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Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

NHS Employers is distributing an update from the Department for Health and Social Care. It states that the guidance for international applicants seeking health and social care jobs in the UK has been revised and reissued. This guidance and support for prospective overseas candidates offers assistance by providing advice on avoiding scams, recognising exploitation, and offering practical information necessary for seeking employment in the UK. It has been divided into two parts for easier access. All international candidates thinking about applying for a health or social care job in the UK should read this guidance and support first.

At Servisource, our recruitment team are aware that healthcare staff can be anxious when moving across the world to another country. However, our team ensure they feel like extended family members by putting them at ease, providing a meet and greet at the airport, supplying a sim card to call loved ones back home when they arrive, escorting them to their accommodation and in some instances taking them on their first shopping trip. This ensures they settle into their new home and surroundings well. 

A Message from our Healthcare Perm Associate Director Aileen McCann:

From a leadership perspective, I always try to lead by example. If I can demonstrate how to do a task, what respect and good communication looks like when taking on a new client or making placements, this shows my team who and what they need to strive for.

Part 1: Applying for health and social care jobs in the UK from abroad 

Healthcare in the UK is mainly provided by the National Health Service (NHS), a group of public bodies that provide or arrange medical care for all permanent residents in the UK (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland). There are many varied jobs in the health and social care sector. Some jobs need specific training and skills, and to practice, professionals must join professional registers. Part 1 provides support for prospective overseas candidates applying for jobs including information on:

  • Recruitment processes and agencies
  • How to avoid scams
  • Understanding finances
  • Employment offers and contracts
  • Visas and professional regulation

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1. Finding a good recruitment agency

There are 2 main ways you can be recruited to the UK. You can apply for jobs directly via a jobs board such as NHS jobs or Find a job in social care. Or apply for jobs via a recruitment agency or recruitment organisation. If going through a recruitment agency, check if the agency has a strong track record and positive reviews from both candidates and employers. 

Servisource has become one of Ireland’s leading national and international suppliers of high quality and innovative recruitment and healthcare staffing solutions, enabling continuity of care during peaks in demand, by providing cost-effective solutions which help our longstanding clients manage budgets, reduce workloads, maintain staffing levels and deliver premium patient care. Our team conduct all necessary compliance, educational and police checks, and offer visa assistance and onboarding help when needed.

Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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2. How to check if a job is untrustworthy

If you’re applying for a job with an independent provider (not publicly funded like the NHS), check that the company is real by looking it up on the Companies House website. 

  • Recruitment fees: a recruitment agency should never ask you to pay a fee for finding you work in the UK. If you are asked to pay a recruitment fee, it is a scam or an illegal act.
  • Offered an easy way to pass exams: people or organisations might offer an easy way to achieve the required English language test score or pass a competence or pre-employment check required for a job.
  • Offered a job which is not real: warning signs can include: you are contacted unexpectedly, you get the job without applying or talking to a recruitment agency, you are required to pay a fee to get the job.
  • Payment to fix a visa problem: no official organisation will ask you to make a financial transaction on the spot or for your bank details. 
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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3. Understanding finances

Be clear what costs you’ll need to pay during the recruitment process and whether your employer will pay any of these for you. For most visas, including Health and Care Worker visas, you are not entitled to financial help from the UK government (this is also called ‘no access to public funds’). It is advised to check the following:

  • Does the job meet the minimum salary requirements for the Health and Care Worker visa?
  • How the salary compares to typical salaries and if the salary is fair for the job you are going to be doing?
  • Typical living expenses, ask your potential employer for information about the typical costs for the area you’ll be working in. Compare this with your monthly or annual earnings.
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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4. Employment offers and contracts

Make sure you get a job offer letter from your employer which details the salary, hours, location and any repayment clauses before accepting a job and travelling to the UK. Do not allow anyone to pressure you into signing a contract until you’re comfortable with what is included. Do not sign a different contract on arrival in the UK. Some employers have used this as a way of reducing your rights. All employers should provide:

  • An employment offer letter before you accept the role. This sets out details of your employment but it is not the formal employment contract.
  • Give you a ‘written statement of employment particulars’ on your first day of employment.
  • Give you an employment contract within 2 months of starting your employment.
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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5. Visas, family dependants, professional regulation and employer support

Information is available though the Health and Care Worker visa requirements guidance if applying for that visa. For care workers or senior care workers, dependants can’t join them in the UK unless they are on a Health and Care Worker visa applied for before 11 March 2024.

