International Medical Graduates and visas

October 2025

The RCGP is acutely aware of the challenges facing those GPs requiring visa sponsorship in order to work in the UK and has been seeking Government action to ensure that not GP risks having to leave the country.

In Autumn 2023, following campaigning work by the College, a 4-month visa extension post qualification (CCT) was implemented to allow GPs to legally remain in the UK while looking for employment or waiting to start work. However, we have always been clear that this is not sufficient to address the challenges faced by IMGs.

More than half of all GP registrars are international medical graduates (IMGs), many of whom require visas, yet because they complete training in only three years – unlike in other medical specialties –they are not eligible for Indefinite Leave to Remain on qualification.

The NHS invests significant resources into training these doctors and in return IMGs make invaluable contribution to the NHS. It is non-sensical to present any barriers to IMG GPs taking up work and delivering much needed care to patients.

We have heard from our members that many IMGs find the process of getting a visa stressful and are anxious that they may be forced to leave the country. A survey conducted jointly by the RCGP and BMA registrar groups in July 2025 (unpublished) of 521 GPs and trainees who either needed or had recently secured a visa to work in the UK highlighted the challenges faced by these doctors:

  • 71% reported that securing a job with visa sponsorship was difficult or very difficult
  • 44% said the visa application process and paperwork were difficult or very difficult
  • 62% who experienced difficulties with visa and employment stated that if these challenges in finding a GP role continue or had continued, they would plan to leave the country and work as GP elsewhere.

IMG doctors are essential not only to the delivery of patient care, but also to achieving the ambitions of the NHS 10 Year Health Plan. They bring vital skills, experience and diversity to general practice, helping to meet the growing demand for care in communities across the UK. Without their contribution, it would not be possible to expand the GP workforce or to achieve the ambition of shifting more services from hospitals into the community.

In September 2025, we sent a letter to the Home Secretary drawing attention to the difficulties that IMG GPs are experiencing in securing visas to enable them to work for the NHS in the UK, and seeking clarity on the planned reforms to immigration policy described in the Government's ‘Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper’.

Letter to the Home Secretary (PDF file, 381 KB)

Our 2023 report, 'Fit for the Future: Opening the door to international GPs' highlights the challenges faced by IMGs in general practice, particularly around visa requirements that threaten their ability to remain in the UK after completing training. It examines the impact of these barriers on the GP workforce, the NHS’s ability to meet patient demand, and the Government’s targets for expanding primary care.

Fit for the Future: Opening the door to international GPs (PDF file, 561 KB)

Useful resources

Get involved

  • We have an International Medical Graduate group that brings together GPs and College members who are IMGs or who wish to support IMG-related initiatives.