Health plans and residency

Hi Paul,

Unless the UK reaches a deal with the EU, UK citizens are likely to become Third Country Nationals from 1 January 2021.  Currently, the financial requirements for TCNs applying for residency is €26,000 lump sum, or €2,100 per month, held in a Spanish bank account for a minimum of 3 months.

As a non-working, early retiree, you'll need private health insurance.  The cost of this will depend on your age, health (any pre-existing conditions) and level of cover.  We have mid range cover with ASSSA for a 59 and 62 year old with no pre-existing conditions, and the total for our annual policies is €1,780.

Once you've been resident in Spain for 1 year, you could apply to join the Convenio Especial which provides State healthcare at a cost: currently, this is €720 per person, per annum, up to age 65, then it rises to €1,884 per person, per annum.  Prescription costs are extra, whether you have PHI or join the Convenio Especial, but the advantage of the C.E. is that is doesn't exclude pre-existing conditions.

I'm sorry I can't give you anything more definitive, but hopefully we'll all know by 31 December! 😄

Kind regards, 

Kim

Thanks very much Kim,that’s very helpful,different from what I’ve previously heard and as you say we’ll have to wait and see what happens after the Brexit deadline.

Ch

Hi Paul

As everyone says its all still up in the air at the moment as to what happens after 31/12. 

I've got everything in place ready to go for residency apart from PHI which I would get at the last minute when I'm out in  November hopefully.

Everyday I go through the same thing in my head, shall I do it before 31/12 or wait for the dust to settle after? I do my own head in!

I'm lucky enough not to have to worry about the financials after BREXIT but still this challenges me every day! 

I love Spain and the lifestyle and really shouldnt think twice as the UK is a shambles in my own opinion (before I get slated).

Just not sure what will come out the woodwork!

Decisions.......decisions......decisions

Thanks for your input VC.I do agree with you regarding the uk,it seems to be getting worse by the day.

Has I said,we do have our own place already,however we are looking to sell this and purchase somewhere close by.The actual cost of living in Spain,eating,socialising,utility bills etc doesn’t faze me,it’s the unknown of what I would need behind me financially to make it happen.I am prepared to cut my cloth accordingly and settle for a better lifestyle and away from work,and I definitely don’t want to work when I get out there.I also understand and accept that we can’t become a burden on the Spanish health system  when I’ve never paid into it.Like you said,I’ll just have to wait and take a chance.

Ch

Yes it is a bit daunting. I've had my place since 2012 and just invested a lot more in refurbishing it to how I want it to live there. It didnt need it but fancied a change.

Like you said you would do whatever to make it happen financially, especially knowing the great life of what could be.

Going off the subject a little, I could cope with not working for a bit but I would need to do something to keep me busy.....

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Regards

Glen

Well unfortunately that is a bone of contention on this site at the moment that I'm not going into.

Jim's Guides were a massive help to everyone on quite a lot of subjects.

Hi Paul, 

It must be so frustrating to know you are in between a rock and a hard place. If you wait until your business sells (likewise a property too) to avoid CGT, you lose the use of your S1 forever which equates to a huge outlay over the rest of your lifetime in PHI payments or even the Convenio Especial which after 65 at even todays cost is nearly 2000€ per year per person, much more than the UK council tax most people are trying to get away from. Or do residency now before January and take a hit on CGT. UK homes could be rented out to avoid it, but is there no alternative to "selling" your business, ie somehow transfer your asset? I, m not business minded but I, d be exploring every avenue to get residencia at the least painful (financially) method I could before you have to face healthcare payments forever. The S1 is much more valuable than some people realise. If you're under 65 yes you,ll need PHI for residency and upto pension age but afterwards?? I wouldn't want that commitment on me forever. Just saying! 

Regards 

Pauline 

I don't think it's quite as bad as that if you miss the deadline. Yes, the amount of funds required will probably increase and you will need PHI for the first year, as you do now. 

However once you had been resident for 5 years you can still apply for permanent residency and access the Spanish health service as a permanent resident. 

see https://www.gov.uk/guidance/healthca...0INSS%20office.  

"If you’re a permanent resident

If you’ve been a resident in Spain for 5 years or more, you can apply for permanent residency. This will give you access to state healthcare on the same basis as a Spanish citizen.

Once you’re a permanent resident, you need to register for healthcare at your local INSS office. They will give you a document which you need to take to your local health centre.

If the UK pays for your healthcare, for example through an S1 form, you cannot register for healthcare as a permanent resident  "

....and https://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp...intPageId=4791

" Be employed or self-employed and be affiliated and a contributor to the Spanish Social Security System. You can also be assured if you are a pensioner, a beneficiary of any regular social security benefit or unemployed, having exhausted the unemployment benefits or allowances, and reside in Spain.

If you are a legally permanent resident (irrespective of your nationality), you can also be insured if you do not have other health coverage. "

So if you're a permanent resident in Spain, paying taxes in Spain then you should have access to spanish healthcare.

Hi

How sure are we that the S1 would not be transferrable?  I didn't think this was actually an agreed item yet but only hearsay and all still up in the air!

Peterpan has a valid point regarding the 5 years residency.