  • The Health and Care Worker visa: most health and social care professionals come to work in the UK on a Health and Care Worker visa. You should check with your employer whether they intend to pay for a visa on your behalf, or whether you’ll need to meet the cost yourself.
  • Bringing children from a previous relationship: each application is considered on a case-by-case basis and the burden of proof is on you to provide satisfactory evidence. You should discuss this with your employer and seek guidance on the process and evidence you’ll need to provide.
  • Bringing family dependants: for care workers or senior care workers on a Health and Care Worker visa, dependants cannot join them, unless on a Health and Care Worker visa applied for before 11 March 2024. If working in a health or social care role other than a care worker or senior care worker, partners and children can apply to join or to stay in the UK as dependants if eligible. Make sure to read and understand the requirements.
  • Bringing an adult dependant relative: adult dependant relatives cannot come to the UK on a Health and Care Worker visa. An adult dependant relative includes: parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, sons or daughters aged 18 years or over.
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

Part 2: living and working in the UK , what you need to know as a health and care worker 

This part is a guide that provides advice on how to recognise the signs of exploitation, how to avoid it and what to do about it. The code of practice for the international recruitment of health and social care personnel sets out the UK government’s written guidelines for ensuring that international recruitment of health and social care staff is done ethically. Part 2 provides support on the following topics:

  • Being aware of exploitation
  • Arranging accommodation
  • Worker legal rights
  • Employment changes and your visa
  • Equality and inclusion in the workplace
  • Supportive organisations

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1. Be aware of exploitation

Be aware of the signs of exploitation. These include being forced to work under poor conditions, without reasonable time off and for little or no payment. Money and fees issues are discussed as well as working hours and quality of care being provided.

  • Reporting concerns: report concerns about pay, work rights, employment agencies or working hours by completing the government’s online form. In Northern Ireland contact the Labour Relations Agency. For confidential free employment law or workplace advice, contact Acas.
  • UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI): if your concern relates to your visa contact UKVI.
  • Money and fees: if you are receiving less than the minimum salary requirements for your visa. Contact Acas.
  • Working hours: if you are being forced to work excessively long hours contact GLAA, the Health and Safety Executive and/or your local council (if you work in social care).
  • Quality of care being provided: this relates to concerns about the level and/or quality of care being provided by a health or care provider. Contact CQC and your local council (for social care).
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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2. Arranging accommodation

Make sure you have a clear plan for where you will live, who is arranging it and for how long. For advice on looking for a home through a private landlord or letting agent, see Shelter. 

  • Tied accommodation: your employer may provide you with accommodation when you arrive (usually for a few weeks or months). It may be offered free of charge, or you may be asked to repay the rent. This is known as tied accommodation.
  • Sharing a house with other people: you may consider sharing a house with other people in what is known as a house in multiple occupation (HMO).
  • Private accommodation: you can find accommodation in the private sector by searching for housing websites. Shelter provide advice on looking for a home through a private landlord or letting agent.
  • Who to contact: if there is a problem, contact Citizens Advice or your local council if your landlord is not helping. The council can make a landlord take action to correct any problems.
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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3. Worker legal rights, working hours and taking on additional work

Your rights as a worker are protected by UK law. Read the GLAA workers’ rights leaflet. By law, you must not work more than 48 hours a week on average, unless you ‘opt out’. Even if you opt out, you must take rest breaks from work.  

