Healthcare

Steps

1. Pay the Immigration Health Surcharge with your visa (unless exempt). It is paid in advance for the whole length of the visa.
2. Register with a GP (general practitioner) near you. In England, it is free and you need no ID, proof of address or proof of immigration status; many surgeries accept online registration (about 15 minutes per person). In Scotland, register as soon as you arrive with the surgery's form; you may be asked for ID or proof of address.
3. Keep your share code handy. A hospital may ask you to prove your immigration status with a share code taken from your eVisa.
4. If you have an S1 form (for example, a retiree whose pension is paid by an EU country), register it with the Overseas Healthcare team of the NHS Business Services Authority, then claim a refund of your surcharge.
5. In a life-threatening emergency, call 999. In Scotland, when your surgery is closed, NHS 24 answers on 111. In England, hospital emergency departments (A&E) are free for everyone, but not the care you receive afterwards if you are admitted to hospital.

Documents

• Your eVisa and a share code (proof of status for the hospital).
• The payment receipt for the Immigration Health Surcharge (reference number).
• For GP registration: name, date of birth, address (in Scotland, possibly ID and proof of address).
• Where applicable: S1 form, or European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) for students claiming a refund.

Costs and timelines

• Immigration Health Surcharge: £1,035 per year per adult; £776 per year for students, their dependants, the Youth Mobility Scheme and under-18s. Visa of 6 months or less applied for from abroad: no surcharge.
• Exempt (partial list): holders of a Health and Care Worker visa and their family members, EU Settlement Scheme applicants, visitors, people applying for permanent settlement.
• Possible refunds: holders of an S1 form registered with the NHS Business Services Authority; full-time higher-education students, with an EHIC from an EU country, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein, who do not work and whose visa started on or after 1 January 2021.
• Chargeable care even with the surcharge: prescriptions (in England), dental care, eye tests, assisted reproduction.
• Without entitlement to the NHS: hospital care charged at 150% of the NHS national tariff (England). Emergency care (A&E, excluding care received afterwards if you are admitted to hospital) and GP consultations remain free for everyone.

Common pitfalls

• Relying on your EHIC for a move. The EHIC from your country of origin is for temporary stays (medically necessary care). As soon as you come to settle with a visa of more than 6 months, it is the surcharge that opens the NHS to you. And private insurance does not exempt you from paying it.
• Leaving without insurance during the first months. For stays of less than 6 months, the NHS recommends personal medical insurance, even if you have already lived in the United Kingdom.
• Thinking that GP registration opens all rights. On its own it does not give entitlement to free hospital care.
• No refund if you leave early. The surcharge is not refunded if you leave the United Kingdom before the end of your visa, nor if your visa is granted but you do not come.
• Scotland: a few differences. Prescriptions issued by your GP are free, eye tests are free for people who are ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom (ordinarily resident) and for some eligible foreign visitors (gov.scot, 2022). The surcharge, for its part, is the same throughout the United Kingdom.
• The British GHIC is not for you on arrival. The Global Health Insurance Card is issued to UK residents for their temporary stays abroad (EEA, Switzerland in some cases, Australia…). It is not used to get care in the United Kingdom.

What changes by country of origin

• EU and EEA citizens who arrived since 2021: surcharge with the visa; refund possible with an S1 or, for students who do not work, with an EHIC. Holders of settled or pre-settled status: free access to the NHS.
• Swiss citizens: same rules; for the student refund, periods covered by a Swiss EHIC count from 1 November 2021.
• Irish citizens: access to care in the United Kingdom thanks to the Common Travel Area, without a visa and therefore without the surcharge.
• British citizens returning to settle: no surcharge. The NHS considers that you are ordinarily resident (ordinarily resident) when you live in the United Kingdom lawfully and on a settled basis: prepare something to prove it. In the other direction, if you leave the United Kingdom for an EU country: the GHIC is intended for visits and does not replace travel insurance; to settle, find out about joining the health system of the new country (see that country's health sheet).