Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic junior doctors Ibreez Ajaz and Mohammad Ivan have been working in the intensive care unit, doing gruelling 13-hour shifts from 8am to 9pm. At the end of each day they struggled to even find the time to buy groceries.
All the while, at the same time as working to save the lives of those affected by the virus, the husband and wife have been saving for their five-year visa and NHS surcharge, financial requirements that will let them stay in the UK when their three-year visa runs out.
And so the announcement on Thursday that the government has U-turned and exempted NHS and care workers from the surcharge – which is about to rise from £400 a year to £624 – came as welcome news.
“We are pretty amazed about the change. When I first saw the news I thought it was a joke,” said Ibreez. “I am really glad – it’s great for morale and for showing appreciation for our work. It will make a real difference to how migrant workers in the NHS feel.”
What is it?
Any worker who comes to the UK from outside the European Economic Area pays the fee to use the health service. The surcharge costs £300 a year for student visas and £400 a year for all other visa and immigration applications. It is set to rise in October. A migrant’s dependants usually need to pay the same amounts.
Who does not need to pay?
You don’t pay this fee if you are applying for indefinite leave to enter or remain, or if you are a diplomat or member of a visiting armed forces. Other exemptions include a dependant of a member of the UK’s armed forces and a family member of a European national, as well as asylum seekers and victims of slavery or human trafficking.
Paying these fees, as well as visa charges, had taken its toll on Ibreez and her husband. “While we are not living paycheck to paycheck, we have been scrimping and saving, and we really need to consider our next 5-year visa and we thought if the surcharge goes up to £624 a year for both of us – and with visa costs on top of that – it is a lot of money,” Ibreez, who came to the UK from Texas, US, said.
She said that the surcharge and extra costs have meant that the couple were unable to buy a car, adding that for some migrants arriving in the UK the high costs mean they cannot bring their children over.
“A car does give you a sense of freedom – you don’t have to wait for a bus or have to think about taking a cab or anything like that. Our main concern in our first year was about having enough to pay for a three-year visa,” she added, saying that the couple had to take on extra hours to ensure they had enough money for that.
“[All our savings] are not for rainy day funds but for visas, we have to put a chunk of money aside for that purpose and it is a matter of priority,” she said.
“We are lucky we do not necessarily need to use the health services but even if we were we were already paying in for it with taxes and national insurance and we are also part of the workforce,” said Ibreez.
On top of surcharge fees, a migrant worker on a 10-year pathway to citizenship will pay visa fees every two and a half years to allow them to keep working. These are currently £1,033. After three sets of fees, the worker pays for indefinite leave to remain at the end of 10 years, for a further £2,389. The costs are far higher than in other European countries.
Ibreez’s husband, Mohammad, also regularly sends money back to his mother in Bangladesh, where he hails from. “Yes we are both working and that helps us financially together but yes – if we talk about the money we could save from not paying this it would help.”
For couples, such as Ibreez and Mohammad, the charges being lifted means they feel a new sense of support. “It’s fantastic when people clap on Thursday for the NHS and we are getting lots of support within the community but this is a great way for the government to show that the gratitude is meant.”
She says that her and her husband both came to the UK for a purpose and with the aspiration of supporting a free health system that they admire.
“It was about the concept of this universal healthcare,” Ibreez said.
Mohammad added: “The NHS has been proving how healthcare should be worldwide and I really like the idea that we can provide to patients without thinking what their circumstances are. That is a wonderful thing.”
Doctors also welcomed the government’s decision. Dr Rebecca Lewis, of the Doctors‘ Association UK said the organisation was delighted with the U-turn.
‘‘At all times, but especially in the current pandemic, it is absolutely right that health workers who should be exempt from an extra charge to access the health service they contribute so much,” she said.
“We are privileged to have them care for us, and finally this has been recognised. This a welcome decision from Boris Johnson and one we applaud.”