SA29. Your social security insurance, benefits and healthcare rights in the European Economic Area
Introduction
These pages tell you about the European Community (EC) Regulations on social security.
They also tell you:
- about National Insurance and other contributions;
- how and when to pay your contributions;
- what benefits, including healthcare, you may get; and
- how and when to claim your benefits.
The EC Regulations mean people from every country in the European Economic Area (EEA ) are generally treated the same and have their benefit rights protected for as long as they are:
- employed or self-employed;
- or have been employed or self-employed and are getting benefit;
- or a student who is studying or receiving vocational training leading to an officially recognised qualification – in this case, only limited rights arise.
EEA countries are:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Cyprus*
- Czech Republic*
- Denmark
- Estonia*
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary*
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Italy
- Latvia*
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania*
- Luxembourg
- Malta*
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland*
- Portugal
- Slovakia*
- Slovenia*
- Spain
- Sweden
- United Kingdom (UK)
* Those countries starred joined the EEA on 1 May 2004.
“The UK” means England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, but not the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.
The following countries also apply the EC social security rules but have some special conditions:
- Switzerland is not a member of the EEA , but as a result of an agreement with the EU that came into force on 1 June 2002, the EU rules on social security will also largely cover Switzerland. However, the EU rules do not apply to you if you are a Swiss national going to or coming from Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway or if you are a national of one of those countries going to or coming from Switzerland. The agreement between Switzerland and the EU has not yet been extended to the 10 new member states.
- Gibraltar – for everything in these pages except healthcare and child benefits, the UK applies the EC Regulations to Gibraltar as though it is another EEA country. Other EEA countries treat Gibraltar as though it is part of the UK.
The EC Regulations apply to you if you are:
- a national of any EEA country and at some time you have lived or worked or studied in an EEA country;
- a stateless person or refugee and you live in an EEA country;
- a dependant or the widow or widower or surviving civil partner of anyone who was covered by the Regulations. In this case, it does not matter what your nationality is;
- the husband, wife, civil partner or child of someone who has died, where the deceased worked in an EEA country and was not an EEA national or a stateless person or refugee. In this case, you must satisfy the rules of nationality yourself;
- if you are not an EEA or Swiss national you may be covered by the EC Regulations, but only in certain circumstances. From 1 June 2003 the EC Regulations changed. Non-EEA or non-Swiss nationals who move between certain member states have new rights for the payment of social security insurance. The rules for each benefit are different. You will need to be legally resident in the UK to help you satisfy the conditions for the payment of benefit or UK National Insurance (NI) contributions.
If you want to know more about the benefit provisions for non-EEA or non-Swiss nationals, contact the Department for Work and Pensions, The Pension Service, International Pension Centre.
If you want to know more about UK NI contributions provisions for non-EEA or non-Swiss nationals, please write contact HM Revenue and Customs.
If you have never worked, the EC Regulations do not usually apply to you. But if in the past you have been employed or self-employed and you have paid social security insurance, they may apply to you.
There are special arrangements, called reciprocal agreements, between the UK and the other countries covered by the EC Regulations (except Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia). If you are not covered by the EC Regulations (and, in very limited circumstances, even when you “are” covered by these Regulations), you may be able to get cash benefits because of the reciprocal agreements. If you want to know more about these agreements, write to The Pension Service.
If you want to know more about National Insurance contributions and related healthcare, or if you want a State Pension forecast (note, you cannot get a forecast if you are within four months of UK State Pension age):
HM Revenue and Customs
Centre for Non Residents
Room BP1301
Benton Park View
Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE98 1ZZ
You can also phone or fax the Centre for Non Residents (Newcastle) Helpline on:
tel: 0845 915 4811
fax: 0845 915 7800
(UK calls and faxes will be charged at local rates except for some mobile phones.)
If you are phoning or sending a fax from outside the UK, dial the international code, then:
tel: 44 191 203 7010
fax: 44 191 225 0067
You can also get more information and can contact HM Revenue and Customs via www.hmrc.gov.uk.
For details of UK Income Tax while you are abroad:
HM Revenue and Customs
Centre for Non Residents
St John's House
Merton Road
Bootle
Merseyside L69 9BB
tel: 0845 070040
If you are phoning from outside the UK, dial the international code, then:
tel: 44 151 210 2222
If you want to know more about benefits and related healthcare cover write to:
Department for Work and Pensions
The Pension Service
International Pension Centre
Tyneview Park
Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE98 1BA
When you write, please tell us:
- your full name;
- your date of birth; and
- your National Insurance number (if you know it).
If you are phoning or sending a fax from outside the UK, dial the international code, then:
tel: 44 191 21 87777
fax: 44 191 21 83836
You can phone or fax The Pension Service, Tyneview Park, on:
tel: 0191 21 87777
fax: 0191 21 83836
email:tvp.internationalqueries@thepensionservice.gsi.gov.uk
If you are on holiday or you are visiting another EEA country for a short time, read booklet, “Health advice for travellers“, instead. You can get a copy from any UK Post Office, or further information is available from the internet at www.dh.gov.uk/travellers, from the DH Publications Orderline on 08701 555 455 or by emailing dh@prolog.uk.com.
Guides Two guides published by the EC explain your rights when moving within the EU. One, “Your social security rights when moving within the European Union“, tells you more about the EC social security regulations and social security schemes in each of the other EEA countries. You can get this guide from the HM Revenue and Customs or the Department for Work and Pensions. You can also get it from the social security authorities in any other EEA country. The other, “The Community provisions on social security”, tells you about the EC social security regulations only. You can only get this guide online at http://bookshop.eu.int.
Important note
In these pages we can only give you general information. You must not treat it as a complete and authoritative statement of the law. If you want to know about how the EC social security regulations work in any other country, you must ask the authorities who run the social security system in that country.
These pages are only a general guide to benefit and are not a full and authoritative statement of the law. We have made every effort to ensure that the information was correct when it was last updated. However, changes in the law may make the information become gradually less accurate.