# Does a valid UK working visa grant NHS health coverage when visiting other countries?



## marrog (Feb 16, 2011)

Okay, bear with me on this one.

I'm actually speaking on behalf of an expat and am not one myself - I hope that's not too much of a breach of ettiquette.

My partner is here from the USA on a post study work visa. We're visiting North America in June and one of our plans is a motor yacht trip from the Canada coast up to Alaska with her father.

The problem is that before we go, as you might expect, we have health forms to fill in, and naturally they expect health insurance information.

So here's the thing. I know that as an ordinary UK citizen I'm covered abroad on the NHS - can't remember how it all works at the moment or what I'm going to do with a form that expects 'insurance information', but I'll figure it out.

But what about my partner? Since she doesn't live in the USA anymore and has no intention of going back she naturally has no health insurance there. And I know that as long as she stays employed (which she is) and pays her NI (which she does) she's covered by the NHS here.

But does the NHS cover her abroad the way it does me? And if so how does she go about ensuring it? Or is she in a situation where literally no one will cover her?

Another potential issue is that although she has continuous work at the moment, her current contract will end literally a matter of days before we go abroad - which is exactly why we're going when we are. Does the fact she would be under no work contract at that time mean that her NHS coverage would be suspended anyway? Does NHS coverage for non-EU residents cease exactly when you become unemployed even if you've already paid some NI?

I'm sorry if you've had these questions before - I'm sure all this information is available online somewhere, but I've been googling for some time and it's just a really hard one to get any clear information on - I suppose the idea of an American needing UK health coverage while visiting America is perceived as unusual?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

~Mo


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## marrog (Feb 16, 2011)

Right oh, have found the answer elsewhere.

I hadn't even realised that there isn't a reciprocal UK-US healthcare arrangement anyway, although thinking about it I guess I shouldn't be surprised! Health insurance it is!


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

marrog said:


> Okay, bear with me on this one.
> 
> I'm actually speaking on behalf of an expat and am not one myself - I hope that's not too much of a breach of ettiquette.
> 
> ...


British citizens can get certain health cover within EEA and Switzerland, and in certain other countries with which the UK has reciprocal agreement. But North America isn't, and has never been, part of any agreement, and you will need private medical insurance, which is provided as part of a travel insurance (you normally pay more for North American coverage). NHS doesn't cover anyone outside UK - but as an EU citizen you are entitled to the same level of cover as locals in other EEA countries and Switzerland (you need European Health Insurance Card as proof of entitlement, and by a separate agreement by UK government, some other countries (Australia for example; you need British passport as proof).

As far as your US partner is concerned, if she has no medical insurance valid in US, she will, like you, need travel insurance with medical cover. Be careful to get the right insurance, as some policies specify that policyholder must be a permanent UK resident, not limited by a visa. Others just say your usual residence must be in UK.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Not only does the US not have a reciprocal health care agreement with the UK, they have no national health care system to reciprocate with.

What sort of "insurance forms" are you filling out for a private vacation trip? Oh well - in any event, you need to get some form of travel health insurance to cover you during your trip. There are loads of vendors online - and you can either get an annual policy or just coverage for the specific trip.

Just be sure to get coverage that includes the US or "North America" - limits should be pretty high, as medical treatment (especially in an emergency situation) can be frightfully expensive over there. With any kind of luck, you won't need to test it out, but better to have it than not.
Cheers,
Bev


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## marrog (Feb 16, 2011)

Bevdeforges said:


> Not only does the US not have a reciprocal health care agreement with the UK, they have no national health care system to reciprocate with.


Yeh, I got there in the end - I've never had to worry about it before as I don't mind living on the edge for a 'normal' visit (however stupid others might find that) but I'm not about to go on a yacht to the wilderness without coverage!



Bevdeforges said:


> What sort of "insurance forms" are you filling out for a private vacation trip?


Well, it's not an insurance form, it's a medical information form that asks for insurance details for the info of organisers - presumably so that they know who to call etc should you be unconscious or, yaknow. Dead. Part of it's also a waver, so it's not as though you can't go without any of that info if you wanted to. But I don't think I will!



