Pipmeister

About to apply to extend my wife/daughter's FLR visas as their 2.5 years is almost up. Being stung for yet more £££££ for the extension am I now reading it right that I also have to pay, AGAIN for this flipping health charge? As if paying once wasn't bad enough considering I pay over £6k in NI?

What about if my wife is working herself in the UK and paying NI....?

SanDiegogirl

Yes, you pay again ......

I paid NIC and tax for 50 years in the UK, left for the US and now cannot use the NHS at all if I visit.

Count yourself lucky that a few hundred quid as an upfront payment gives you health services ......

Pipmeister

You can't, how is that? Don't you still hold a British Citizenship? If you paid NI for 50 years then surely you've "fully paid" and also entitled to a full pension. Scandalous!

When I moved to the US I wasn't charged for health - but true, there was no national health lol.

HKG3

If you paid £6k in NI a year, then I am sure that you can afford your wife/daughter's visa fees and health surcharge. Spare a thought to those families earning just above the threshold.

SanDiegogirl

"Wasn't charged for health" ??? Really ?

You must be the only person who lived in the US and did not pay through the nose for every medical service he ever received.

spouse of scouse

Immigration's an expensive business! Yes, you'll need to pay the health surcharge when applying for FLR. It'll make you feel better about it if you compare the cost to that to the cost of health insurance in the US - I know I'm streets ahead with the NHS after paying Medicare and private health insurance in Australia. I still find myself reaching for my wallet after a medical appointment here in the UK.

Pipmeister

LOl - no I meant wasn't charged when I got my visa and green card - lol....

Pipmeister

Like most salaried staff in the US I was fortunate to have health care insurance. Having said that, with waiting times of 7-10 days to see my GP (or my wife's GP) we tend not to use the NHS and pay to use a private medical service - rather than end up bogging down A&E - I always saw my GP that day or the following in the US. Always. I love the NHS, don't get me wrong, I've also seen the flip side of those who lost jobs and therefore their cheap healthcare (past COBRA payments) before Obamacare kicked in

Pipmeister

HKG3 - you don't know other people's circumstances - just because I now earn a decent wage, doesn't mean I' have a lot of disposable income - these charges will end up on my credit card for a good many months.

spouse of scouse

That's great that most US salaries include health care insurance, I've heard it costs a bomb over there. Australia has a pretty good universal health care scheme, partly funded by a separate tax on income, but topping that up with private insurance is pricey.

BritInParis

National Insurance Contributions are completely unrelated to NHS care entitlement.

SanDiegogirl

In the 2015/2016 report from the Department of Health 80% of the costs for the NHS were raised by general taxation - the rest from NIC, patient charges (prescriptions, dental treatment, spectacles) even car parking and land sales !

Pipmeister

Going slightly off topic and not wanting to start a political debate..

It seems kinda morally wrong. On the FLR visa you have no recourse to any public funds (benefits) but are forced to contribute to them through NIC. You can use the NHS, but that is not because you pay NIC but because you pay £500 every 2 years as a surcharge.

You don't see the Daily Mail ever advertising this. You can see why so many immigrants work for cash in hand.

Mind you, I paid into the US's Social Security and Medicare/Medicade system for 8.5 years and can't even claim a US Pension.

BritInParis

NICs are linked to your State Pension and certain contributory benefits. Even someone with 'No recourse to public funds' is allowed to access these benefits because they have paid for them through their NICs.

https://www.gov.uk/government/public...2/public-funds

SanDiegogirl

Morally wrong !!...Really ? .. to be given access to full medical treatment and services from the time you set foot into the UK with your visa.

Your wife is from the US and, god forbid, that she could have had a serious accident or some serious illness a few days after she entered the UK.

However, had this happened she would have received comprehensive medical treatment including hospitalisation, without any worry to you that you would be expected to pay maybe thousands in deductibles and co-pays - as would happen in the US no matter how good your company insurance plan is.

- and don't forget your premiums every month, every year, that you pay in the US for your insurance plan,

OK off my soap box now.......