European Health Insurance Card

[Alewfin]

At last some good news for us Brits who are residents in Cyprus.

The UK and the EU have agreed in principle that the EHIC can continue to be used and be honoured for those British Citizens who will be residents in the EU at 31 March 2019.

No agreement on British Citizens who are residents in the UK.

[Paulo]

I thought the EHIC was just for tourists/travellers and that residents had to register locally?

[WHL]

The card is for tourists not residents....Ex pats who live in Cyprus should not be using it. I know of one couple who were caught in Larnaca using it

[jeba]

I thought the EHIC was just for tourists/travellers and that residents had to register locally?

You can use it even as a resident unless you applied for a Cypriot medical card. I was advised by my (German) public health insurance company that if I didn´t register with the Cypriot system I wasn´t restricted to using the public hospitals but could use private doctors/hospitals as well and submit the invoice to them. They´d then refund what treatment would have cost in Germany. You might want to check whether this option is available to Brits as well.

[Dominic]

This is what the UK High Commission has to say on the subject. I have copied this from the pinned topic at the top of the page:

The following pieces of information have recently been posted on the BHC facebook page:

1. EHIC card for holiday makers
Coming to Cyprus on holiday? Please see the NHS Choices pages for more details regarding healthcare and the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) here:
http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcare ... -ehic.aspx

2. EHIC card rules for non UK residents (naughty people using them when they shouldn’t!)
Important information and rules regarding the use of EHIC cards for non UK residents here: http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcare ... ction.aspx

3. Cyprus Medical Cards
EU citizens who are residents may apply for a Cyprus Medical card, providing they meet the criteria as laid down by the Ministry of Health (Υπουργείο Υγείας Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία), for more information visit your local Citizens Centre or the MOH website here: http://www.moh.gov.cy/moh/moh.nsf/0/FD0 ... enDocument

[galexinda]

As a Dependant of a UK state pensioner, registered in Cyprus with a Cypriot Medical Card I have an EHIC card issued by the UK valid for 5 years. Only place I cannot use it in Europe is Cyprus.

When I was working here, had a Cypriot Medical Card and paid social security our EHIC cards were issued from Nicosia with my husband named as the Dependant.

[galexinda]

Latest information from British High Commission, Cyprus: Who can apply for a UK-issued EHIC

If you live in Europe

If you live in another EEA country or Switzerland, you will be entitled to a UK-issued EHIC if one of the following applies to you:
you receive a UK State Pension or exportable UK benefit and have a UK-issued S1 form (certificate of entitlement) registered in your country of residence
you are a worker posted to work in another EEA country or Switzerland by your UK employer, or a frontier worker living in the EEA and working in the UK
you are a family member of a posted worker or of someone working in the UK and you are not covered in your own right by the EEA country you reside in
you are a student going to another EEA country or Switzerland to study
You cannot apply online for a UK-issued EHIC. Instead, you’ll need to request an EHIC-E application form with the Overseas Healthcare Team. Simply call 0191 218 1999 from the UK or 0044 (0)191 218 1999 from abroad, (Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm).
For more detailed information, see the Moving abroad section or phone the EHIC enquiry line on 0300 330 1350.
If you are not eligible for a UK-issued EHIC, you should see if you are eligible for an EHIC in the country you are currently living in.
Residents of the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are not eligible for an EHIC.
http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcare ... -ehic.aspx

[Alewfin]

At last some good news for us Brits who are residents in Cyprus.

The UK and the EU have agreed in principle that the EHIC can continue to be used and be honoured for those British Citizens who will be residents in the EU at 31 March 2019.

No agreement on British Citizens who are residents in the UK.

To clarify.

In future (after 1 April 2019) only British Citizens who are resident in the EU as of that date can use the EHIC in any EU country plus Iceland, Switzerland and Norway. This is the agreed principle.

The question on whether British Citizens resident in the UK, as of that cut off date, can use their EHIC is still to be negotiated.

What hasn't been explained / negotiated is whether there will be any change to the current medical services the EHIC will cover from 1 April 2019.

What also hasn't been explained / negotiated is whether the reciprocal agreement, whereby the health service of an EU country charges the NHS part of the cost of treating a British resident who is registered with their health service.

[Poppy]

See my post in the Politics section and the link to the article in the Guardian which explains it