punter wrote:Hi all
this forum has been really helpful. I have just got my Tier 1 Visa. I have a problem in going to UK for job search . Since May 2008 , i have been taking medicines for Pulmonary Tuberculosis. Now it is almost over. My medicine will get completed in Feb 2009. The doubt i have is ,
1. When we travel to UK , we need to carry our Chest X Ray report for TB. Even though i am completely cured of TB , my Xray will still show that i am a TB patient. When i asked the Physician , he said , TB scar will be shown in XRay report. Even though it is not active. Can any of you help me , how to deal with this kind of situation? My physician has agreed to give me a hand written letter about health? Will that be accepted?
2. Has anyone gone to UK after curing TB? If yes, can you list the documents u carried related to your health?
thanks
What your X-ray will show is calcification not active TB infection. If the X-Ray report says and your physician corroborates that you have been completely treated and are not a carrier of TB anymore, you should not have any problems getting past the immigration control .
Although the following sections talks about TB pre-screening, some of the points are relevant for you:
TB screening
Applicants for UK visas valid for longer than six months in certain countries now require a certificate to show that they are free from infectious pulmonary tuberculosis (TB).
In the past year and a half the Government has implemented a programme to screen people applying to enter the UK for more than six months for tuberculosis. The initiative is part of the Government's Five Year Strategy for Asylum and Immigration. Testing has begun in the following countries: Bangladesh, Ghana (which also takes applications from Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Togo and Niger), Kenya (which also take applications from residents of Eritrea and Somalia), Pakistan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Thailand (which also takes applications from Cambodia and Laos).
This programme is part of our ‘firm but fair’ policy on immigration and will benefit the UK’s public health by preventing the entry into the UK of infectious tuberculosis sufferers until they have been successfully treated. It will also support the Department of Health’s Tuberculosis Action Plan. The programme also has advantages for applicants who may benefit from and early diagnosis of TB. Host countries will also benefit from earlier detection of individuals with the disease.
Screening will generate information about infectious tuberculosis among travellers to the UK and will help us to better understand the effect of migration on tuberculosis in the UK. We will also be looking at ways to share data about tuberculosis rates with host countries to inform their own public health programmes.
A further benefit of the programme is that successful applicants will no longer need to undergo medical inspection on arrival in the UK, before being allowed to enter the country. This can be a time consuming process but can be avoided if those coming to the UK carry their screening certificate in their hand luggage to present to an immigration officer on arrival in the UK.
