Refugee healthcare professionals

NHS Employers works closely with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and non-government organisations (NGOs) to help place skilled refugee nurses from both outside of the UK and within, back into employment. 

Important points

• Alongside housing, employment is the second principal of a refugee.
• Refugees can work in the UK without any restrictions. In common with other employees in the UK, refugees are covered by the Equality Act 2010 and the Human Rights Act 1998.
• Most refugees were working before they arrived in the UK and have backgrounds in a wide variety of roles, from skilled trades to managers and senior officials. Research shows that refugees are highly motivated to find employment in the UK and to make a positive contribution at work.

Things to do as an employer that wishes to support refugees

Supporting employment and teams 

• The Homes for Ukraine scheme allowed individuals, charities, community groups and businesses in the UK to  register their interest and bring Ukrainians to safety including those with no family ties. Guidance is also available for UK Visa support for Ukrainian nationals.
• The UK Extension Scheme closed to all applications on 4 February 2025. 
• The UK Permission Extension Scheme (which opened for applications on 4 February 2025) enables people who have been given permission to be in the UK under one of the Ukraine Schemes to apply for a further 18 months permission to stay in the UK. 
• Support programmes exist for other refugees, such as the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme.
• If the refugee cannot display all the documents as detailed in the employment check standards, check online guidance such as the employing refugees guide and the employment checks frequently asked questions page for guidance on how to appoint refugees. This has been updated to include support in obtaining criminal record checks for Ukrainian nationals.  
• Asking senior management to explain to staff the rationale behind hiring refugees is essential.
• Offer training to both supervisors and staff on how they can support refugees.

Partnership working and engagement

• Work closely with your local authorities (including strategic migration partnerships), chambers of commerce and employer associations to identify and maximise suitable work opportunities for refugees. Reach out to local NHS partners or colleagues across a system when connecting with local authorities and to strategic migration partnerships.
• Reach out to refugees by going beyond the traditional forms of recruitment, for example, by contacting relevant civil society organisations Refuaid, Talent Beyond Boundaries, or the Refugee Council.
• Investigate what regional projects are happening in your local area, such as Reache Northwest, Building Bridges, or ReSTORE Refugee Nursing Programme. 
• Speak to any refugees that may currently work for you and ask them what was helpful for them.

Pastoral care

• Consider the specific pastoral care requirements of refugees. Have discussions with individuals, as their unique needs may be different than traditional economic migrants.
• Provide staff with opportunities to get involved, for example, introducing mentorship or buddy schemes between refugees and employees.
• Put refugees in contact with co-workers to facilitate social integration or carpools. 
• Ensure links are available to local community groups for refugees, other diaspora groups, and resources from the Home Office such as their welcome guide for new refugees.

Training and development

• Provide incoming refugees with clear information on company policies and work habits. 
• Language requirements are usually the biggest barrier for refugees to join the NHS. Consider how you will provide additional support in this area, such as seeking funding from local authorities or working with other local partners.
• Provide short-term internships or apprenticeships to enable refugees to obtain recommendations and references.

Employing refugee healthcare professionals

The employment of refugee healthcare professionals has many benefits for employers and helps NHS organisations to meet their requirements in a number of areas, including workforce supply, equality and diversity and corporate social responsibility.

The British Medical Association (BMA) has produced a web page to support refugee doctors which covers the three stages the individual would need to do in order to become a Doctor in the UK. There is also support on the BMA refugee doctor initiative, which is free and provides support to allow doctors to get their licence to practice in the UK. There are about 900 doctors on the initiative at any one time. The BMA has also produced a Refugee and asylum seeker patient health toolkit which provides guidance on the legal, ethical and practical considerations which need to take into account when treating a patient who is a refugee or asylum seeker.

Information about regional work to support refugees 

• Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust is helping to assist skilled refugees into NHS roles through the healthcare overseas professionals (HOP) programme.
• The Building Bridges programme, run by the Refugee Council is a NHS funded partnership for refugee health professionals living in London. The Refugee Council assist refugee doctors to re-qualify to UK standards and secure employment appropriate to their professional qualifications.
• REACHE Northwest is funded NHS Health Education North West and has been set up to assist Refugee and asylum seeking Healthcare Professionals (RHPs) to register their qualifications in the UK and to assist RHPs who have permission to work in finding employment in the NHS.
• ReSTORE (Refugee Support, Training, Orientation, Recruitment and Education) is a structured programme for refugees with a nursing and midwifery background in their country of origin to become nurses and nurse associates. Based in South Yorkshire, ReSTORE runs through the South Yorkshire Primary Care and Workforce Training Hub.

Good practice

NHS Employers has produced the following materials to support NHS trusts in employing refugee healthcare professionals.

• Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust sits in the second most-deprived area of England, with low-quality housing, a transient community, and poor levels of education. The trust ran a number of widening participation initiatives, supporting people from the local refugee and migrant population to return to a career in healthcare, they have also engaged with young people and ex-offenders. 
• Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust was invited to participate in the charity Growing Points' Hidden Talents initiative, aimed at helping people from disadvantaged backgrounds, principally refugees and asylum seekers, into work. The initiative was a great success and positively impacted both the trust and local community. 
• A blog that describes how a dedicated recruitment project is helping refugees to find work in North West London. 
• This webinar focused on how North West London ICB successfully ran the NW London Refugee Employment pilot by recruiting over 80 refugees.
• How Coventry and Warwickshire ICS introduced a number of different employability support channels to attract, recruit and retain local people. 

Guidance for employers on preventing illegal working, asylum seekers and refugees can be found on the UK Visas and Immigration website. The Refugee Council and the Equality and Human Rights Commission have also produced the Employing Refugees which explains the documents that refugees and asylum seekers can use to demonstrate their entitlement to work in the UK. 

Our frequently asked questions web page provides more information on how to appoint refugees if they cannot display all the documents as required in the employment check standards.