Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of waiving the Immigration Health Surcharge for non-EEA nursing staff.

The Government fully recognises the contribution that international healthcare professionals, including nurses, make to the UK and to our health service, but we are not convinced it would be appropriate to waive the immigration health surcharge for this group.

Other providers of public services, such as teachers, are required to pay the charge and it is only right that those who come to the UK for more than six months who will not have built up the same connection contribute to the running of the NHS. It is important to remember that the charge offers access to health care services that are more comprehensive and often at lower cost than many other countries. The income generated by surcharge payments goes directly to NHS services, helping to protect and sustain our world-class healthcare system for everyone who uses it.