Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating an expedited process for healthcare organisations seeking Certificates of Sponsorship to support visa renewals for existing employees.

The same service standard applies to all sponsors using the immigration system and the onus is on the sponsors to be aware of the legal status of their workers and request the relevant Certificates of Sponsorship in accordance with those timescales. Priority services are available albeit capped for an expedited consideration. We keep our service standards under review.

Healthcare workers who qualify for the Health and Care Visa benefit from faster in-country visa processing times and are exempt from paying the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS).