NHS and resident status

I am seriously thinking about moving to England permanently to be near my American daughter and her Brit husband and children.  My concern is medical coverage since Medicare will not be there for me.  How do I qualify for NHS coverage ?  I would appreciate any help from those who are/have been in my boat  :-)  Thanks so much in advance.

You qualify for NHS by being in the UK on a visa (not a visitor visa).  As a visitor, you can use the NHS, but you'd need to pay for it, so it won't be free (unless it's covered by other insurance).

I asked in your other thread, but what visa do you qualify for?  That might be the first thing to figure out if you haven't already.

I am seriously thinking about moving to England permanently to be near my American daughter and her Brit husband and children.  My concern is medical coverage since Medicare will not be there for me.  How do I qualify for NHS coverage ?  I would appreciate any help from those who are/have been in my boat  :-)  Thanks so much in advance.

If you haven't got British or Irish citizenship, then you won't be able to live in England permanently.

You could visit for 6 months in any 12 months, but you would need to have your own health insurance policy as visitors are not allowed to use the NHS for free.

If you haven't got British or Irish citizenship, then you won't be able to live in England permanently.

You could visit for 6 months in any 12 months, but you would need to have your own health insurance policy as visitors are not allowed to use the NHS for free.

I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it, Susan.

There are visas people can apply for to stay in the UK.  It's just a matter of figuring out if there is one.  There are student visas and work visas.  They might not all apply in the OPs case, but you don't have to be British or Irish (or EU) to live in the UK.   

I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it, Susan.

There are visas people can apply for to stay in the UK.  It's just a matter of figuring out if there is one.  There are student visas and work visas.  They might not all apply in the OPs case, but you don't have to be British or Irish (or EU) to live in the UK.  

Normally no, but the lady said on her other thread that she is 72 years old. Which is why I mentioned Irish and UK citizenship as that would allow her to live permanently in the UK and have NHS for free without working. There is an agreement between the UK and Ireland only, that when we arrive in each others countries, we are treated as "settled"/PR.

From what Nancy put in her opening posts, I ruled all the visas out.

A student visa doesn't allow people to settle permanently in the UK. Nancy would need to study and then find a business to sponsor her on a Tier 2 (General) unrestricted visa and keep on that visa for 5 years to ILR.

 The new rules of student progression and student cap, together with the removal of Tier 1 (PSW), have stopped students hanging around without a Tier2(General) and using the '10 years legally in the UK' route to settlement.

For the work visas, there is:-
Tier 2 (General) Restricted visas. Very hard to get (from outside the UK) unless she does an in demand job or can earn over £152,000(ish) in the UK.
and
Tier2 (ICT) but she would have to have worked for that company for a year before she came to the UK and it doesn't lead to settlement anymore. These visa holders are not allowed to change to Tier 2 General until they have had a 1 year cooling off period outside the UK: and then they have to apply for the difficult to get, restricted visa (above).

The only other ones seem to be the two new Tier 1 visas - Entrepreneur, which seems to need 200k and a business that has to employ staff -  Investor, that seems to need one million(?) pounds.

Is there a possibility that the OP could be considered a "dependent" of her USC daughter; I thought there was some sort of visa which accommodates that instance.

Edited to add: Adult Dependent Relatives

Can you apply?
You can apply to join a settled person in the UK if:

You need long-term personal care to perform every day tasks, such as washing and cooking.
The care you need is not available in the country where you are living, either because it is not available and there is no person in the country where you are living who can reasonably provide it or it is not affordable.
Your sponsor can show that he or she is able to provide adequate maintenance, accommodation and care for you without having to rely on public funds. Your sponsor will need to sign a sponsorship undertaking form to confirm that they will be responsible for your care without relying on public funds for a period of at least 5 years.

Not sure if this is applicable to the OP, but could potentially be an option, depending on the visa status of the OP's daughter and availability of maintenance.

Is there a possibility that the OP could be considered a "dependent" of her USC daughter; I thought there was some sort of visa which accommodates that instance.

