Legal Advice

Our legal advisers will ask for information about: 

• Any NHS invoices you have received
• Your nationality
• Your immigration history including when you arrived in the UK, your immigration status and any previous immigration applications you have made including the outcomes. If your immigration history is complex, you may be asked to send your Home Office or Tribunal documents to us by e mail so that we can provide you with advice
• When you received your maternity care and at which hospital you received your care or; where you are planning to receive your care
• Whether you have been subject to any violence. This is because there are exemptions for care caused by certain forms of violence. If you would prefer not to be asked questions about violence, please let our adviser know

Our legal advisers will then advise you and answer any questions you have about your NHS  maternity care. If you have received an invoice for your care, our legal adviser will advise about what options are available to you and whether we can take on your case. 

Maternity Action is not regulated to provide debt advice and therefore our legal adviser may signpost you to a specialist debt advice charity. 

Appointments usually last for approximately 45 minutes. We recommend that you have the following documents or information available during the appointment: 

• Any letters or e mails you have received from the NHS Trust in relation to NHS charges
• Any invoices you have received
• Immigration history – dates of applications and dates of any decisions received 

If English is not your first language, we can arrange an interpreter.

We have limited capacity for casework and therefore we prioritise the following cases:

• Refugees, asylum seekers and their family members or;

• Survivors of domestic or sexual violence or;

• Survivors of trafficking;

• EEA nationals and their family members;

We also provide legal representation to women who are in receipt of support under section 17 Children Act 1989.

Our NHS charging advice service is run by a team of advisers. We offer a free, independent and confidential advice service. For more information, please see our Service Standards.

By completing our online form, you are agreeing to our Privacy Policy. We will not pass your information to other organisations without your consent and we will never use your name without your consent.

If you are unhappy about any aspect of our services at Maternity Action, please tell us so that we can try to put things right and prevent it from happening again. The Maternity Action complaints policy outlines how we will handle complaints and how to contact us.