Bevdeforges said:


> Just be sure to get coverage that includes the US or "North America" - limits should be pretty high, as medical treatment (especially in an emergency situation) can be frightfully expensive over there.


Found somewhere that'll do me for under £40 that has a £10m limit which I suppose is about as close to 'unlimited' as it gets. Apparently the trick now is to make sure that whatever coverage we get covers my partner even though she's 'resident in the UK' rather than 'a UK citizen'. But apparently a good few do.

Thanks for all the help.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

marrog said:


> Found somewhere that'll do me for under £40 that has a £10m limit which I suppose is about as close to 'unlimited' as it gets. Apparently the trick now is to make sure that whatever coverage we get covers my partner even though she's 'resident in the UK' rather than 'a UK citizen'. But apparently a good few do.
> 
> Thanks for all the help.


That sounds adequate. It shouldn't be that difficult to find a policy to cover her, as long as she's resident in the UK and currently eligible for NHS coverage. I usually go through one of the UK travel insurance companies myself and only have to tell them my country of residence (which is France). They don't particularly care if I'm a citizen there or not. (It's mainly to know where to ship you back to once they've stabilized you in a US hospital so you can take advantage of your national coverage.)

You could also check with a travel agent or if you have American Express (or some other types of credit cards) - they will often sell you travel insurance if you pay for your flight tickets with the card. Don't know about BA, but Air France has lately been offering me travel insurance (that includes pretty decent health coverage) when I book my flights online.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

Bevdeforges said:


> That sounds adequate. It shouldn't be that difficult to find a policy to cover her, as long as she's resident in the UK and currently eligible for NHS coverage. I usually go through one of the UK travel insurance companies myself and only have to tell them my country of residence (which is France). They don't particularly care if I'm a citizen there or not. (It's mainly to know where to ship you back to once they've stabilized you in a US hospital so you can take advantage of your national coverage.)
> 
> You could also check with a travel agent or if you have American Express (or some other types of credit cards) - they will often sell you travel insurance if you pay for your flight tickets with the card. Don't know about BA, but Air France has lately been offering me travel insurance (that includes pretty decent health coverage) when I book my flights online.


Make sure you declare any pre-existing medical conditions when taking out a policy. Insurers are getting hot on declining claims when they were not told about your medical history. If you do have a medical condition(s), you may find many insurers refuse to cover you or exclude claims arising from your condition or in any way related to it, and you need to look for specialist policies that specifically cover certain conditions.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Joppa said:


> Make sure you declare any pre-existing medical conditions when taking out a policy. Insurers are getting hot on declining claims when they were not told about your medical history. If you do have a medical condition(s), you may find many insurers refuse to cover you or exclude claims arising from your condition or in any way related to it, and you need to look for specialist policies that specifically cover certain conditions.


Good point - for travel policies, it's normally the case that you simply need to disclose any condition for which you have been treated in the last year. That condition will be specifically excluded from coverage during your trip. (So you can't take out travel insurance to go to some foreign country to be treated for something you've had for a while. Makes sense, actually.)

Travel health insurance is primarily for emergencies or accidents, not for day to day stuff, anyhow.
Cheers,
Bev


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## marrog (Feb 16, 2011)

Bevdeforges said:


> It shouldn't be that difficult to find a policy to cover her, as long as she's resident in the UK and currently eligible for NHS coverage.


See that might be an issue since as far as I understand it the way that the NHS works right now is that although she can always get emergency care she only gets day-to-day care if she's currently employed which as of right before we travel she won't be. Is that actually likely to matter to an insurer?


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

marrog said:


> See that might be an issue since as far as I understand it the way that the NHS works right now is that although she can always get emergency care she only gets day-to-day care if she's currently employed which as of right before we travel she won't be. Is that actually likely to matter to an insurer?


Check the websites for the travel insurance. I've never seen one that asks about either citizenship or national insurance coverage. For travel insurance they mostly only ask your country of residence. I assume that's to determine what country they send you back to in the event of illness or accident while traveling.

No travel policy will take care of everyday stuff anyhow. 
Cheers,
Bev


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