Health and Care Worker Visa for Filipino Nurses: Salary, Sponsorship and What to Expect (2026)

What the Health and Care Worker Visa is

The Health and Care Worker Visa is a dedicated subcategory of the UK Skilled Worker visa, created specifically for overseas healthcare and social care professionals. It covers registered nurses, midwives, doctors, and other regulated healthcare professionals, along with certain social care roles.

Compared to the standard Skilled Worker visa, the Health and Care Worker Visa offers: a reduced visa application fee (approximately £284 for up to three years, versus £719–£1,420 for standard routes); exemption from the Immigration Health Surcharge, saving approximately £1,035 per year per person; and the same right to work, bring dependants, and apply for settlement as the standard Skilled Worker route.

The visa is employer-sponsored: you cannot apply for it independently. You must have a confirmed job offer from a UK employer who holds a valid sponsor licence and is approved to sponsor Health and Care Worker Visa holders. The employer assigns a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) to you, which forms the basis of your visa application.

Finding a UK employer who can sponsor

Not all UK healthcare employers hold a sponsor licence, though the majority of NHS Trusts and most large private hospital groups do. Sponsor licences are also held by many primary care networks, mental health trusts, and community health providers.

When evaluating a job offer, confirm explicitly that the employer holds a current sponsor licence for the Health and Care Worker Visa category. A legitimate employer will be able to provide their sponsor licence number. You can verify a UK employer's sponsor licence status on the UK government's register of licensed sponsors, which is publicly available online.

Recruitment agencies in the Philippines that operate in the UK healthcare sector vary significantly in quality and legitimacy. Employers are not permitted to charge nurses fees for visa sponsorship or placement — if an employer or agent is asking you to pay placement fees, this is a red flag and potentially unlawful under UK anti-trafficking regulations. Amber connects Filipino nurses with directly vetted UK employers who hold confirmed sponsor licences and do not charge placement fees.

Salary requirements and NMC registration

To qualify for a Health and Care Worker Visa in the nursing occupation, your job offer must meet a minimum salary threshold. For 2025/26, the minimum salary for registered nurses under the Skilled Worker route is approximately £29,970 per year (Band 5 minimum on the NHS AfC scale). This aligns with the NHS Band 5 entry point, meaning most NHS nurse offers automatically meet the threshold.

Private sector employers offering salaries above the threshold are also eligible. Some private hospitals and independent healthcare groups offer salaries above NHS band equivalent rates to attract internationally qualified nurses.

You must have, or be in the process of obtaining, NMC registration to work as a registered nurse in the UK. If you have passed your CBT but not yet sat the OSCE, some NHS Trusts will offer employment on a supervised or bank basis while you complete the OSCE in the UK. Clarify the exact employment arrangement and salary level during the pre-OSCE period before accepting any offer.

Bringing family to the UK

Health and Care Worker Visa holders can bring dependent family members to the UK. Eligible dependants include a spouse or civil partner, and children under 18 (or over 18 if they were already in the UK as your dependant).

Each dependant must make a separate visa application. There are fees for each dependant application, though dependants of Health and Care Worker Visa holders are also exempt from the Immigration Health Surcharge — a significant saving for families.

Dependant spouses and partners have the right to work in the UK without restriction. This is an important practical benefit — a Filipino spouse who is also a healthcare worker, or who can find other employment, can contribute to household income immediately on arrival.

Children of Health and Care Worker Visa holders can access state-funded education in the UK. NHS healthcare is available to visa holders and their dependants through the standard NHS GP and hospital registration process.

Housing in the UK varies enormously by location. NHS employers in London and the South East often provide or assist with accommodation for the first weeks or months, or direct international recruits to NHS-linked accommodation schemes. Outside London, accommodation costs are significantly lower.

The five-year route to ILR

Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) is permanent settlement in the UK — equivalent to permanent residency in Australia or New Zealand. To apply for ILR on the Health and Care Worker Visa route, you must complete five years of continuous leave on a Skilled Worker visa (or combination of eligible visa types) and meet the knowledge of English and knowledge of life in the UK requirements (the Life in the UK test and English language qualification).

Five years is the standard timeline. It is possible to qualify in slightly less time if periods on other eligible visa categories are combined. The five-year clock begins from the date your first Skilled Worker visa takes effect, not from the date of your job offer or visa application.

ILR is granted for an indefinite period. Once you have ILR, you can live and work in the UK permanently without visa restrictions, sponsor eligible family members, and access the same public services as UK nationals. After holding ILR for one year, you can apply for British citizenship by naturalisation, subject to meeting residency and character requirements.

The UK's five-year route to settlement is longer than New Zealand's two-year Green List pathway and broadly comparable to Australia's typical timeline from 482 SID to 186 ENS PR. For nurses who value being in Europe and the additional travel and career opportunities this offers, the UK timeline is a reasonable trade-off.