Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

Umm, no they did.


https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/british...93d43c1576.png

Hides of rhinoceros this lot and now with an added hint of 'metrics' thrown in.

I checked yesterday on the current status, lo and behold it was dispatched 31/07/2020, thus not breaching the three month 'being a bit late' metric.

But I am still not in receipt of said document. Not that I need it anymore, another 25 quid down the pan.

Ok, 2nd class mail (UK) notwithstanding it could have been hand-couriered, even respecting 14 day quarantine regulations...

As Expatrick says, GRO are a disgrace.

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

This is the text of an email I had to send to GRO back in November 2017 - no Covid then!

​​​​​​

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

Hell fire and buckets of teeth. :blink:

I started receiving my state pension from CH four months ago. Ever mindful of obligations, I informed my local health insurer that as I now had an income, could they please adjust - upwards, obviously - the contributions?

They responded by blocking our health insurance cover, saying that I need to provide an S1 from CH. I kicked back sending them copies of forms sent when exiting the Swiss system showing that I had categorically declined any further insurance obligations in CH. Which becomes null and void when one is in receipt of a Swiss pension, but nobody bothered to mention that bit.

This has gone up and back down the food chain fairly rapidly, but the result is that we have (under EU law) not a sodding leg to stand on, we must re-enter the ridiculously overpriced Swiss health insurance system.

And there’s the sting, the Swiss premiums are at best approximately six fold of those that we’ve been paying for the past couple of years. Or to put it another way, roughly 60% of my pension will now have to go towards our health insurance rather than the 10% originally calculated.

Even assuming (ha!) that my UK pension kicks in next year, CH will remain the ‘competent country’ for health insurance - UK 21 years, CH 26 years.

Bugger.

Just when it was all going so nicely. :(

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

Wait - you live in Belgium? How are you supposed to get your health care in CH? Or do you get the care in Belgium and the CH system pays?

Also - is that you in the first para?

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/british...43c91e3fea.jpg

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

Your input is much appreciated. ;)

'tis utterly ridiculous. I blame Cameron.

Yes, any care would be provided in Belgium, charged back to the Swiss insurers.

I believe the screenshot you posted is from the Swiss Federal website?

But hang on... in response to your question "is that you in the first para?" I would normally have said yes, but are you possibly suggesting that I'm not, in fact I'm a Third Country National - which I believe that I have been as of Feb 1st 2020?

It's a nice idea... however, elsewhere on the FedWeb site:
Also on FedWeb it delves into persons in receipt of a Swiss pension and where they are subsequently domiciled, exemptions are possible for pensioners domiciled in neighbouring countries - Austria, Germany, France and Italy...

I have my Swiss lawyer (eldest stepdaughter) on the case, she currently believes that we have to go with it.

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

I sympathise, but many of these rules have been set in concrete for a while during the time that UK was member of the EU. Belgium is unusual in the fact that the health system has relatively low premiums. Next door in the Netherlands, like CH, it’s also pretty expensive if you are on the national system. Do you pay taxes on your CH pension to CH? If so you should most likely get a reduction on your BE taxes due to a dual taxation agreement at least. Is there a rule dictating where your health insurance has to come from? As in CH rather than UK? Oh yes..just saw the other bit...

All these things take time to sort out and sift through...but that’s life. At least you can get health insurance!

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

I got that from this pdf, which I'm sure is far surpassed in usefulness by your stepdaughter.

https://www.ahv-iv.ch/p/890.e

I sympathize on costs - I'm about to start paying a giant premium for our plan for OH and self. I kicked my son off it since he's in the UK now, or it would have been a lot more :blink:

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

No, there's no tax liability for us in CH, that's covered on the bilateral agreements, so all handled in BE. I haven't yet worked out if the insurance premiums will be tax deductible, logically yes, but I had already planned on using an accountant for the next tax return.

I just had a look at the health insurance costs payable to CH should we have ended up in NL rather than BE (as per the original moving thread) and that would have been even worse. :eek:

Yup, that's one of the several pdfs that I spent a chunk of time reading yesterday.

Stepdaughter confirmed late last night that we have to go with it.

Ok, the cost is going to cause a bit of pain, but that's not really what has gotten my goat, it's the principle, it seems altogether wrong (on so many levels, before anyone else gets in with that particular joke).

Good luck with your stuff...

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

60% out of your pension instead of 10% is a huge blow :( Bugger indeed, and blast, and the f word as well.

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

This insurance system is a real bitch. Austria (where we live by choice) insists that I cannot buy voluntary insurance income based. Reason: German pension. However my German pension contribution does not meet the number of years required to get S1 medical cover. Austria still refuses. I took the matter to SOLVIT. They took 6 months to respond and 3 weeks to tell me I have no claim. I'm 15 months short because I no longer have a piece of paper from 30 yrs ago to prove the 15 mts. The medical aid denying my claim was the one I was insured with 30 yrs ago.

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

Good grief, and I thought that I was in trouble... so where does leave you and OH?

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

I have a private policy for when I'm in Thailand which is most of the year in normal times. In case of inpatient they will give cover worldwide. Outpatient no. In theory the policy doesn't qualify for my residency status. But it's Austria. For outpatient treatment I go to Germany as it is a fraction of the price of Austria. I live just across the border. Luckily, hubby got British S1 form. If I wasn't an honest person....but I am.
Other option would be to move to Germany. Then I could buy voluntary insurance. But I need to show an income tax return.

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

Communication in The Low Countries - In the area where dominant tongues are Netherlands/Flemish I used to bring out my variety of this - "Ek praat nie Nederlands nie. Ek kan Afrikaans praat." That was usually enough to steer the chat in a different direction !

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

Sorry, still a bit (ha ha) confused...

You and hubby are ordinarily/permanently resident in Austria? And that neither of you are entitled to an Austrian pension?

By virtue of hubby's British S1, that would imply that UK is considered to be the 'competent country' in terms of health insurance for him and his dependants? In which case I don't understand the "If I wasn't an honest person" statement. :confused:

Or does that change if you yourself are in receipt of a pension from another EU member state - in this case Germany?

Re: An imaginatively titled Belgian thread...
 

Thairetired: what's your total amount of years employed in EU countries?