The UK actively seeks talented healthcare professionals from around the world, and there’s a dedicated visa pathway designed specifically for people like you: the Health and Care Worker Visa.

Launched to help fill vital roles and support the UK’s health and social care services, this visa route offers distinct advantages for medical professionals planning their move in 2025/26.

What Makes the Health and Care Worker Visa Attractive?

This visa isn’t just another work permit; it’s a specific stream within the UK’s main Skilled Worker route, tailored for healthcare roles. It comes with several appealing features:

Faster Decisions: Applications are typically prioritized by the UK Home Office, with a target decision time of just 3 weeks after you provide your biometric information (fingerprints and photo). This is significantly quicker than many other work visa categories.
Lower Application Fees: The visa application fee is substantially lower compared to the standard Skilled Worker visa, making the move more affordable.
No Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS): This is a major financial benefit. Health and Care Worker visa holders, along with their eligible family members (dependants), are exempt from paying the hefty Immigration Health Surcharge – a fee usually required for access to the NHS that can amount to thousands of pounds over a visa’s duration.
Path to Settlement: This visa provides a direct route to settling permanently in the UK. After five years of continuous residence, you can usually apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).

Can You Apply? Eligibility Checklist for Nigerians

To successfully qualify for the Health and Care Worker Visa as a doctor or nurse from Nigeria, you need to meet several specific requirements:

1. Qualified Professional & Eligible Role

You must be a qualified doctor, nurse, midwife, or other health or adult social care professional.
Your intended job in the UK must fall under one of the specific eligible occupation codes

(Standard Occupational Classification – SOC codes). Relevant codes for doctors include 2211 (Generalist medical practitioners) and 2212 (Specialist medical practitioners). For nurses, codes like 2231 (Midwifery nurses), 2232 (Registered community nurses), 2233 (Registered specialist nurses), and several others (2234-2237) apply.

o You can find the full, detailed list of eligible occupation codes on the UK government’s official website (GOV.UK) by searching for “Health and Care Worker visa eligible occupations”.

2. Approved UK Employer & Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS)

You must have a confirmed job offer from a UK employer that is approved by the Home Office to sponsor Skilled Workers. For healthcare roles, this is often an NHS Trust, an NHS-commissioning body, a medical general practice, or an eligible private healthcare provider or social care organization.
Your employer must assign you a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS). This is an electronic record with a unique reference number containing details about the job and your personal information. You need this CoS reference number for your visa application.

o You can check if a specific UK employer is licensed to sponsor workers by searching the “Register of licensed sponsors: workers” list, available on the GOV.UK website.

Note for care roles: If applying for certain adult social care roles in England, the sponsoring employer must also be regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

3. Meeting the Salary Requirements (2025)

Your salary for the offered role must meet or exceed the specific ‘going rate’ for that particular occupation code. The ‘going rates’ are based on national pay scales and are updated periodically.
There are also general minimum salary thresholds, but for most professional healthcare roles like doctors and nurses, especially within the NHS, the salary will be determined by established pay structures (like NHS Agenda for Change bands for nurses or doctor pay scales). These structured salaries typically meet or exceed the ‘going rate’ and minimum thresholds required for the visa.

o For NHS roles, your band (e.g., Band 5 for newly qualified nurses) determines your salary, which usually satisfies the visa requirement. You can find current NHS pay scales online. o A general minimum floor exists (it was £23,200 previously, potentially rising towards £25,000 for some lower-banded roles subject to pay awards), but the ‘going rate’ for your specific SOC code is usually the key figure, and often higher. Your employer will confirm the salary on the CoS meets the necessary requirements.

4. Proving English Language Ability

You must demonstrate you can speak, read, write, and understand English to at least level B1 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages¹(CEFR) scale.
For Nigerian doctors and nurses, this is often proven automatically when you register with your UK professional body:
- Doctors: Registering with the General Medical Council (GMC) typically requires passing an English language test like OET (Medicine) with minimum Grade B in all sections or IELTS (Academic) with minimum 7.0 in each section and 7.5 overall. Meeting the GMC’s language requirement is usually accepted as proof for your visa.
- Nurses & Midwives: Registering with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) also requires proving English proficiency, commonly via OET (Nursing) with minimum Grade B (or C+ in Writing) or IELTS (Academic) with minimum 7.0 (or 6.5 in Writing). Meeting the NMC’s requirement generally satisfies the visa requirement too.
Alternative Proof: If you have a degree taught or researched in English from Nigeria (or elsewhere), you might be able to use this, but you’d typically need official confirmation from the institution or via UK ENIC (formerly NARIC). However, using your professional registration proof (GMC/NMC) is often the most straightforward route for doctors and nurses. You can also take a specific IELTS for UKVI (Academic) test or OET if needed solely for the visa. Applying from Nigeria: A Step-by-Step Walkthrough

Here’s a breakdown of the typical application journey:

Step 1: Secure Your Job Offer & CoS Actively search for suitable vacancies. Good places to look include:

NHS Jobs website (the main portal for NHS vacancies across the UK).
Websites of specific NHS Trusts or private healthcare groups.
Reputable healthcare recruitment agencies specializing in international recruitment. Once you receive a formal job offer, your sponsoring employer will apply for and assign you a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) and provide you with the reference number.

