Going home to give birth

[Throughthenetcurtains]

Hi, I have been trying to find an answer about this but haven't found another post that is very clear.

Does anyone have experience of living abroad but going back to U.K. to give birth - but without having to pay?

We still have a house in the U.K. and I am still tax resident there. I am still registered with my GP. I don't work where we live in Switzerland. I have been going back to the U.K. every 1-2 months for a week or so, so I haven't been out of the country for more than 3 months at any one time (I read this was relevant?)

I may be able to attend some antenatal appointments in the U.K. but not all of them and I will need to have some of my care over here. The timing of when the baby is due (near Xmas) means I really do need to give birth in the U.K. if possible and I would go back a month before my EDD.

Does anyone have any experience with making this work? Will the NHS be alright with it? TIA

My cousin has with all of hers, not sure how much her gp new about where she lives (she remained on her list too) but she came home at 6 months with hers and flew back for booking in prior. Leaving it until 8 months is quite touch and go getting permission to fly

Thanks for your reply - yes - we'd probably drive at that point. Did she have all the scans/appts in the U.K. or only some of them do you know?

Hi
Switzerland has amazing healthcare, why not have the baby in Switzerland? I think you will need to pay for having a baby on the nhs if you live outside Britain. I remember having to sign forms about being entitled to nhs care when pregnant with dd2

That included a declaration about not recieving free nhs care whilst getting care from overseas also.

Hmm. It's because the edd is so close to Christmas that if I gave birth over here I would be stuck here for Christmas as no time to get baby passport. I have an older DC and we have no family here to help look after them.

We moved back when I was 23 weeks, at 36 weeks I had a letter from the hospital asking me to prove our eligibility for free nhs treatment. Our move was a permanent one so we had employment contracts etc to prove that we were entitled. You aren’t entitled if you’re just coming back for a few months to deliver the baby.

I thought it followed tax residency?

I would basically frame it to NHS like my OH lives/works overseas and I spend time with him but live in U.K.

Thanks for your replies. It's really opaque isn't it.

If you Google NHS residency tool there's a checklist that comes up.

@stinkytoe can you recall what other things would have constituted proof of your entitlement?

You’d have to prove that you live in the UK.

@ClashCityRocker thanks - I'll take a look at that!

But yeah, whilst for tax residency there's a clearly defined status, it does seem very much case by case for NHS residency.

I think you need to think this through from the beginning:

You are resident in the country you spend six plus months in within the year. Which country is that? That usually means that you are tax resident in that country although you may have residual tax responsibilities in another’s country, e.g. income from a rented house. Many countries have dual taxation agreements to deal with such situations.

Having clarified where you are resident you need to know what are the public health care provisions in that country and whether you qualify for them. For example, some countries do not have universal coverage and if you don’t pay NI contributions you are not covered. Do you pay NI contributions in the U.K.?

Given that you are registered with a GP in the U.K., and presumably have an address in the U.K., you will probably be able to give birth in the U.K. without too many questions being asked, but I think it would be good to clarify your situation overall. Within the EU you can fill in a form (S5 if I remember correctly) which then allows you to give birth in another EU country’s public health care system, but I have no idea if that applies to Switzerland or, of course, of Brexit implications.

If you live in Switzerland surely you have LAMAL so under the circumstances you describe you should be able to speak to your provider and get the ok to give birth at a private hospital in the UK (pretty sure it will cost your provider less than a Swiss hospital).

My LAMAL covers health care in most countries (not US obviously).

I would basically frame it to NHS like my OH lives/works overseas and I spend time with him but live in U.K.

^ it's that a tad dishonest?

I moved back to the UK at 32 weeks and had to prove we'd moved back to the UK permanently. We were fully expecting to have to pay so that was a nice surprise.

Dipping in and out of the UK doesn't entitle you to free care, even if you are paying tax. I made voluntary NI contributions for the entire 10 years I lived overseas but wasn't entitled to free NHS care.

A woman I knew tried to have her baby in the UK and got caught out.

I would basically frame it to NHS like my OH lives/works overseas and I spend time with him but live in U.K.

So lie then?

Oh yeah... I also paid tax on my property in the UK.

So paid tax and NI but the only factor that allowed free NHS care was moving back the the UK permanently.

I think you're being a bit dishonest to have a GP when you're a non-resident in the UK.

I know people who would claim child benefit while living overseas with stories such as yours "my DH lives there but I just visit".

Pisses me right off. Total abuse of the system. Dishonest, immoral, and shite.

If you need to stretch the truth, do so. Don't fret about it. I think you'll be fine.

Postnatal care here is currently awful, though, so bear that in mind when making a decision.

Thanks @Booboostwo @Fraula and @ChilliMum. Yes I will look into whether our Swiss insurance would cover us privately in the U.K. That would be a good solution.

As we only moved recently I believe I would actually meet the 6 month rule given how much time I spend in the U.K. and when I'd need to move back. Given that I still pay tax and NI, and continue to pay council tax, utilities etc for our house I think I would meet the residency requirements.

I know this is not a clear cut situation and I am trying to find a solution that works without taking the piss.

Residency. We bump into each other and getting chatting. I ask where you live and you say ....

People are finding it difficult to find a GP with places available. If you are living abroad but still registerd with a U.K. GP, that's really not fair.

Neither is it fair to have chosen to live in another country, but to return to the U.K. for free healthcare when it suits you.

Are you actually paying income tax and NI in the U.K.? If not, YABVVVU.

If you have a house and still pay council tax and utilities on a furnished house you should have the documentation needed to prove you are a resident.
I am not sure if you are a resident though? Does the country you are living in believe you to be a resident?
If you are living in your house, using your gp and are white British I think it will be assumed that you are entitled to use the services of the NHS by the NHS.