Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board 1 (PLAB 1) and Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board 2 (PLAB 2) candidates in the UK having to incur further costs to extend their visas in order to take the PLAB 1 or PLAB 2 exam, as a result of their exams being rescheduled for later in 2022.

Overseas graduates from medical or dental schools may take the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board (PLAB) test as visitors.

They may extend their stay six months at a time.

The Home Office is not involved in the administration of the General Medical Council’s PLAB test in any way.

Visa fees are set taking account of the charging powers provided by Section 68(9) of the Immigration Act 2014, which include the ability to set fees based on: the cost of processing the application, the benefits provided by a successful application and the wider cost of the Migration and Borders system. Full details are available via the following link - http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2014/22/section/68

The Home Office has no plans to waive the fee for extending a visitor visa, for candidates taking PLAB 1 or 2 examinations.