Subject to satisfying the relevant paragraph of the immigration rules, overseas qualified medical personnel can enter the UK in either the postgraduate doctor, PLAB test (Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board Test), or clinical attachment categories. We do not distinguish between undergraduate and graduate students.
Applications recorded in each category are:
Received Issued Refused 2006 Clinical Attachment 873 111 72 Nurses—Supervised Practice 1,136 695 393 PLAB Test 758 698 83 Post Graduate Dentist 7 7 1 Post Graduate Doctor 638 589 51 Post Graduate GP 4 2 2 Student Nurse 1,305 840 600 2005 Clinical Attachment 304 284 13 Nurses—Supervised Practice 4 0 0 PLAB Test 581 502 41 Post Graduate Dentist 20 17 0 Post Graduate Doctor 1,423 1,352 44 Post Graduate GP 1 1 0 Student Nurse 5,128 3,554 1,518 2004 PLAB Test 1 0 1 Post Graduate Dentist 11 10 0 Post Graduate Doctor 1,079 1,058 12 Student Nurse 7,468 5,444 1,904 2003 Post Graduate Dentist 12 12 0 Post Graduate Doctor 989 970 6 Student Nurse 4,614 3,977 605 2002 Post Graduate Dentist 23 20 0 Post Graduate Doctor 847 848 2 Student Nurse 1,583 1,410 169
Prior to 2005 data were not kept on all categories. These statistics have not been published and should be used for information purposes only.
The total number of applications issued and refused may not equal the number of applications received due to applications being withdrawn or lapsed. Additionally, applications can be carried forward from one year to the next before being resolved, for example if they have been referred to the Home Office for a decision or deferred for further inquiries.