  • Know your worker legal rights: on a Health and Care Worker visa, you can do additional paid work as long as you’re still doing the job you’re being sponsored for.
  • Know your worker legal rights: the GLAA information leaflet sets out your legal rights as a worker and what you can expect from your employer. It’s available in 19 languages.
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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4. Employment changes and your visa

Your visa may be affected if you change jobs, lose your job, or your employer loses their sponsorship licence. Please note that your employer cannot deport you, the Home Office will decide whether to cancel your visa or not.

  • If you want to move jobs: if you want to change employers, you’ll need to ensure your new employer is a Skilled Worker sponsor licence holder and willing to sponsor your visa in the new role.
  • If you lose your job: if you lose your job (this could be through dismissal or redundancy) your employer will inform the Home Office.
  • If a sponsor loses their sponsorship licence: employers can lose their sponsor licence if they don’t maintain their sponsor duties or are found to be in breach of the immigration rules. Find out what to do if your employer loses their sponsor licence.
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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5. Equality and inclusion in the workplace

You’re legally protected from discrimination by the Equality Act 2010. If you think you’ve been unfairly discriminated against, you can contact the Equality Advisory Support Service for help and advice, or contact your trade union.

  • Discrimination in the workplace: it is illegal for an employer to give discriminatory terms of employment, deny promotion, training or withhold benefits, facilities, or services on the grounds of a protected characteristic.
  • Continuing professional development: you should be given the same career development and learning opportunities as UK trained workers. Your line manager should provide you with information about continued professional development and what opportunities are available.
  • Bullying and harassment: bullying and harassment is behaviour that makes someone feel intimidated or offended Find out more about harassment in the workplace and advice on what to do about it.
  • Adapting to cultural differences: your employer should encourage a compassionate and inclusive culture. Where possible, training should be offered to ensure your colleagues understand the culture of their international colleagues and to help you learn and adapt to working in a different culture.
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

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6. Organisations to support you during your employment

If you join after a problem has occurred it is harder for these organisations to represent you, so consider joining when you first start your job. You’ll need to pay a membership fee, but some trade unions offer a discounted membership fee for international members.

  • Trade unions and professional associations: consider joining a UK based health or social care professional trade union or professional association as soon as you begin your employment. These organisations can support you in lots of ways, including providing employment and immigration advice, access to legal services and other professional services.
  • Professional regulatory organisations: if you will be working in a role that is professionally regulated, the professional regulatory bodies can provide advice and guidance on what you need to do to join the register. They will also investigate any concerns about your fitness to practice.
  • Diaspora groups and associations: these are communities or networks of international health or care workers of the same nationality or culture. They can link you up with other international recruits from your home country and support you with your continuing professional development. Examples are nursing associations and doctor associations.
Guidance And Support For Prospective Overseas Candidates

Servisource want to make sure the process of recruitment is understood, and that healthcare workers are well informed about working rights and standards and have the information needed to make decisions. For detailed information on the above, please refer to the gov.uk website.

Contact Servisource to see how we can support you.

Servisource Healthcare

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New Immigration Rules Introduced by the UK Government

5 tips on finding the right homecare provider
The Nursing and Midwifery Council and Supporting Information

New Immigration Rules Introduced by the UK Government

On 4 December 2023, new immigration rules were introduced by the UK government. These changes to the immigration system will take effect from Spring 2024.

The upcoming changes to the Health and Care Visa route will specifically impact the care sector in the UK. Under these changes, care workers and senior care workers will no longer be allowed to bring their dependents when moving to the UK, and only CQC-registered providers in England can sponsor Health and Care Visa applicants. It’s important to note that these changes do not apply to the NHS. There are no changes to the policy on dependants for NHS staff. They will be able to bring partners and childrens as dependants if eligible.  A dependant partner or child is any of the following:

  • A husband, wife, civil partner or unmarried partner.
  • A child under 18 – including if they were born in the UK during your stay.
  • A child over 18 currently in the UK as a dependant.

