Supporting information from employers (SIFE)

Everyone who applies to our register must show they have the necessary knowledge of English to practise safely and effectively in the UK.

Supporting information from employers (SIFE) is a form of employer reference, which some internationally educated professionals can use as part of their English language evidence.

Who can use SIFE?

SIFE is supplementary evidence, which means that we can only accept it alongside other forms of English language evidence, such as a qualification taught in English or a language test.

You may be eligible to use SIFE if you have been working in a UK health or care setting for at least 12 months, and:

• If you have completed a pre-registration qualification which was taught and examined in English, in a country where English is not the majority spoken language

OR

• If you have attempted two English language tests and have narrowly missed the required score in any one language skill by no more than 0.5 in IELTS or half a grade in OET

To be able to provide SIFE, your employer must have seen clear evidence of your English language skills in practice, over a period of at least 12 months.
The decision to provide SIFE is at your employer’s discretion. They don’t have to agree to provide SIFE even if you meet the requirements for this evidence type.

If you are interested in using SIFE to support your application, we recommend that you speak to your employer and check our requirements carefully before providing this evidence type.