Settlement/spouse application process advice

It's fine to use your card when the time comes. Just give your bank a call first to warn them that there will be an unusual charge.  Equally, you can use hers, it doesn't matter.

What larrabee said.

My point was to have all of your paperwork ready before submitting.

I had just thought of something and  would be good if people have an idea on this.

Basically my wife has ongoing health conditions and is on medication, what would you advise as best course of action as I do know my local GP it can often be 4 weeks to get an appointment and it could be that they'd refer her to specialists before being able to get medication for these conditions.

So i'm kind of worried on basis of could get here, then run out of medication and have quite a while before can get the same or an alternative within the UK.

I had just thought of something and  would be good if people have an idea on this.

Basically my wife has ongoing health conditions and is on medication, what would you advise as best course of action as I do know my local GP it can often be 4 weeks to get an appointment and it could be that they'd refer her to specialists before being able to get medication for these conditions.

So i'm kind of worried on basis of could get here, then run out of medication and have quite a while before can get the same or an alternative within the UK.

I have one medication that I also need, so this is my strategy:

If at all possible, try to get a few months of extra prescriptions filled before going over (for your wife). And then bring a referral letter from her GP. NHS may ignore it, but it might be a starting point.

You could also try getting a prescription written right before she leaves and see if the UK pharmacy might fill it.

I have one medication that I also need, so this is my strategy:

If at all possible, try to get a few months of extra prescriptions filled before going over (for your wife). And then bring a referral letter from her GP. NHS may ignore it, but it might be a starting point.

You could also try getting a prescription written right before she leaves and see if the UK pharmacy might fill it.

I have thought of trying to get more refills before hand and a letter, likely best option.

have you done the registration with the local GP where you will be living or will you be doing that before entering or waiting until after you have arrived?

I have thought of trying to get more refills before hand and a letter, likely best option.

have you done the registration with the local GP where you will be living or will you be doing that before entering or waiting until after you have arrived?

I haven't registered yet (think you can't until you have BRP and proof of residence), but my wife has looked into the local GPs in our catchment area. But I believe someone tried to contact their local GP before entering and had some success.

have you done the registration with the local GP where you will be living or will you be doing that before entering or waiting until after you have arrived?

As AV said, you cannot register until you have arrived in the UK and are living in the area.. as you will need to provide passport, visa and proof of UK address (I.e. recent council tax or utility bill with your name and address on it) as they have to confirm that
a) you are entitled to NHS care
and
b) you live within the catchment area of the surgery



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What you should do before you leave the US:
- get refills of as many of her prescriptions as you can, for as long as you can

- obtain a copy of her full medical history to show to UK GPs

- maybe also get a copy of her prescriptions so that the UK doctors know what she is currently prescribed

A UK pharmacy cannot fill a foreign, non-EU prescription so I wouldn't suggest trying to do that.


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A UK pharmacy cannot fill a foreign, non-EU prescription so I wouldn't suggest trying to do that.


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How interesting. It's actually a travel suggestion to try to get a US prescription to be filled locally when you're overseas. I wonder if any of the EU countries allow it?

How interesting. It's actually a travel suggestion to try to get a US prescription to be filled locally when you're overseas. I wonder if any of the EU countries allow it?

Seriously? I worked in a pharmacy for 9 years and I've never seen anyone be allowed to fill a foreign prescription. Unless the prescription is from another EU country, it cannot be filled in the UK.

However what you can do is bring the prescription with you to show to a UK GP so they can issue you with a UK prescription for the same thing (if available in the UK).


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As AV said, you cannot register until you have arrived in the UK and are living in the area.. as you will need to provide passport, visa and proof of UK address (I.e. recent council tax or utility bill with your name and address on it) as they have to confirm that
a) you are entitled to NHS care
and
b) you live within the catchment area of the surgery



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but a utility bill wouldn't really prove their address being it would just have my name on it, not my wife's, unless they'd still accept that on basis of being married.

but a utility bill wouldn't really prove their address being it would just have my name on it, not my wife's, unless they'd still accept that on basis of being married.

You'll have to have her name added after she arrives.  It's a huge pain.  The UK and their love of mail!!

Definitely have her have several months of medication ready to go.  She should start researching now if her current medications are available in the U.K. (Not everything is, a friend has to make an annual trip to the USA for medication not available here).  If a medication is not available, she may be able to start on an alternative medication that is available before moving.  Might be worthwhile while she is currently under the care of a doctor that knows her history.

Lots of different experiences on this board.  Some people have had no problem with using their US medical records for continuity of care, others have had to go through a full diagnosis on the NHS to be able to continue care.  Very much a post code lottery.

but a utility bill wouldn't really prove their address being it would just have my name on it, not my wife's, unless they'd still accept that on basis of being married.

As KFDancer said, you have to wait until she is living in the UK, get her name added to the accounts, wait for a bill or a letter to arrive in the mail, then take it along to the GP surgery and ask to register.

As KFDancer said, you have to wait until she is living in the UK, get her name added to the accounts, wait for a bill or a letter to arrive in the mail, then take it along to the GP surgery and ask to register.

We had similar problems in that I arrived to the UK on a spousal visa and didn't have my name on anything to prove my UK address near the GP surgery I wanted to register at for antenatal care.  In the end, the local GP's office asked my husband to write and sign a letter stating that I would be living with him at our new address, and he had to provide Council Tax statement as proof of our local address.  I'm not sure if our GP was stretching the rules to allow this; possibly, as I was 31 weeks pregnant at the time.  Having your partner's name on a utility bill as quickly as possible will save headaches for issues such as this and getting bank accounts set up.

(As an aside, it's amazing how much time and money we spend to get spousal visas and BRP's, only to arrive and find it's actually a utility bill that's so invaluable!  But I digress...)