Evidence of the relationship to the dependant needs to be provided when applying for the visa. Workers and dependants account for some of the highest proportion of visas being issued.

Did You Know?

Skilled Worker and Health and Care Worker visas account for 63% of work grants, and the proportion of work-related visas being granted to dependants rose to 43% in the year ending September 2023.  

The Health and Care Visa route will not be affected by changes to salary thresholds and will still exempt holders from the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS). The government plans to review the Shortage Occupation List (SOL) and Graduate Visa route. While the government aims to reduce net migration, it acknowledges the importance of internationally educated health and care workers.

The measures announced are possible because the government is prioritising growing the domestic workforce through the Back to Work Plan – a package of employment-focused support that will help people stay healthy, get off benefits and move into work.

International Recruitment at Servisource

Our team recruits Nurses across all disciplines and Allied Healthcare Professionals from across the world. We manage all aspects of the recruitment process including interview scheduling, compliance checks, and even welcome international candidates by meeting them at the airport.
We operate regionally, nationally and globally, providing access to the right people with the right skills and knowledge in the right place.

As the government makes changes to immigration policies, the Health and Care Visa remains a distinct and important route for healthcare professionals. While some aspects are evolving, such as the review of occupation lists and graduate visas, it’s reassuring that key benefits like exemption from the Immigration Health Surcharge persist.

These changes may raise many questions, especially for internationally educated staff and those involved in recruitment. By regularly checking Servisource’s latest blogs, professionals can receive the most up-to-date information and guidance in this evolving landscape.

Are you interested in our Permanent Recruitment Services?

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The Nursing and Midwifery Council and Supporting Information

5 tips on finding the right homecare provider
The Nursing and Midwifery Council and Supporting Information

The Nursing and Midwifery Council and Supporting Information

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), an independent regulator, focuses on nurses, midwives, and nursing associates in the UK and England. Their purpose is to make sure that the practices of nursing and midwifery are secure, effective, and compassionate. They oversee and monitor these professions and the public, to ensure their well-being.

As Servisource stated in our previous blog, The NMC Announce Employers Can Provide Supporting Information For English Language Proficiency, this process is discussed in more detail in the following blog, allowing more high-quality professionals to join the register, helping to provide better care to the public.

SIFE is additional supporting information from an employer that certain applicants to the NMC register can provide as part of their evidence that they meet the NMC’s English language requirements.

As of 27 May 2023, all prospective applicants who haven’t yet submitted their NMC Online applications can now use SIFE via the NMC Online application process.

In September 2022, their Council agreed that SIFE could be used as additional supporting evidence of English language competence, for those people who have been working for 12 months (or FTE equivalent if working part-time) in non-registered practice in a health and social care setting in the UK.

Applicants trained in English in a country where English is not the majority spoken language can use SIFE to evidence listening and speaking competence, demonstrating their ability to interact clinically in English with people who use services, their families, carers, and other healthcare professionals.

Which applicants can provide this supporting information?

Those people who have working for 12 months (or FTE equivalent if working part-time) in non-registered practice in a health and social care setting in the UK and who either:

  • Trained in English but in a country where English is not the majority spoken language, as evidence of their clinical interaction skills. They will still need to provide evidence that their training and assessment was in English.
  • Missed the required score by 0.5 (IELTS) or half a grade (OET) on one of the four language domains, as long as they had exhausted all test combining options.

Applicants must have:

  • Worked in a non-registered role in a health or care setting in the UK for at least 12 months full time or full time equivalent if working part time at the point they submit their application.
  • Had an NMC registrant as their line manager.
  • Had the same line manager for at least 6 months (we will accept supporting information from up to two NMC-registered line managers to cover 12 months or full time equivalent).

