Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to seek payment from foreign nationals for NHS treatment.

In England, the National Health Service is a residency-based system. Only people who are ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom or otherwise exempt from charges under the NHS (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015, are eligible for NHS healthcare without charge. Overseas visitors who use the NHS in England are charged upfront at 150% of the cost of treatment. Health is a devolved matter and there may be other arrangements in Northern Ireland.

The Department sets the policy, guidance and legislation through the NHS (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015, and the NHS recovers treatment costs from charge liable patients.

Costs for NHS treatment provided to overseas visitors and other people who are not ordinarily resident in the UK are recovered through NHS direct charging, the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) and reciprocal healthcare arrangements. Individuals coming to the UK for six months or more are expected to pay the IHS as part of their visa application. Once their application is granted, they are entitled to receive treatment on broadly the same basis as someone who is ordinarily resident in the UK. People coming to the UK for six months or less are expected to have adequate funds or insurance to cover any healthcare needs whilst in England. The UK is also party to several reciprocal healthcare agreements. Patients who are from countries covered by a reciprocal healthcare agreement may be entitled to some NHS services without charge.