Free tool

Are you eligible for an NHS Right to Choose ADHD assessment?

NHS Right to Choose lets eligible patients in England pick an NHS-funded provider for a routine ADHD assessment, free of charge. You are usually eligible if you live in England, are 18 or over, need a routine (not urgent) referral, and are not already in an active NHS pathway for the same condition. Your GP makes the referral and the provider accepts it, so they confirm eligibility, not this tool. This checklist tells you whether you are likely eligible and the exact next step.

Information only, not medical advice and not a diagnosis. This checker indicates likely eligibility only. Your GP and the chosen provider confirm eligibility and make the referral. Right to Choose is an England-only right.

Quick eligibility checklist

I live in England and am registered with an English NHS GP. I am 18 or over (adult ADHD assessment). My need is routine, not an emergency or urgent crisis referral. I am not already in an active NHS pathway or on a waiting list for an ADHD assessment for the same condition. My GP is willing in principle to make a specialist referral, or I have not asked yet.

Your result

Learn more: the complete Right to Choose guide, the GP letter template, cost and wait across all three routes, or how to find a provider.

Methodology and sources

The checklist reflects the usual conditions of the NHS Right to Choose framework: it applies in England, to adults, for routine elective GP referrals to providers holding an NHS standard contract, and not to urgent or emergency care or where the patient is already in an active NHS pathway for the same condition (Source: NHS, "Your choices in the NHS", nhs.uk, and the NHS Right to Choose framework, checked 13 June 2026).

This tool only indicates likely eligibility. The GP decides a referral is clinically appropriate and makes it, and the chosen provider accepts the referral, so they confirm eligibility, not this checker. If a question does not apply to you, the result errs towards pointing you to your GP or NHS guidance rather than ruling you out.

Frequently asked questions

Who confirms whether I am actually eligible?

Your GP and the chosen provider. This checklist only indicates whether you are likely to meet the usual conditions. The final decision rests with your GP, who makes the referral, and the NHS-funded provider, who accepts it. The checker cannot grant eligibility.

What are the usual conditions for Right to Choose?

Right to Choose applies in England, to adults aged 18 or over, for a routine elective referral made by a GP to a provider with an NHS standard contract. It does not apply to urgent or emergency care, to people already in an active NHS pathway for the same condition, or outside England. Children and young people are covered by a separate route.

My GP said no. Can they refuse Right to Choose?

A GP should make a clinically appropriate referral, and Right to Choose is a legal right for eligible patients, but the GP still decides that a specialist referral is warranted. If your GP is reluctant, you can ask for the reasons, share NHS guidance on Right to Choose, and request that your preference for a specific provider is recorded. If you remain stuck, your local Patient Advice and Liaison Service can help.

This is not a diagnosis and not medical advice. ADHD can only be diagnosed by a registered clinician. Eligibility for Right to Choose is confirmed by your GP and the provider. If you are outside England, ask your GP about the NHS referral route where you live.

Oliver Mackman

Editor, ADHD Helper

Oliver leads ADHD Helper's editorial coverage of adult ADHD. He researches and writes the plain-English explainers on getting an ADHD assessment through NHS Right to Choose or privately, and on the products and tools people use to manage ADHD, drawing on guidance from the NHS, NICE and the Royal College of Psychiatrists. He is clear that the site is information, not medical advice, and that diagnosis is for a registered clinician.

Last reviewed: 13 June 2026