No EHIC/insurance

Hi, I'm a British citizen married to a Romanian citizen. My wife has lived with me in the UK for five years.
We have been married for four years and have a four year old child. She wants to apply for residence in order to apply for UK citizenship.

We have been lazy and have not given it much throught untill Brexit, and now I have read up on it I'm a little shocked as to what documents are required.

She has had a National Insurance number for just over four year and is claiming child allowance, but, has never worked here or had medical insurance or a EHIC card.

I thought all we would need to provide is a marriage certificate, the birth certificate of our British child and all my details. Am I correct? Or does she really need proof of this medical cover for the last four years?

Thanks

I'm afraid so. If your wife hasn't been employed she would need either Comprehensive Sickness Insurance (CSI) or a EHIC card from her own country covering the 5 year qualifying period. The best you can do now is to take out CSI to kick-start the next 5 year period before she will be able to apply for confirmation of PR.

Thanks for the quick reply.

This is bad, I don't really understand why the medical cover is such a spanner in the works. She registered with a doctor here, used the NHS to have our baby. She was never asked for a EHIC or insurance details and they knew her nationally.
Does Romania have a separate medical cover treaty with the UK that does not require a EHIC?

Garethio wrote:Thanks for the quick reply.

This is bad, I don't really understand why the medical cover is such a spanner in the works. She registered with a doctor here, used the NHS to have our baby. She was never asked for a EHIC or insurance details and they knew her nationally.
Does Romania have a separate medical cover treaty with the UK that does not require a EHIC?

Doctors are not immigration experts and are unlikely to know the subleties of EU migration rules. And the CSI requirement is not about having access to NHS anyway,

I will tell you why this CSI requirement was introduced. They wanted to make it harder for any EEA immigrants (students or self-sufficient persons) to get a qualifying period, also they wanted them to spend huge amounts of money monthly on this private insurance thing so that they 'don't become a burden on the NHS". Sadly, this is the case.

alexxy wrote:I will tell you why this CSI requirement was introduced. They wanted to make it harder for any EEA immigrants (students or self-sufficient persons) to get a qualifying period, also they wanted them to spend huge amounts of money monthly on this private insurance thing so that they 'don't become a burden on the NHS". Sadly, this is the case.

In Austria, if an EEA national wants to use their healthservice for free, then they have to show the card that proves they were in work the previous week. No card = they pay for their own healthcare.

Students and self suifficients in UK get off cheap by only having to buy a CSI. If you didn't buy that alexxy, then you only have yourself to blame.

Garethio wrote:Hi, I'm a British citizen married to a Romanian citizen. My wife has lived with me in the UK for five years.

We have been lazy and have not given it much throught untill Brexit, and now I have read up on it I'm a little shocked as to what documents are required.

She has had a National Insurance number for just over four year and is claiming child allowance, but, has never worked here or had medical insurance or a EHIC card.

We can't just live in another EEA country as we have to exercise treaty rights to do that, by being a qualified person at all times. Just being married to a citizen of that country, is not exercising treaty rights.

If your wife doesn't want to work then she should buy a CSI as suggested and put the child benefit claim in your name only. Then she will be a self sufficient qualified person, using your wages. Self sufficients must have a CSI and cannot have benefits from that country. Then she is on the path of 5 years to PR (subject to Brexit) but must remain a qualified person at all times - worker or self employed earning a set amount, jobseeker for maximum of 6 months with proof, self sufficient or student with CSI and no beneifts.

alexxy wrote:I will tell you why this CSI requirement was introduced. They wanted to make it harder for any EEA immigrants (students or self-sufficient persons) to get a qualifying period, also they wanted them to spend huge amounts of money monthly on this private insurance thing so that they 'don't become a burden on the NHS". Sadly, this is the case.

You are joking - aren't you?

Not sure who you think 'they' are.

The CSI requirement comes from EU law

... economically inactive persons must also have sufficient resources for themselves and their family not to become a burden on the host EU country’s social assistance system during their residence and have comprehensive sickness insurance cover

Get up to speed on the rights and responsibilities of free movement here (quick - before its too late and doesn't matter anymore):
http://ec.europa.eu/justice/citizen/doc ... 013_en.pdf