TonTri wrote:
Sorry to bring this up again, but for the next couple of years our primary residence will be the UK and we will be spending most of the winter in Spain. We both have pre-existing health conditions and my husband starts receiving his state pension in about 3 weeks time.
Can we still apply for an S1 certificate even though Spain isnt our primary residence? About point 4 above, what do we need to get temporary cover from the town hall, we are planning on signing on the Padron but do we need an S1 as well to prove he is of pensionable age and eligible for free prescriptions? We have EHIC cards and hopefully wont need a doctor while we are there but we would like to register with a local surgery for the months we are in Spain.
If your primary residence is UK then that is where your healthcare is provided. The S1 transfers your healthcare to Spain (or other country) and you will be removed from the NHS list in UK. Yes, you can use the NHS if you are there on visits but no, you can't transfer your healthcare to Spain unless you are resident.
Rojales is (or was, haven't been for a year) very good to non-residents and allows them to sign on the padron. Many other places won't unless you are a resident in Spain which is really the way the rules are supposed to work. If you sign on the padron at the town hall, the lady under the stairs will issue you with a temporary SIP card so you can use the GP or hospital without showing your EHIC every time.
Unless you are a resident and have completed an initial tax return, the system will not know how much you earn so you have to pay for prescriptions.
Sorry but Spain is a contributory based health system and if you haven't paid in you will not get healthcare. If you use an EHIC then UK pays it for you and, if you have an S1, the UK also pays for it but the S1 bit is only if you are no longer resident in UK.