Grondemon123

Hi all, we are seriously thinking about moving to the ROI this year. My hubby will be 65 and in receipt of the UK State pension and I'll be 59 by the time of the move. We both have work pensions and our monthly income will be around €2,800 per month. On the sale of our UK home,we will have around €250,000 to buy or build a home outright and additional savings of around €50,000 for 'rainy day' emergencies.

So here are my questions :

My hubby has a medical condition that requires ongoing prescriptions, will he be entitled to the Medical card as he will be receiving the UK state pension ? (I'm assuming our income & savings will bring us over the threshold otherwise ) - if not what's the most cost effective way of funding medical care ?

We are looking to move around the Wexford area but are open to other suggestions, we want rural, scenic but not isolated - any suggestions would be great.

We have 7 dogs, we know about the travel requirements for them as we have done the Irish Show circuit with them several times but if we decide to build our new home or there is a delay between selling our place & buying our new one , we'd need to rent somewhere , how realistic is this ? - are there many rural places with outbuildings to rent or any specialist agencies that could help ?

I think that's all for now - I'd be really grateful for your thoughts and advice !

Moses2013

You might find this link useful and if there are any worries, I would contact them directly. If you've paid into the UK system, I'm sure you would also be entitled to free services in Northern Ireland.

Entitlement to health services

You definitely have a good budget and you do get a lot more house for your money here, especially rural areas. There are so many great areas in Ireland, so it's really hard to suggest, especially if you don't have to work For me outside Galway works, because there are plenty of job opportunities and with the new motorway coming, Limerick will be closer, Dublin is only 2 hours away and amazing scenery a short drive away (Connemara, plenty of Loughs and beaches). Since I'm on the West Coast, I'd be more familiar with Co. Clare, Co Galway, Co Mayo. Co Wexford has a lot to offer too, so it's going to be difficult.

Grondemon123

Thank you Moses , I'm still confused though this is what your link says ;

EU Citizens
Under EU rules if you are living in Ireland and getting a Social Security Pension from another EU State you may be entitled to a medical card here without having to satisfy the usual means test provided you are not getting an Irish Social Welfare Pension and are not employed or self-employed here.

So does this mean those on receipt of a UK state pension are automatically entitled to a medical card ?

Confused .com !!

Moses2013

Not 100% sure but I found more info on gov uk website
https://www.gov.uk/living-in-ireland


If resident in Ireland: For more advice, contact your local Health Centre.
HSE.ie - Ireland's Health Services

Entitlement to health services in Ireland is primarily based on residency and means. If you are coming to live in Ireland, you must satisfy the Health Service Executive (HSE) that you are “ordinarily resident”. Any person, regardless of nationality, who is accepted by the Health Service Executive (HSE) as being ordinarily resident in Ireland is entitled to either full eligibility (category 1; medical card holders) or limited eligibility (Category 2) for health services. For information and advice on eligibility for health care in Ireland or Welfare.ie.

In addition to the public health system, people can avail of a range of private health care services. You must pay the full costs of treatment if you opt for private health care. There are a number of private health insurance companies in Ireland. The Health Insurance Authority is a statutory regulator of the private Health Insurance market in Ireland. The authority also provides information to consumers regarding their rights and health insurance plans and benefits.

Grondemon123

Thanks again Moses, I think I'll phone the Irish Citizens Advice directly myself just to get this cleared up. We're planning a short visit in April just to get a feel for different areas , we chose Wexford initially as we have several good friends there but we have done the tourist 'ring of Kerry ' thing as part of the show circuit and it's just lovely there too.

We don't fancy Northern Ireland even though being part of the UK would make life easier - getting just a wee bit excited now that our plans are moving forward

flibberty gibbet

Are your friends already out there retired British expats? I was wondering how the locals take to newcomers, particularly English, given the complex history between the countries?
We have taken holidays there and felt very welcome but I wasn't sure how that translated into buying property and settling over there?

PS Wish I was allowed 7 dogs

beachgal21

Grondemon please let us know what you find out. I'm from the dog world too and have also contemplated a move to Ireland. Do you own Tervs by and chance?

Grondemon123

Our Friends are Irish born and bred - we are hoping that joining the local dog training clubs and going to the shows will help us to meet and make friends with more people once we move.

Beachgal1 - yes we do have Tervs!

<<<snip>>>

Jerseygirl

Welcome to BE.

I'm sorry but you cannot promote your website/biz in your posts...I have therefore removed the link that you posted. However you may put a link to your website in your signature as per Site Rules. Please read our Site Rules carefully...thank you.

Site Rules | British Expatriate Community

Grondemon123

Oops - ok no problem

Moses2013

There are loads of Brits living and working in Ireland and it's a very open country. You would probably feel more unwelcome as an English person in England.

billt

We have lived here for 9 years and I would advise you to rent before buying, there are lots of places available to rent if you checkout the major property websites.Renting first will give you the chance to get to know the area before any long term commitment.
You will both have to obtain a prsi number( bit like the national insurance number), you require this before you can access different services and it is easily obtained from you local welfare office, ours only took a week or so.Then you can apply for state medical care, which is based on residency and income level, your income will be over the threshold for full medical cards,which is 266 Euros per week for a couple and the doctor only card is 400 Euros per week.However because your husband is receiving the UK state pension my understanding is that he should qualify for a full medical card as long as he does not claim an Irish state pension.In a recent article the man concerned had applied on exactly these grounds and initially turned down but granted on appeal, check the Irish HSE website and you will find all the qualifying criteria there.
Ireland can be quite expensive for some items, but this is offset in that water rates and property tax are far cheaper than the UK.Our property tax this year was 225 Euros, water was only 24 Euros(we are on a group water scheme and receive 80 cubic metres free), this can vary in different areas.
Your income is sufficient to live comfortably here as you will have on mortgage and the house buying process is very similar to the UK, the only difference being a booking deposit is paid to the auctioneer(estate agent) but the time scale is similar.
You don't state where you work pensions are from,I only mention this because if they are not UK civil service type (fire, police, teachers etc,) you may find the Irish taxman looking for another bite at the cherry, check the Irish revenues website for further info.
It is a good time to buy here as you get a lot more house for your money and the exchange rate is very favourable to you at the moment.Generally rural areas are cheaper than towns and cities,if you decide to buy a secondhand house do plenty of research regarding the builder and definitely have a full building survey done as some builders are better than others.
Good luck to you both

scot47

Moses writes, "You would probably feel more unwelcome as an English person in England."

Sounds like you are fleeing from the immigrants - by becoming an immigrant yourself !

flibberty gibbet

Good job we are all part of one big, happy European family

Grondemon123

Thank you Bllt for your very useful reply. There does seem to be some incredible property bargains at the moment and it's hard not to behave like a kid in a sweet shop but this is a big decision and we have heard about some poor quality builds that would be a liability . We are planning to sell here first and rent in Ireland initially to give us time to look properly but are aware that this may be difficult with seven dogs - unless we can find somewhere with kennels or outbuildings.

Our pensions are both civil service ones ( Teachers and Airforce ) plus a small private one so I don't think they will be taxed. It's great news on the low property and water rates , ours here in Lincolnshire are over £1000 ! .

We are going over on the 13th April just to get a 'feel' for Wexford and drive around and will make our final decision after this visit. Thanks again for everyone's help