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Doctors moving to the UK: visa and GMC steps

Doctors in codes 2211 and 2212 can use the Health and Care Worker visa, which costs £324 for up to 3 years and has no healthcare surcharge. A sponsored doctor must hold the registration the job needs (GMC registration for a doctor), and the sponsor must report if it is withdrawn.

A doctor trained abroad needs two separate permissions to work in the UK: a visa and the right to practise. The Home Office decides the visa, and the General Medical Council (GMC) decides registration. This guide covers the visa side in full, using GOV.UK and the sponsor guidance as at 10 October 2026, and explains where the two systems meet. For GMC registration steps, accepted exams and fees, check the current pages on the GMC website, because those details are set by the GMC and change over time.

The guide describes how the rules work. It does not say whether a particular doctor qualifies for registration or a visa.

Which visa and which job codes

GOV.UK lists generalist medical practitioners (occupation code 2211) and specialist medical practitioners (2212) among the jobs eligible for a Health and Care Worker visa. This is a version of the Skilled Worker route for people who are qualified doctors, nurses, health professionals or adult social care professionals, working in an eligible job for an approved UK health and care employer.

The doctor must have a confirmed job offer before applying. Approved employers are the NHS, organisations providing medical services to the NHS, and organisations providing adult social care. The employer assigns a certificate of sponsorship, an electronic record with a reference number, and the doctor must apply within three months of receiving it. An application can be made up to three months before the start date on the certificate.

GOV.UK's Skilled Worker page tells doctors and nurses to check whether they are eligible for the Health and Care Worker visa instead, because it is cheaper and carries no healthcare surcharge. Our guide to the differences between the routes covers this in more detail. A doctor sponsored in a role outside the listed health codes, for example a research or academic post, may be in a different category, and the occupation code on the certificate decides which rules apply.

Salary rules for doctors

Most Health and Care Worker jobs need a salary of at least £25,000, or the going rate for the job if higher. For many doctors' roles the going rate is set by the national pay scales for health jobs. GOV.UK says to check the table of national pay scales for eligible healthcare jobs, which is listed by NHS pay band and area of the UK, and to ask the employer if the pay band is not clear.

These pay scale rates apply whether the job is in the public or private sector. Because the pay scale is tied to the job, the figure that matters is the one in the table for the actual role and location on the certificate, not a general salary threshold. The Skilled Worker page makes the same point for healthcare and education roles. Our guide to the Skilled Worker salary threshold covers how the general £41,700 figure and going rates work for other jobs.

Visa fees and money to show

The Health and Care Worker application fee is £324 per person for a stay of up to three years and £628 per person for more than three years, whether the application is made from inside or outside the UK. The 8 October 2026 Home Office fee table shows the same amounts and no change from the previous fees.

The doctor and dependants do not pay the Immigration Health Surcharge. GOV.UK says the doctor can start using the NHS from the date the visa starts, although some services such as prescriptions, dental treatment and eye tests still carry charges.

Unless exempt, the doctor must show £1,270 in a bank account, held for at least 28 days in a row, with day 28 falling within 31 days before applying. Exemptions apply if the doctor has been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months or the employer confirms on the certificate that it will cover the costs in the first month. Dependants have their own requirements: £285 for a partner, £315 for one child and £200 for each additional child. An example total, using only these figures: a doctor applying alone for a three-year grant pays the £324 fee and shows £1,270; a doctor bringing a partner and one child pays £324 three times (£972) and shows £1,270 plus £600.

English language

GOV.UK says new Health and Care Worker applicants must show English at level B2 on the Common European Framework by a UK school qualification, a UK degree or an English-taught degree from outside the UK (with an Ecctis assessment), or an approved Secure English Language Test. Nationals of listed countries do not need to prove English, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the USA.

There is a separate route for doctors. GOV.UK says a doctor, dentist, nurse or midwife does not need to prove knowledge of English for the visa if they have already passed an English language assessment accepted by the relevant regulated professional body. A doctor therefore needs to check which English evidence the GMC accepts for registration, and whether the assessment already passed qualifies. Those requirements are set by the GMC and should be read on its website.

For people who held the visa before 8 January 2026 and are extending or updating, the requirement is level B1 and no fresh proof is needed. A person switching from a Skilled Worker visa also does not need to provide the proof again; a person switching from a different visa needs B2.

Documents, criminal records and TB tests

The documents listed for an application are the certificate of sponsorship reference number, proof of English, a valid passport, job title and salary, occupation code and the employer's name and sponsor licence number. GOV.UK also lists those that may be needed:

  • Criminal record certificate. Needed when applying from outside the UK, with listed exceptions that do not include doctors. The sponsor guidance (section SK10) lists codes 2211 and 2212 among those that must provide one from any country where the worker has been present for 12 months or more, in total, in the past 10 years while aged 18 or over. GOV.UK's version for under-28s is a certificate from any country stayed in for 12 months or more since turning 18, and for people 28 or over from any country stayed in over the last 10 years.
  • Tuberculosis test. Needed if the applicant is coming to the UK for six months or more, has lived in a listed country for six months or more and was living there or in another listed country in the last six months. The test is a chest x-ray at a Home Office approved clinic, and GOV.UK says the clear certificate is "valid for 6 months from the date of your x-ray".
  • Maintenance funds, unless the sponsor certifies maintenance.
  • Certified translations of any documents not in English or Welsh.

