Thanks Valerie...sounds like you had a tough time too....and I hope its all sorted out for you now.
I just wish there was a more balanced view out there...this whole thing about living the dream...moving to France which is paradise...the whole Peter Mayle a year in Provence type spiel and other similar books...not to mention dopey programmes like Little England..which show a not real situation with all the expats enjoying a peaceful laid back life...without a care in the world...cheap food...cheap housing...wonderful health system......hmmm! I really dont think so...they show an unreal life...that doesnt begin to explore all the probs that expats face...even something simple like registering a UK car in France..my car was a 7 year old Aguila...worth 500 quid tops...cost me over 1000 euros to provide everything required to register here....I have an ex au pair who did the same in the UK and it cost her less than 200 quid! anyway...the really good thing is that I value the UK more than I ever did before...I can get a job there with ease (Im a nurse)....and life is much simpler....I hope all goes well for you in the future...
Yes, I had that when I left the UK. Had paid in for 24 years but was told when I went to see my GP to get my papers (was preg so needed to take test results etc with me) that if I wanted to go back and see her I would have to pay as would be a non-resident. So after the thousands I'd paid in taxes, NI contribs, etc I'm entitled to nothing now. Great fun when Twerp less than 2 years old and mummy suddenly has to have emergency surgery in Malta to get a tumour removed. They wanted £2,000 for the op. Upshot is, I end up expecting some sort of problem wherever I am. Pessimist or what?! Lol. But I do hope you get a buyer soon and can take matters back into your own hands. I think that's the worst part of it, not having any control over these situations and having to rely on the eejits in charge.
sorry....dont understand...do you mean leave France and let someone look after the house for us? we are told not to rent out longterm as we will lose the right to get the house back...understand if you rent your place for more than 6 months you pretty much can kiss it goodbye as the tenant has rights to stay....as long as they like....our barn is 200 years old and needs a lot of ongoing maintenance...to rent it out wouldnt cover the cost of the work we would need to put in on a regular basis...and an agent to look after it. I wasnt looking for an answer really...there isnt one...we are caught in a catch 22 situation....I was just venting frustration!
yes...he has been informed by Newcastle he cannot access any health treatments in the UK....its a right pigs muddle here really....for the unwary...to be avoided....as we are selling up....he is not willing or able to register as an AE...we have a 2 acre garden to look after which he does...which doesnt leave a lot of time for working as a gardener for anyone else...his French is reasonable...but he isnt registered or trained as a EFL teacher and wouldnt know where to begin...and thats not really the point....its that the system is unfair.
It just seems unfair Marie Claire....we paid into the social security system in the uk for 40 plus years....similar to the French who move to the UK...but we are penalised...have to pay the equivalent of the full price of all health care....whereas French and other EU nationals moving to the UK get free health cover....guess the UK is one country where free access to healthcare..the right to live and work for EU citizens...is a reality...not so elsewhere...
I can totally understand the irritation. He's in limbo and no-one wants to deal. Living here now, has he lost all entitlement to UK help? I'm assuming yes, despite his work record. What about Marie-Claire's idea of registering as an AE and getting cover that way?
I am resident in the UK Valerie...thats not the issue...Im in my mid fifties and fit...my health cover in UK.....my husband in his mid sixties...and is dependent on health cover here...which is non existent...really...Im not making it up...he has been told as he is not retired at 65, (we came here when he was 62...so he got 2 years with partial cover)...and as he is not working he has to pay the full whack..so insurance at 1000 a month...the double tax will be sorted.. eventually...but for the moment irritating!
Thanks Marie-Claire (sorry, ran out of 'reply' buttons). I didn't know how it worked for foreigners who aren't working as I simply came over and registered as an AE. The system is actually completely baffling to me so I totally sympathise with Sheila and all the hoops she's being made to jump through. I earn less than minimum salary on the French scale but am happy to declare my little bit every trimestre to keep things ticking over. Will be interesting to see how long it takes for a Carte Vitale to be issued as it seems to vary from weeks to years depending on the department. And I really need to learn more French as there will undoubtedly be squabbles!
Actually, health insurance in France is not taken out of our tax money per se, but from a certain percentage we pay every month to the social security.
