Health Services: Foreign Nationals
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, of the aggregate income identified for chargeable overseas visitors in financial year 2018-19 what (a) the total amount recovered for the subsequent six financial years is and (b) the total amount of aggregate income identified for that financial year that was written off is.
Answered by Karin Smyth
The Department publishes data on the income identified from chargeable overseas visitors in England in its Annual Report and Accounts. The consolidated NHS provider accounts published cash payments received in-year by the National Health Service from overseas visitors.
NHS charges can be recovered up to six years from the date of invoice, and therefore the amount recovered in a year does not necessarily mean it was identified in the same financial year. The Department does not hold information in the format requested regarding real terms data for written off debt.
The following table shows aggregate income identified and cash payments received between 2019-2024:
Year | Aggregate income identified | Cash payments received in-year |
2018/19 | £91,000,000 | £35,000,000 |
2019/20 | £93,000,000 | £39,000,000 |
2020/21 | £61,000,000 | £21,000,000 |
2021/22 | £67,000,000 | £25,000,000 |
2022/23 | £100,000,000 | £32,000,000 |
2023/24 | £123,000,000 | £42,000,000 |
Source: The Department of Health and Social Care Annual Report and Accounts and Consolidated NHS provider accounts.
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