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I've seen a lot of inaccurate reporting in the media of how the NHS health surcharge works, so here's an explainer as someone who's actually had to pay it (THREAD):
The health surcharge is currently £400 per year for the number of years a UK visa is valid, rising to £624 in Oct 2020. It's unusual for a worker to move to the UK for just 1 year, so in practice most surcharges are £1000s per person. There's discounts for students/kids/etc.(1/9)
The surcharge also needs to be paid for anyone applying for a visa with you, such as a spouse or child. It's even payable for children born IN THE UK to parents without citizenship or Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). You can see how this is getting very expensive. (2/9)
The surcharge is calculated per yr, but the entirety must paid up front AT THE SAME TIME as the visa fee (which also cost £100s or £1000s depending on the visa). Eg a single nurse who recently moved to the UK on a 5 yr visa will have paid £2000 just for the surcharge alone.(3/9)
The health surcharge is NOT optional 'if you want to use the NHS' (as a BBC reporter said yesterday). A migrant can't decide that they would rather get private insurance and skip the upfront fee. Paying the surcharge is a mandatory criteria in the visa application process.(4/9)
Not only do migrants pay twice for the NHS through the surcharge and tax; they can end up paying three or four times over if they ever renew or switch their visa. Only citizenship + ILR applicants are exempt from the surcharge, even if someone has been a UK taxpayer for yrs.(5/9)
The surcharge is also increasing at an alarming rate - far outstripping reasonable inflation costs.
In 2016 the surcharge was £200 per year.
In 2018, it doubled to the current rate of £400.
And as we know, later in 2020 it will increase to £624. It's tripled in 4 years.(6/9)
In 2016 the surcharge was £200 per year.
In 2018, it doubled to the current rate of £400.
And as we know, later in 2020 it will increase to £624. It's tripled in 4 years.(6/9)
Is this pricing strategy really to help the NHS, or keep out all but the wealthiest migrants? I would argue the latter, especially considering the Royal College of Nursing has begged the government to scrap the surcharge for NHS staff since 2018: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/may/12/scrap-healthcare-fees-for-non-eu-staff-in-nhs-say-nurses-leaders (7/9)
But whatever you think of the surcharge, we should welcome that it's finally being dropped for NHS/care workers. But as my thread shows, scrapping it will not help any non-EU NHS and care staff currently in the UK, as they will have already paid the entire fee in advance.(8/9)
If the PM really wants to help migrant health workers on the front line today, surcharges need to be refunded, not just cancelled. Media, MPs and the public need to keep up the pressure. And you can't do that unless you know how the system works.(9/9)
BONUS tweet: The surcharge should also be refunded for NHS and care worker's dependents. (10/9).
