Type 1 diabetic

[Jim1450]

My wife and i are looking to move to France from the UK in 2 years time. She is a type 1 diabetic and although I have checked a few websites am still a little confused. At the moment she receives all her medication, insulin and associated test costs free but will that apply in France or will we have to pay.

We won't be working when we move over and will have an adequate income.

Regards

[cooperlola]

Welcome to the forum.

Has either of you reached UK state retirement age?

If you are allowed to join the French state healthcare system (which I can't help you with unless I know the answer to the above!) then you will get the same entitlements as a French person - ie about 70% of your costs, or 100% for what are known as ALDs (see THIS LIST), subject to your doctor's approval.  The rest you can pay for yourself or cover with a top-up insurance (which policies cannot, by law,  discriminate against those who have an existing medical condition.)

Lots more info' on our website (voluntary and not sponsored/paid for by any company) - link below.

[Jim1450]

Thanks for the advice and welcome. I will be 50 when we move and my wife 43 so will we be able to join the French healthcare system?

Looking at the list you attached she would appear to be exempt?

[AnOther]

You are only exempt from charges once you are in the French health system. To achieve that in the first place you would need an E106 from the UK. If you can get that then depending on your NI record and precisely when it is issued you can be covered for up to 2.5 years but after that you would need to take out private insurance to take you to 5 years after which you can join again automatically.

Unfortunately with type 1 diabetes private insurance will likely prove impossible to secure and that being the case the bald truth is that it is highly unlikely that you can legitimately move to France.

Sorry to be the one to tell you [:(]

[cooperlola]

I am afraid that I have to concur with ANO.

If you decide to move in spite of this then the only option open to you get private health insurance for everything apart from the diabetes and to pay all the costs relating to the diabetes once any S1 (the new name for the E106) cover runs out, until you have lived here for five years. 

The snag with this, apart from the costs, is that after 5 years, you will be askd to prove that you have lived here legally since your arrival and - one of the requirements for this is that you must have had  full and comprehensive health insurance since your arrival.  What we don't know, as nobody has tested this yet, is whether insurance that did not cover your wife's diabetes will be deemed as complying with the full and comprehensive requirement.  You also need to factor in the risk that should your wife's condition lead to any lengthy and costly treatments, this could eat into any or all of the money you had hoped to live on.

On the plus side, the European Commission feels that this legislation is contrary to the free movment principal of the EU, since it discriminates against the sick, and it is investigating this French government's stance on this.  The French government's response has been to say that it will not alter its position but the EU may well have the last word.  However, these things take time and you'd be gambling your future on somthing which may well not happen within the time you need it to

The alternative is to seek employment, or run a small business over here but that is fraught with its own problems in a coutry with high unemployment and drowning in complicated bureaucracy.  But many do it, so it's worth a look if France is the country you want to be in.

Like ANO, I'm sorry to be a harbinger of doom but better to be forewarned.

I was speaking to a couple the other day who have just moved over, having had a holiday home here for years.  They were aware of the healthcare issues but blithely told me that the French government "would not be allowed" to prevent them from joining the healthcare system once their S1s run out .  History should tell them that they are kidding themselves.

[AnOther]

Just some food for thought.

Obviously not knowing your precise circumstances I don't know if this would be a feasible plan for you but I'll put if forward anyway.

Theoretically you could officially move to France but one of you remain employed (or take up employment) in UK paying tax and NI. If you have a reasonably complete NI record going back over 2 of the previous 3 full tax years this would qualify the worker for a so called 'workers E106' which would entitle both of you to health care in France. The workers E106 is renewable on an annual basis on it's anniversary so timed right at worst you would only have to maintain this arrangement for around 2.5 years after which you could cease work and get a normal E106 covering you for up to a further 2.5 years taking you to your 5 years legal residence after which you're home and dry.

This was essentially our plan until both the pound and the global economy crashed putting a significant dent in our resources and retirement planning. We're just over 3 years in now so E106 wise I could pack up tomorrow however to try and rebuild some of our losses and achieve the goals we'd set for ourselves chances are I'll probably need to carry on working for another 2 or 3 years but at least I'm in a job where these options are open to me.

[Jim1450]

All,

Thank you for the in depth advice. We are lucky in some respects that we have 2 years to plan this and will test all avenues open to us. I am confident about obtaining the S1 as our National Insurance will be bang up to date with full contributions going back way over 3 years.

I am speaking with the private health providers to see what a quote would be if we were to be moving in the next few months and will work with them and a specialist financial adviser to find a way forward. As long as we know how much we may have to pay we can start to budget for this now.

Regards to all

Jim

[AnOther]

Good luck in finding an insurer who will cover you for pre-existing conditions.

Just bear in mind Cooperlola's point about it being full and comprehensive cover and that we are in untested waters.

Bonne chance

[Jim1450]

AnOther,

Thanks again, I knew when I joined this forum I would get not only the comments around the reality of making such a move but also the support that has been shown. Trust me I will research all ways and make sure first and foremost my wife's health is taken care of no matter what.

Jim

[cooperlola]

Jim, I have just realised I have an e-mail from you (I use a different one for fora and had not looked at the mailbox for a couple of days) - I hope you've got all the info you need but if not do contact me again.

Bear in mind also that the entitlement to the S1 (E106 as was) for the early retired is valid from the day you give up work, not when you move.  Thus you begin to eat into any months you have the moment you leave your employment.