission if the job is in England, and the fee is £324 for up to 3 years with no health surcharge.
  • Health and Care Worker vs Skilled Worker visa — The Health and Care Worker visa is a version of the Skilled Worker route for listed health and social care jobs with approved employers. It costs £324 for up to 3 years with no health surcharge, against £819 plus £1,035 a year on the standard Skilled Worker route. Which one applies depends on the job and employer, not on cost.
  • Skilled Worker visa cost: worker and employer totals — A worker applying from outside the UK for up to 3 years pays £819 plus £1,035 a year in healthcare surcharge, and usually needs £1,270 held in savings. The employer separately pays a £525 certificate fee and the immigration skills charge, and its licence fee if it is new.
  • Skilled Worker salary: £41,700 and going rates — Under Appendix Skilled Worker the general salary test is at least £41,700 a year and the occupation's going rate, whichever is higher. Lower thresholds of £33,400, £37,500 or £25,000 apply to specific groups, and only guaranteed basic pay counts.
  • Medium-skilled jobs after July 2025: the ISL and TSL — Since 22 July 2025 the Skilled Worker route is open to degree-level jobs, plus mid-level jobs only if they are on the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List, or if the worker already held permission before that date. Both lists have a cut-off date for new certificates.
  • Sponsor licence revoked: what it means for your visa — If your sponsor loses its licence, the Immigration Rules say your permission may be cancelled. Home Office guidance says that where you were not involved, cancellation normally leaves you 60 days to apply for permission with a new sponsor or to leave. There is no appeal or administrative review against cancellation. A temporary arrangement currently protects care workers.
  • Exploited by your sponsor: the October 2026 Skilled Worker change — From October 2026 a new Skilled Worker rule (SW 18.3) lets the Home Office amend the work conditions of a Skilled Worker who has a positive Conclusive Grounds decision from the National Referral Mechanism, so they can do any work for the rest of their permission. It is discretionary, it does not lengthen the visa and it does not give access to public funds.