Retiring

Updated : 12/2012

Healthcare coverage

Healthcare coverage in the country where you live

If you receive a pension from the country where you live, you and your family are covered by that country's healthcare insurance system — whether or not you are also receiving pensions from other countries.

If you do not receive a pension or any other income from the country where you live, 2 situations are possible:

• if you receive a pension from another EU country, you belong to that country’s health insurance system
• if you receive a pension from several other EU countries, you belong to the healthcare insurance system of the country where you were insured for the longest period of time.

In either case you need to request a certificate of entitlement to healthcare – the S1 form (formerly known as an E 121) — from the health insurance authority in the country whose healthcare insurance system you belong to.

This document establishes your right to full healthcare coverage in your country of residence. You must submit it to the health insurance authority there.

In principle, you and your family are only fully entitled to medical treatment in the country where you live. However, some countries (see list below) offer pensioners who live abroad — but belong to their social security system — complete healthcare coverage on their territory too. 

Healthcare coverage in the country where you used to work

You are entitled to complete healthcare coverage in both the country which pays your pension  and the country where you now live (if these are different).

However, this applies only if the country which pays your pension is one of the following:

Austria	France	Netherlands
Belgium	Germany	Poland
Bulgaria	Greece	Slovenia
Cyprus	Hungary	Spain
Czech Republic	Luxembourg	Sweden

The same applies to your family members.

If you paid contributions in a country which is not in the list above, you will only be entitled to complete healthcare coverage in the country where you live.

Former cross-border commuters

If your most recent job was as a cross-border commuter, meaning you lived in one country but commuted to work in another, the following applies to you:

Continuation of a treatment

You can continue to receive a treatment that began in the country where you used to work even after having retired. This is also applicable to your dependants if their treatment began in:

Austria	Germany	Portugal
Belgium	Greece	Romania
Bulgaria	Latvia	Slovakia
Cyprus	Luxembourg	Slovenia
Czech Republic	Malta
France	Poland

As of 1 May 2014, this will also be possible for treatment begun in:

Estonia	Italy	Netherlands
Hungary	Lithuania	Spain

Coverage in country where you used to work and in country where you live

If you worked at least 2 years as a cross-border worker during the 5 years preceding retirement, you are entitled to healthcare both in your country of residence and in the country where you used to work.

This is also applicable to your dependants if the country where you now live and the country where you used to work are both in this group:

Austria	Germany	Spain
Belgium	Luxembourg
France	Portugal

Travelling abroad

If you travel outside the country you live in to another EU country, you will be covered for medical treatment which becomes necessary during your stay thanks to your European Health Insurance Card. You must apply for your card with the authority of the country where you are insured.

Under certain conditions, you can also travel to another country to get planned medical treatment there. Have a look at the numerous possibilities for treatment abroad (patient mobility) in Europe.

Problem areas due to differences in entitlements and conditions

Differences in services coverage

EU countries are free to establish their own rules on entitlement to benefits and services. For example, if you apply for medical care in your home in the country where you now live, you probably won’t be entitled to exactly the same services for the same price as in your country of origin.

Differences in assessing incapacity level

If you claim an invalidity pension or incapacity benefit, each country you have worked in could insist on examining you separately. One country might assess you as seriously incapacitated, while another country may not consider you incapacitated at all.

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