Ukrainian teachers and trainees coming to the UK

The Department for Education (DfE) supports and encourages Ukrainian trainees and teachers seeking teacher training places and jobs.

We can help if you’re interested in teaching children aged 5 to 18. If you’d like to teach other age groups, try teaching in a university or teaching in further education.

General information

If you’re coming to the UK from Ukraine, check what you need to do before you travel and what to do after you arrive.

Get an international relocation payment (IRP) worth £10,000

To be eligible for the IRP, you must be a teacher coming to England to teach languages or physics in:

• the 2023 to 2024 academic year (which runs from 1 September 2023 to 31 August 2024)

• the 2024 to 2025 academic year (which runs from 1 September 2024 to 31 August 2025)

Learn more about the IRP.

Visas giving you the right to train to teach or teach in England

You already have the right to train or work as a teacher in England if you’re in the UK on (one of the following):

• Ukraine Family Scheme visa – please note this scheme closed to new applications on 19 February 2024
• Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme
• Ukraine Extension Scheme

You’re also eligible to apply for financial support if you choose to train to teach.

If you’re not sure of the status of your visa, check:

• Ukrainian nationals in the UK: visa support
• UK visa support for Ukrainian nationals
• Apply to stay in the UK under the Ukraine Extension Scheme

If you’re already in the UK under a different type of visa (for example, a visitor or seasonal worker visa) you can apply to the Ukraine Extension Scheme.

Staying in the UK long-term

If you’re interested in working as a teacher and applying for indefinite leave to remain in the UK, you should consider a skilled worker visa.

Time spent in the UK under the skilled worker visa counts towards an application for permanent residence. You’ll still need to meet the eligibility requirements for this type of visa. You can apply for a skilled worker visa whichever type of visa you currently have allowing you to stay in the UK.

Safeguarding and criminal records checks

Schools will assess your suitability to teach from a range of different sources, including:

• 2 references from previous employers
• your complete employment history
• evidence of your professional standing in Ukraine – for example, documentation from the Ministry of Education and Science showing you are qualified and have no sanctions against you as a teacher
• a criminal record check

Teacher training providers will ask for:

• evidence you have a bachelor’s degree from a university (non-UK or in the UK)
• a criminal record check

You can apply to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine for a criminal record check, which will be emailed to you. You can then contact the Ukrainian Embassy in the UK for a translation of the criminal record check and a letter confirming its validity.

Your professional qualifications

UK ENIC can give you a statement of comparability showing how your academic and professional qualifications compare to their English equivalent. However, you’ll need scans or photographs of your original documents.

Train to teach in England

Train to teach in England as a non-UK citizen gives information about:

• the qualifications you’ll need to apply for teacher training

• how to apply

• help you can get with your application

If you intend to apply for teacher training, you could consider finding work as a teaching assistant to gain experience until your teacher training course starts.

Fees and financial support

Ukrainian refugees in the UK under a Ukraine visa scheme have access to the same financial support as UK applicants. This means you’ll:

• have the right to apply for a student loan, bursary, scholarship or an advanced learner loan to help cover your fees and living expenses
• pay the same training fees as UK applicants (up to £9,250 for a full-time course)

If you’re not in the UK under one of these schemes, find out about switching to a different type of visa so you can train to teach. Not all visas will give you the right to apply for a student loan.

Teach in England

If you’re already a qualified teacher, you do not need to retrain to get a job as a teacher in England. However, you’ll need:

• to get English qualified teacher status (QTS), or be able to demonstrate strong non-UK qualifications and experience
• to pass criminal and professional safeguarding checks, including an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check (these will be organised by your employer)
• a high standard of written and spoken English – for example, Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, English level B2

English qualified teacher status (QTS)

Teach in England if you trained outside the UK gives information about:

• how teachers who qualified in Ukraine can apply for English QTS without further fees or training

• finding a teaching job in England

• life as a teacher in England

Meeting the standard for written and spoken English

If you’re in the UK under a Ukrainian visa scheme and aged 19 or over, you’re eligible for funding to study an English for Speakers for Other Languages (ESOL) course (as well as other educational or training courses).

Find your local authority (‘council’) and then search their website for ESOL courses. Or, search for courses using the National Careers Service.

You can also learn English with a private provider. Well respected English language courses include:

• International English Language Testing System (IELTS)
• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
• C2 Proficiency, formerly known as Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE)

Assessment only QTS

If you find you do not meet the eligibility criteria to apply for QTS, you could consider assessment only QTS. This means you can work in an English school and, alongside your job, apply to an English teacher training provider who will assess if you meet the standards for English QTS.

Check with assessment only training providers for more information about eligibility.

Other ways to get teaching work and experience

Supply teachers fill in when schools are temporarily short of staff. Register with a supply teacher agency for short-term roles in school.

Find your local authority (‘council’) and then search their website for teaching roles.

You could also consider teaching assistant and education support roles. It can be helpful to gain experience of the English education system before you apply for teaching jobs. Teaching Vacancies lists these jobs.

For a short-term unpaid placement, you can get school experience in a primary or secondary school in England.

Salaries and benefits

Your salary as a teacher will depend on whether you have QTS, your level of experience, your school and your location.

Useful links

Move to the UK if you’re coming from Ukraine.

Welcome guide for Ukrainians in the UK.

Ukrainians in the UK – an online encyclopaedia.

The Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain (AUGB) – including a list of Ukrainian community schools in the UK.

Contact

If you have general questions about the information on this page, you can email us at teach.inengland@education.gov.uk.

You may be eligible for personalised support from a teacher training adviser. They can help with your application to a training provider or school.

To check if you’re eligible for an adviser, you can call us on +44 800 389 2500. Calls will be charged at your country’s standard rate. Or you can contact us using the live chat service at the bottom of this page.

We’re available Monday to Friday between 8:30am and 5:30pm (UK local time) except on bank holidays in England.