Step 2: Gather Key Documents Prepare your essential documents well in advance:

Your valid Nigerian passport (with at least one blank page).
Your CoS reference number (provided by your employer).
Proof of English language ability (e.g., OET/IELTS results, or evidence of your GMC/NMC registration confirming language assessment).
Tuberculosis (TB) Test Certificate: You MUST get tested for TB at a clinic in Nigeria approved by the UK Home Office. Find the list of approved clinics on the GOV.UK website. The certificate is valid for 6 months.
Your job title, occupation code, and salary details (as stated on the CoS).
Potentially a criminal record certificate from Nigeria, depending on your specific role (especially if working with vulnerable people). Check if your employer requires this.

Step 3: The Online Application Complete the visa application form online via the official GOV.UK website. Ensure all information provided matches your CoS and supporting documents exactly.

Step 4: Fees – What You Pay (and Don’t Pay!) You need to pay the visa application fee online. As of early 2025, the fees are:

Visa up to 3 years: £304 per person
Visa for more than 3 years: £590 per person Remember the significant saving: you do not need to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS).

Step 5: Biometrics Appointment in Lagos or Abuja After submitting your online application and paying the fee, you’ll be prompted to book an appointment at a UK Visa Application Centre (VAC) in Nigeria to provide your biometrics.

These centres are operated by TLScontact in Nigeria, with locations typically in Lagos (Victoria Island and Ikeja) and Abuja.
At the appointment, they will take your fingerprints and a digital photograph. You may also submit supporting documents here if you haven’t uploaded them online.
Note: There might be additional service fees charged by TLScontact for using the VAC or for optional added services (like priority appointments, document scanning etc.).

Step 6: Decision Time Once your biometrics are submitted, the Home Office aims to process your Health and Care Worker visa application within 3 weeks. You’ll be notified of the decision via email. If approved, you’ll receive instructions on getting your visa (usually as an entry vignette in your passport, allowing you to travel).

Bringing Family: Visas for Partners & Children

A major advantage is that your immediate family members can usually apply to join you in the UK as your ‘dependants’. This typically includes:  Your spouse or civil partner.

Your unmarried partner (if you can prove you’ve been living together in a relationship akin to marriage for at least 2 years).
Your children under 18 years old.

They need to apply online, pay the same visa application fee as you (£304 or £590 per person), and provide biometrics. They are also exempt from the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS). You’ll usually need to show you have sufficient funds to support them (£285 for a partner, £315 for one child, £200 for each additional child, held for 28 days), unless your A-rated sponsor certifies their maintenance on your CoS.

Important Clarification: While new rules introduced in March 2024 restrict care workers and senior care workers (SOC codes 6135/6136) from bringing dependants on new applications, these restrictions do not apply to doctors, nurses, and other eligible healthcare professionals on the Health and Care Worker visa.

Your Life & Career in the UK: Visa Duration & Settling Permanently

Visa Length: Your initial visa will be granted for the duration stated on your CoS, up to a maximum of 5 years.
Extension: If your contract is extended or you change jobs to another licensed sponsor, you can apply to extend your visa from within the UK before your current one expires.
Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR): After completing 5 years of continuous lawful residence in the UK on the Health and Care Worker visa (or potentially combining time from other eligible work visa routes), you can apply for ILR (settlement). To qualify for ILR, you typically need to:
- Still be employed in an eligible role with a licensed sponsor and meet the relevant salary requirements at that time.
- Pass the Life in the UK Test.
- Meet the English language requirement (usually B1 level proven, which is often covered by the initial visa proof).
- Demonstrate continuous residence, meaning you haven’t spent more than 180 days outside the UK in any rolling 12-month period during the 5 years.

ILR allows you to live and work in the UK free from immigration restrictions and is a stepping stone towards applying for British citizenship after usually one further year.

Conclusion

The key steps involve securing that crucial job offer from an approved sponsor, ensuring your qualifications and English meet UK standards (often via GMC/NMC registration), and diligently preparing your application documents, including the mandatory TB test from Nigeria.