Permanent address for NHS care etc

[pete the gooner]

Hi everyone,

I am very new here so please forgive me if I come across very naiive but we all have to start sometime. I am retired and my wife close to retirement.

 

What me and the wife ( a Filipina) have been thinking about is spending the winter months in the Philippines and the 'so called' summer months over here.

 

One of the many problems that we will have will be from the British Government. At present ( and they are in the process of trying to change it) you can be out of the country for 6 months max before you lose your entitlements to 'free' NHS care etc etc. Gutting when we have been paying in all our lives. One way round this is to have a 'permanent' UK address. Believe it or not they are trying to reduce it to 3 months.

 

I am trying to get my head around whether or not it is possible to have a 'residential address' whilst mooring up for the winter and then cruising around in the summer.

 

Of course, we could just carry on and not tell them anything and probably all would be OK but, and there is always a 'BUT' -- what happens if hospital treatment or a visit to the doctor is needed?

 

My wife and I have wanted for some time now to go on to the canals. It has always been a dream of mine. I am in a complete remission from cancer so don't want to lose out on a dream.

 

Probably many of you guys have already done what we want to do. Sell our house, pay all our debts etc and live our dreams.

 

Any help or advice would be most welcome. Best we try to get this sorted first before we start the ball rolling.

 

thanks everyone,

 

Pete

[bottle]

Hi Pete

 

Go to this link where I have answered some of your questions.

 

http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php...20&start=20

[Smelly]

Kids, relatives, old friend, all of whom are "residential addresses" for some purpose or another.

 

Why the loss of free care? Loss of passporting benefits or something I might not be able to look up... explain and I might (edit) not be able to help, if it is a passporting question I think I can definitely help as I suspect, but am not confident, what's wrong and how to get 'round it.

Edited August 14, 2008 by Smelly

[classicstove]

Pete

 

You may like to consider having a mail forwarding address in the UK so as far as the authorities are concerned, you have a permanent address. You could choose which, if not all your mail, could be sent there and of course could be forwarded to anywhere you are in the world

 

If you search on 'mail forwarding' in google or one of the other search engines, you will find many companies that provide these servcices

 

John

Edited August 15, 2008 by NB Alnwick
to remove direct advertising by the poster.

[pete the gooner]

John,

 

Many thanks for the idea of mail forwarding. I'll check that out.

 

regards,

 

Pete

[Smelly]

Pete

 

You may like to consider having a mail forwarding address in the UK so as far as the authorities are concerned, you have a permanent address. You could choose which, if not all your mail, could be sent there and of course could be forwarded to anywhere you are in the world

 

If you search on 'mail forwarding' in google or one of the other search engines, you will find many companies that provide these servcices

 

John

 

Mailboxes etc will pretend to be a real address... flat number x, instead of box number x we used 'em for a while and it was pretty handy. A bit pricey, but no questions asked...