Their line manager will be asked to provide information via a link to NMC online to confirm direct experience of their English language competence. Their line manager should be an NHS Band 6 (or non-NHS equivalent) or above. This information also needs be countersigned by an NMC registrant who is an NHS Band 8a (or non-NHS equivalent) or above, to confirm the process has been fair and consistent.

How to access the SIFE form?

The process is fully automated, applicants will access SIFE as part of the application process on NMC online. They will automatically send the applicant’s line managers and counter-signatories a link to provide SIFE via their NMC Online accounts, based on information the applicant provides. Servisource advises you to stay updated by visiting the NMC’s website in relation to these amendments.

At Servisource, we place International Healthcare Professionals in permanent positions across the UK in the private sector and NHS, while offering career progression within a supportive work environment. 

Our team conducted all necessary compliance, educational and police checks, and offer visa assistance and onboarding help when needed. This means each successful candidate is ready to begin work without administrative issues, and can focus on what matters most, their patients.

Are you a Healthcare Professional interested in a UK Permanent Placement?

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NMC Register Becomes More Ethnically Diverse

NMC Register Becomes More Ethnically Diverse
NMC Register Becomes More Ethnically Diverse

NMC Register Becomes More Ethnically Diverse

The nursing and midwifery profession in the UK is experiencing heightened levels of diversity. The number of healthcare professionals from ethnic minority backgrounds joining the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) register has significantly increased in the past year. This increase is good news for the profession, as promoting diversity ensures that the UK healthcare system is equipped to cater to the vast needs and preferences of patients from all ethnic backgrounds. This trend is likely to continue as the healthcare industry as a whole continues to focus on promoting diversity and inclusivity.

Reports from the NMC’s register tells us how many nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom (UK) and nursing associates in England are currently able to practise. They publish data from their register every six months. With more international professionals joining the register, and with UK joiners becoming more ethnically diverse, the ethnic profile of the NMC register is changing.

Their latest registration data report

Their annual reports cover the 12 month period from April to March every year, but they also publish a mid-year report covering the six month period from April to September.

In the six month period from April to September 2022, the number of nurses, midwives and nursing associates on the NMC register grew by nearly two percent to a total of 771,445.

This growth is being driven in large part by the number of internationally educated joiners, which continues to rise at a much faster rate than UK joiners.

The number of nurses, midwives and nursing associates registered to practise in the UK has grown to a record total of 788,638.

2022-2023 saw the highest number of new joiners to the register in a single year, more than 52,000.

These include 27,142 new professionals educated in the UK and 25,006 professionals educated around the world, mainly outside Europe.

Just over 731,000 are nurses, nearly 42,000 are midwives, just over 9,300 are nursing associates and just over 6,500 are both nurses and midwives.

Between April 2022 and March 2023 the number of nurses, midwives and nursing associates on their register grew by just over 30,300.

There were a large number of people on the register who came from outside of Europe.
There are now over 136,000 people from outside Europe. That is just over 22,500 more than last year.

NMC Register Becomes More Ethnically Diverse

How is Servisource adding value to this?

By leveraging our trusted relationships with marketing specialists, overseas agencies and our international network including bases in India and the UK, we use the right skills and knowledge to interview, screen and vet candidates from around the world.

To mitigate any potential issues in the recruitment process, our team provide support to all candidates travelling from abroad, via a meet and greet service at the airport as well as regular post-placement contact to ensure candidates adapt to the right place.

It is an encouraging sign that the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) register has become more ethnically diverse. Bearing in mind that nurses and midwives are the frontline change-makers within healthcare, it is more important than ever for them to be representative of the communities they serve. Patient outcomes will improve due to a greater sense of understanding, trustworthiness, and acceptance.

The NMC deserves enormous credit for their efforts in embracing diversity amongst health professionals as well as their commitment to ongoing improvement. With these developments in place, better health and wellbeing services can be provided on a wider scale to ensure everyone receives the care they deserve.

Are you looking for a career in healthcare ?

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