Identity is proved either through the UK Immigration: ID Check app or by giving fingerprints and a photo at a visa application centre, depending on nationality and passport. Once everything is submitted, GOV.UK says a decision usually takes three weeks.

Registration is the sponsor's duty too

The visa and the licence both depend on the doctor holding the registration the job requires. The sponsor guidance makes this explicit in several places.

In the information the sponsor must give when assigning a certificate, it must record the worker's professional registration details where the worker is legally required to be registered with a professional body in the UK (a doctor's GMC registration is the usual example). Under the sponsor duties, the sponsor must only sponsor workers who are appropriately qualified, registered or experienced for the job, keep a copy of any required registration document and give it to the Home Office on request.

The reporting duty then runs the other way. The sponsor must tell UKVI within 10 working days if it stops sponsoring a worker because a legally required professional registration, "such as GMC registration for a doctor", is withdrawn. A doctor's sponsored status therefore depends on continuing registration, as well as on the certificate and the employer's own licence.

For the GMC process itself, the exams or sponsorship routes it accepts, timing and fees, use the GMC's own pages for the current requirements. Those details change, and they are not part of the Home Office sponsor guidance.

Family, extension and settlement

A husband, wife, civil partner or unmarried partner, and children under 18, can apply as dependants. The partner must show a recognised marriage or civil partnership, or two years living together, or two years in a relationship where living together was not possible, with evidence of ongoing commitment. Children must live with the doctor unless in full-time education elsewhere, and must not be married or in a civil partnership. Each family member applies separately and pays the fee for the same length of stay as the doctor, £324 for up to three years or £628 for more.

The visa lasts up to five years and can be extended as many times as the doctor still meets the requirements. A change of job or employer requires an application to update the visa. GOV.UK says that after five years, a doctor may be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain if other requirements are met.

If the sponsoring organisation loses its licence, the doctor's permission may be shortened. Our guide to revoked sponsor licences covers the usual 60-day position. Employers considering sponsoring doctors can read our guides on sponsor licence costs, applications and compliance duties.

Finding a regulated adviser

The visa depends on facts that sit with other bodies: the GMC's registration decision, the employer's licence and the certificate details. Mistakes on any of them can delay a start date. GOV.UK explains how to find an immigration adviser, and only IAA-registered advisers, solicitors and other qualified persons can give immigration advice.

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

Which visa do doctors use to work in the UK?

GOV.UK lists generalist and specialist medical practitioners (codes 2211 and 2212) as eligible for the Health and Care Worker visa, with a sponsored job offer from an approved NHS, NHS-supplier or adult social care employer.

How much is the Health and Care Worker visa for a doctor?

£324 per person for up to three years or £628 for more than three years. There is no Immigration Health Surcharge. The doctor usually needs £1,270 held for 28 days unless the employer certifies maintenance.

Does a doctor need GMC registration before getting a visa?

The sponsor guidance says a sponsor must record professional registration details where legally required and gives GMC registration for a doctor as the example. Check the GMC website for the current registration steps, timing and fees.

Does a doctor need to take an English test for the visa?

Not if they have passed an English language assessment accepted by the relevant regulated professional body, according to GOV.UK. Otherwise B2 English is required unless the doctor is a national of a listed majority-English-speaking country.

Do doctors need a criminal record certificate?

Yes, when applying from outside the UK. Sponsor guidance section SK10 lists codes 2211 and 2212. GOV.UK says people under 28 need one from each country stayed in for 12 months since turning 18, and people 28 or over from each country stayed in over the last 10 years.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-10.

Related guides

  • Nurses moving to the UK: visa, NMC and costs — An overseas nurse needs a sponsored job, a visa (£324 for up to 3 years, no healthcare surcharge) and registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. NMC fees for the route total £1,226 if the Test of Competence is needed, and a sponsor may employ a nurse before registration for up to 8 months.
  • 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 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.
  • Bringing family on a Skilled Worker visa: costs and rules — Each partner and child pays the same application fee as the Skilled Worker for the same length of stay (£819 or £1,618 from outside the UK), plus the Immigration Health Surcharge, and must show £285 for a partner, £315 for the first child and £200 for each further child. Restrictions apply to dependants of care workers and some medium-skilled jobs.
  • Sponsor licence duties: what UKVI checks — A licensed sponsor must report worker changes within 10 working days and organisation changes within 20, keep records, and comply with wider UK law. The Home Office can visit unannounced, downgrade to a B-rating with a £1,579 action plan, suspend or revoke the licence, with no right of appeal.
  • 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.