If you're referred to hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostic tests by your doctor, dentist or another health professional, you may be able to claim a refund of reasonable travel costs under the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme (HTCS).

If you have questions about help with health costs, join the Help with Health Costs team on Facebook, where the NHS Business Services Authority will respond to your queries Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.

Who can claim for help with travel costs?

To qualify for help with travel costs under the HTCS, you must meet three conditions:

1. At the time of your appointment, you or your partner (including civil partners) must receive one of the qualifying benefits or allowances listed below, or meet the eligibility criteria for the NHS Low Income Scheme.

2. You must have a referral from a healthcare professional for a specialist or to a hospital for further NHS treatment or tests (often referred to as secondary care).

3. Your appointment must be on a separate visit to when the referral was made. This applies whether your treatment is provided at a different location (hospital or clinic) or on the same premises as where your GP or another health professional issued the referral.