News and updates
Immigration Health Surcharge rate 2026
The health surcharge is paid per year of leave, in full, at the point of application. It is often the largest single line in a family application budget and it is not part of the visa fee.
How it is charged
The surcharge buys access to the NHS on the same terms as a resident, and it is paid for the whole period of leave at once, not annually. A thirty-month partner visa therefore attracts two and a half years of surcharge in a single payment, which is what surprises people who budgeted only for the application fee.The current figures are published on the official page linked from this update; check them there, because they change without notice.
Who pays less, and who gets it back
Some routes are exempt and some applicants are refunded. If your application is refused or withdrawn, the surcharge is returned; the application fee is not. If you are granted leave for a shorter period than you applied for, the difference is refunded automatically to the payment card. Health and care worker applicants are dealt with separately.
Where this touches translation
It does not, directly — there is no document to translate for the surcharge itself. It matters because it changes what you can spend on the rest of the application, and because the number is quoted in the same online journey as the fee, so it is easy to read one and pay the other. Work it out before you commission translations rather than after. Our spouse and partner visa page and student visa page list what each route needs, and the Home Office questions page covers timing.