Honorary Contract

[rrsmf12]

Hello. I am doing a 3 months honorary contract in a hospital in London. This is unpaid work and it is part of my training in my home hospital. I thought I needed a T5 Visa but the hospital in London says they don't give sponsorship for unpaid honorary contracts. Can I go without a Visa (because this is part of my training I would go as a student) or do I need a visa anyway? If so, what is the Visa that I need? Because I have searched the gov.uk website up and down and I cannot figure out a Visa that does not require a sponsor.

I have tried the Home Office but they never answer the phone!! Please help!

[secret.simon]

I have tried the Home Office but they never answer the phone!!

The Home Office support number is outsourced to a third party and not answered by Home Office staffers. So don't count on or rely on their immigration advice.

What is your current UK immigration status, if any? Where have you done your medical training/where is your home hospital?

You can't work in the UK on a visit visa.

Assuming you are a Portuguese national, based on the flag on your profile, have a look at this page on the Gov.UK website. It lists some of the visas that you may be eligible for, but almost all of them require a certificate of sponsorship.

If your home hospital has an agreement with the UK hospital, it may be worth going via the appropriate channels to request the UK hospital to issue you a certificate of sponsorship for these visas (which may be easier to do that issuing visas for longer term work visas).