What do I need to become a healthcare professional (AHP) in the U.K.?

If you wish to start your journey as a healthcare professional in the United Kingdom you must first register with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). The HCPC is a regulator of health and care professions in the United Kingdom. The professions they regulate have one or more designated titles that are protected by law and professionals must be registered to use them.

The HCPC Register stores the details of all health and care professionals who meet their standards for their training, professional skills, behaviour and health. After completing professional training, you’ll need to apply to join it. 

The Allied Health Professions (AHPs) are the third largest workforce in the NHS. In the main they are degree level professions, and are professionally autonomous practitioners. 13 of the 14 AHPs are regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). AHPs provide system-wide care to assess, treat, diagnose and discharge patients across social care, housing, education, and independent and voluntary sectors. 

These 14 Allied Health Professions include:

NEU Professionals will support you with your HCPC registration process so you do not need to be registered with the HCPC before sending us your application. However it’s recommended that you learn a little about the HCPC and their requirements beforehand (it will certainly give you brownie points! 😉 )

Our application shortlisting and process

Below you can find a list of all essential requirements and steps to follow for your application with NEU Professionals to be successful:

1. Degree needed

For Clinical Scientists (such as Clinical Psychologists), you are required to hold a 3-year Taught Doctorate in Clinical Psychology or equivalent.

For the rest of AHPs, you are required to hold an Undergraduate/Bachelor’s degree or equivalent.

2. English Language Certificate at the level required by the HCPC (Health and Care Professions Council) 

All healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom must be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). If you are an overseas healthcare professional and your experience and studies have been mainly accomplished in a non-English speaking country, the HCPC requires that you hold a valid Academic IELTS or TOEFL certificate in order to register as a healthcare professional in the U.K.  This is an essential requirement and your application will not be processed unless you present this certificate. 

The minimum scores required by the HCPC are:

  • International English Language Testing System (IELTS) at a minimum score of 7 with no elements bellow 6.5
  • Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) Internet Based Test (IBT) at a minimum score of 100/120

3. Send us your documents and we will schedule a friendly video interview!

Have you passed your IELTS/TOEFL at the required scores and you think you are eligible to register? Congratulations! Now simply forward your documents (IELTS/TOEFL certificate, up to date CV and passport copy) to us or attach them to your application form when applying for a job. If your application is successful, our team of will be in touch to schedule a first video interview with one of our recruiters and give you guidance with the next steps of the process. 

4. Check that you are ready to register 

It is advisable that you check if you are eligible to join the HCPC register before sending us your application, as it helps speed up the whole process. However, this is not essential and our team will be happy to advise you accordingly depending on your situation and experience.

This link is for applicants who have completed professional training outside the U.K. and whose names have not been on the Register before. These guidance notes will help you to complete the International application form and understand the application process.

5. Forward other relevant documents to us

We will ask you to share other documents with us which we will then send to the NHS Trust. These documents will include:

  • Other ID documents
  • Police Clearance Certificate (PCC) – for every country you have lived in for more than 12 months in the last 10 years.
  • References – from every employer and educational institution you have worked for / attended in the last 3 years.

6. Apply for your Visa

As a healthcare professional you will be entitled to apply for a Health and Care Worker VisaOur NHS Trusts are mostly happy to refund all Visa costs, but note that this might not always be the case. Your Visa usually takes around 3 to 4 weeks to be processed.

7. Get your luggage ready – The U.K. awaits!

Upon receipt of your visa NEU Professionals will book your flight to the United Kingdom and will arrange transport from the airport to your accommodation. A Trust representative will receive you with open arms and a warm welcome.

8. Celebrate! You are now officially a Healthcare Professional in the United Kingdom!

NEU Professionals Limited is an International Healthcare Recruitment Agency headquartered in London, United Kingdom. 

All of our nursing vacancies come with a portfolio of benefits – please review our NHS Benefits section below.

We embrace and champion the values of ethical recruitment outlined in the NHS Code of Practice for International Recruitment and the World Health Organisation guidelines. This means that you can be reassured of the following:

  • The recruitment is legitimate and compliant and always adhering to UK and sourcing country’s regulatory requirements.
  • You will not be charged any fees in relation to gaining your employment in the UK – our services are completely FREE.
  • The roles you will be offered will deliver extensive opportunities for training, education and enhancement of your clinical skills.
  • We will always be fully transparent with you and disclose all of the information you need about the Trust, vacancy you are applying for, geographical area and costs of living to enable you to make an informed choice.
  • You will have a nominated Recruitment Consultant who will look after you throughout every stage of the recruitment/registration process, the entire relocation, your cultural adaptation journey and beyond.

Permanent jobs for healthcare professionals, paid holidays, flexible working hours and childcare support are some of the benefits for NHS employees, but the chances are there are more advantages to being a part of the NHS than you realise.

Whichever area you join, you become part of a talented, passionate team of professionals, committed to providing the best care and treatment to patients. You will also enjoy one of the most competitive and flexible benefits packages offered by any employer in the UK.

Everyone who joins the NHS is guaranteed a competitive salary that matches their ability and responsibilities, plus pay enhancements on top of your basic salary for out-of-hours, shift and overtime working and given every opportunity to increase it through training and development.

We love to change lives and make dreams come true

Get in touch and let us care for you!