Nurse Visa Sponsorship UK 2026: Pay-Scale Rule, 249 Employers Hiring and How to Apply

Registered nurses can be sponsored for a UK Health and Care Worker visa by any employer on the Home Office sponsor register, and as of 29 October 2026 Tarve lists 837 live nursing jobs from 249 licensed employers, with London, Birmingham, Bristol and Reading the busiest locations. Nurses are paid on national pay scales, so the visa salary rule is the pay-scale rate for the band with a £25,000 floor, not the £41,700 general threshold. Where the advert states a salary, the median range on live nursing jobs is £39,959 to £48,117. Source: Tarve live jobs matched to the gov.uk Register of Licensed Sponsors, and gov.uk Skilled Worker guidance, checked 29 October 2026.

Who sponsors nurses, and where the jobs are

Every NHS trust in England holds a sponsor licence, and so do the large private hospital and mental-health groups and many care providers. On 29 October 2026 the ten employers with the most live sponsored nursing jobs on Tarve were Ramsay Health Care (52), Elysium Healthcare (30), Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (21), Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (16), and six further NHS trusts and private providers with 10 to 15 each. By location, London had 48 live nursing jobs, Birmingham 12, Bristol 12 and Reading 12, with the rest spread across more than 150 towns. For the NHS specifically, the NHS trusts guide lists trusts by region; for everyone else, each employer page shows the licence routes, the rating and the live jobs.

The salary rule for nurses

Nurses are one of the occupations whose going rate is set by national pay scales rather than a single figure. Under the Health and Care Worker rules you must be paid at least £25,000 a year and at least the rate for your band on the relevant pay scale; the £41,700 general threshold does not apply. In the NHS that means Agenda for Change Band 5 for a newly registered nurse and Band 6 and above for specialist and senior roles. Private employers must match the pay-scale rate for the equivalent role. Where live adverts state a salary, the median range on Tarve is £39,959 to £48,117, which is comfortably above the floor. The SOC 2232 page and its siblings (2231 midwives, 2233 to 2237 specialist, practitioner, mental health, children’s and other registered nurses) explain the pay-scale rule for each code.

Registration and English before the visa

1. NMC registration. Overseas-trained nurses sit the computer-based test (CBT) in their home country, then the OSCE in the UK after arrival on the visa; the employer usually books and funds the OSCE. Check the current NMC requirements on nmc.org.uk.
2. English. Two separate requirements: the NMC's own English standard for registration (IELTS Academic or OET at the levels it publishes), and the visa's English requirement under the Skilled Worker rules, which rose to B2 for new applications from 8 January 2026. Confirm both on gov.uk and nmc.org.uk before booking a test.
3. Certificate of Sponsorship. Once you have an offer, the employer assigns a defined CoS, which the Home Office usually approves within one working day (see the CoS guide).
4. Visa application. Health and Care Worker applications from outside the UK are usually decided within 3 weeks. The fee is lower than the standard Skilled Worker fee and there is no Immigration Health Surcharge; see the Health and Care Worker guide for the current figures.

How to search well

• Filter to licensed employers only. Every job on Tarve’s nursing search comes from an employer on the register, matched by company record and re-checked daily.
• Check the employer page before you apply. It shows the routes, the rating and how many nursing jobs the employer has live, so you can tell an occasional sponsor from a trust that recruits internationally every month.
• Read the band, not just the salary. An advert at Band 5 pay that asks for Band 6 experience is a warning sign; the going rate is the pay-scale rate for the band on the certificate of sponsorship.
• Use the extension on NHS Jobs and LinkedIn. The free Tarve Chrome extension shows the licence check on any job page you open.

Frequently asked questions

Can a nurse get a UK visa without NMC registration?

Not as a registered nurse. The Health and Care Worker route for nursing codes requires NMC registration or, for overseas-trained nurses, a sponsor that supports the CBT-then-OSCE route to registration. Pre-registration roles are sponsored by some trusts on that basis; the job advert will say so.

What is the minimum salary for a sponsored nurse in the UK?

At least £25,000 a year and at least the national pay-scale rate for the band, under the Health and Care Worker rules. The £41,700 general threshold does not apply to nursing codes.

Which employers sponsor the most nurses?

On Tarve on 29 October 2026, Ramsay Health Care, Elysium Healthcare, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust had the most live sponsored nursing jobs. All NHS trusts in England hold a licence.

Can I bring my family on a Health and Care Worker visa?

Registered nurses on the Health and Care Worker route can bring dependants under the current rules. The restriction introduced in March 2024 applies to care workers and senior care workers (SOC 6135 and 6136), not to registered nursing codes. Check gov.uk for the current position before applying.