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Nationality and healthcare
Some people are seeking an Irish pass- port ahead of Brexit. But is there a catch relating to healthcare? As I under- stand it, you can only register under one nationality. If you have paid taxes/social security etc in the UK, health charges get picked up by the UK. However, if you register in France as Irish, will the French send the bill to Ireland? D.Q.
The right to healthcare is not related to nationality – with the exception of French nationality (French nationals who have lived in France for more than three months have a right to healthcare under the ‘Puma’ system – which replaced the CMU - on residence grounds, with a requirement to pay an annual fee if their income is above a certain level).
The current right you are describing is EU-based and is for state pensioners (or sometimes people with long-term disability benefits). It means that the state that pays your pension will also pay your state of residence for your healthcare costs. It makes no difference what your nationality is.
So, if you receive a British state pension and became Irish you would not lose the right to have the UK pay for you and Ireland would not be asked to pay instead. However, whether or not the right for the UK to pay for you will continue if and when the UK leaves the EU will be an important part of the negotiations which will follow once ‘article 50’ is invoked.