This means that unlike the UK, if you pay taxes, you have no right to any perks, unless you make your contribution to the appropriate fund. Now this is a small problem if you work, as it's money which is deducted at the source, and your employer matches it. If you are self employed you need to pay between 20-50% of your turnover for health, pension and so on. If you are really poor, you get 100% health insurance, but if you don't fall into any category they have a flat rate of 1,000 a month.
I was threatened with it, although I did have a status, but they mixed things up so badly, they decided I hadn't. Anyhow, when I went to sort things out, at URSSAF, they told me that nobody ever paid that much.
Yes, so if you're still resident in the UK for tax purposes are you not entitled to the health card so you won't have to pay for any medical emergencies? I fail to understand the French authorities' logic, if your husband is paying tax in France, why he is not eligible for basic cover (I'm not talking Mutuelle top-ups) and why you're being taxed twice - what happened to the good old double taxation agreement?
ps - sorry, just saw your reply to Marie-Claire about the tax problem. Our timing crossed.
I know you 'cant' pay double tax...but we are...and have been for 3 years...OH not daft..he is a doctor...and has spent hours of his time with our accountant and at various offices in France..trying to sort this out. We will get the money back eventually...but its galling all the same. Sick to death of the EU wish we had gone to Canada....he has Canadian citizenship and frankly...they dont try and drive people mad with red tape! no matter...its a lesson learned....but for us it turned out not to be living the dream....but waking up in the nightmare!
no...I am not looking for anything in France...I have decided that I will work in the UK...did all last year..and do not want any health care or anything else here. OH though is here as trying to sell our house....he lives here...pays tax here...everything here....except he has to pay for everything...seems not really fair...he pays tax as a single man.....so much more than if I was taken into account....our choice...because I am a lot younger and not willing to spend 10 years spending 1000 euros a month just for my health cover....he doesnt run a business other than renting out our one apartment in the languedoc.....
You can't pay double tax in principle, although they will try their utmost in France to get it out of you, I've had that experience and hassle. The EU is a gigantic scam, it was idiotic and downright criminal right from its inception.
I don't know if the French are entitled to NHS in the UK as soon as they arrive, but I know that most people are convinced that every person receives accommodation, subsidies and full health insurance as soon as they step off the boat onto the french shore... My answer is always that they must be MUCH smarter than I am!
...he has an acceptable pension? Hmmm.... what about being auto entrepreneur, billing services like gardening, English lessons and then declaring them, paying 20% to URSSAF which would give him RSI?
Hi Carol, sorry not up to speed with which country you're spending most time in now but looking at your last comment that you're working most of the year in the UK, would you still then be entitled to the S1 (or whatever bloomin number it is - don't know, haven't lived in the UK for years) so the UK government would cover any emergency treatment?
Is he working at all? Mutuelle is the additional "bit" which covers additional expenses, it's not the basic insurance which covers the biggest part of the bill (should there be one) if he has a very low income he should be entitled to CMU, otherwise a social worker should be able to tell you what your rights are.
Frankly...apart from being worried in case my OH breaks a limb or has a heart attack I am beyond caring! the whole nonsence about the EU...open borders...free passage between countries...the right to work etc.....free access to health care seems to be accurate only in the UK! in France you pay...we pay the same as an American or Australian...now how does that work? OH gets angry...we read the papers recently about the deluge of French people to the UK...and the fact they are immediately in receipt of free NHS care..and if people say thats not so good...the insurance for health care about the same as here. I am just not in a good mood at the moment...we are still paying double tax...3 years on...the authorities here are only ever willing to read a letter if its registered..why? if they get it, why not read it??? or is that too stupid for words...? I am just lost in the illogicallity of it all....feel like Alice in the looking glass....and before anyone tells me to go back to the UK if I dont like it here...Ive been trying for well over 18 months...and sadly the present state of play means we are stuck...so double bugger! sorry...rant over..needed that!
We are not entitled...we have been to every office known to the French authorities...I decided last year I didnt want to have a French connection..(ha!) and worked in the UK all last year...so am now considered to be UK based...he is therefore treated as a single man in France....I spend more time in the UK...my other half has tried to get health cover here...but been told..no mutuelle till he is 65...the health insurance quoted for my husband was 1000euros a month till he is 65...