The NHS Right to Choose letter — free, doctor-built template

The letter does three jobs at once. It tells the practice you want to use your right to choose, names the hospital you want to be referred to, and points to the NHS Choice Framework, which sets out that right and its exceptions. It asks the GP to explain if they think the referral would not be clinically appropriate. Most GPs already know the rules. The letter exists to make your request clear and written down.

• Your name, NHS number (if known), date of birth, and registered GP practice
• The hospital you want to be referred to and the specialty
• In the version for people already on a waiting list: your current hospital, how long you have waited and your estimate of the remaining wait
• Where the right comes from: the NHS Choice Framework (gov.uk) and the NHS website's page on your choices
• A request to confirm in writing once the referral has been made

You usually do not need the letter to exercise the right — the conversation at the appointment is enough. The letter matters in three situations:

• If the practice is unfamiliar with Right to Choose. A printed request that names the official source gives them something to check.
• If the referral has been delayed. A formal letter creates a paper trail and a date.
• If you can't get an appointment quickly. Email the letter ahead so the practice can action the referral without a face-to-face slot.

The letter is a referral request, not a clinical authorisation. The GP still needs to confirm that referral is the right next step — for example, that you have already had any first-line investigations the specialty expects. If the GP raises a clinical reason the referral is premature, that is a separate question to the Right-to-Choose mechanic itself.

The letter also does not bind the receiving hospital. The hospital can decline a referral if it falls outside their service specification, though this is rare for routine specialties.

• The full Right to Choose explainer — covers the legal basis, when it applies, and when it doesn't.
• What to do if your GP refuses the referral.
• NHS England Patient Choice guidance — operational guidance for GPs and ICBs. The letter itself cites the government's NHS Choice Framework.