Edited to add: Adult Dependent Relatives
Not sure if this is applicable to the OP, but could potentially be an option, depending on the visa status of the OP's daughter and availability of maintenance.

It's really hard to qualify for this visa.  She would have to be destitute and the daughter would have to be solely responsible for her providing for her financially. She'd also have to be incapable of caring for herself as in being unable to bathe, feed or just generally perform any sort of daily task for herself.  Additionally, there would have to be no relatives no matter how remotely related  who could take care of her.

We haven't heard anything more from the OP yet. She might have UK or EU citizenship for all we know!

No, I am not a UK or EU citizen.  I am a US citizen.  I have done hours of searching on the internet and found what you have so graciously given me.  I appreciate all.  I am confused as the the reasoning of the UK government that they prefer to admit a destitute and dependent person rather than a financially and physically sound one !!!  Yes, I am 72 and without the arthritis that God gives us at this age I can take care of myself except for the deep cleaning activities, heavy lifting etc. and cannot jog anymore    I just want to be with my daughter and her family who I now see once, maybe twice a year , and have dealt with this for the past 10 years    My "golden years" are narrowing down and I want to spend them with her and my grandchildren.

Well, the "destitute and dependent person" you speak of, would be the dependant relative of someone living here who would otherwise have nobody to care for them. So that comes under human rights legislation.
I think the main reasoning is that you wouldn't be seen as a tax paying member of society but still accessing services such as the NHS. Perhaps if there was some provision for you to provide your own healthcare, but that's not how it works in the UK, anyone here legally on a settlement visa as access to the NHS, and there really isn't any billing process within the NHS, it's not like we pay and get reimbursed, or that you show a card everytime you go for it to be charged against, it really is free at the point of delivery and funded via taxation.
I really wish I could offer you a solution and I empathise with you. I am a British citizen, my wife is American, and we did look into this a few years ago when her father was being moved into a care home in the US. We've also looked at various  means of bringing her 24 year old daughter over but she basically has to come under her own steam rather than because her mum is here.

Well, the "destitute and dependent person" you speak of, would be the dependant relative of someone living here who would otherwise have nobody to care for them. So that comes under human rights legislation.

Even that wouldn't get them an elderly relative visa. Their own country is now expected to pay for their own elderly citizens, as they paid their taxes to that country. If their own country doesn't pay for their elderly citizens, then their relatives in the UK are now expected to fund their relatives care and treatment instead (in their own country). If they can't afford to pay for their relative's care, then they can't afford to sponsor them to the UK. Catch 22.

Or their other choice is to return to their country to be with their elderly relatives. With all the excitement of the move to another country, I guess people tend not to think about relatives they are leaving behind and what will happen when relatives are elderly.

Tykeman is right, the removal of the elderly relative visa it is one of measures (with more proposed measures to be brought in) the UK has started doing to protect the NHS for their own sick and elderly citizens; for those that paid into the UK system during their working life; for those that come from a country that has a reciprocal agreement with the UK.

You should be able to visit your family for 6 months in any 12 months if you show strong ties to the US and build up a good immigration history; but you will not be allowed to use the NHS for free.

With all the excitement of the move to another country, I guess people tend not to think about relatives they are leaving behind and what will happen when relatives are elderly.

A bit harsh, don't you think? Many of us have had to leave elderly grandparents and aging parents, but it's hardly without thought.

With all the excitement of the move to another country, I guess people tend not to think about relatives they are leaving behind and what will happen when relatives are elderly.

I really take offense to this comment - and I REALLY try to not take offense to things.  My circumstance on how I came to the UK deviates from the norm slightly - was supposed to be here for a few years on a Tier 2.  I just happened to meet the man of my dreams. 

And for each and every member of this board regardless of circumstance, no matter where we chose to live, someone like you could interpret that as "abandoning" family.  That's not fair.  There is not a single person on this board who looked forward to leaving their family behind, even if they have a sour relationship.

My husband and I could move to the US tomorrow, but then you would say that we are abandoning HIS family.  We can't win with you.

My husband and I could move to the US tomorrow, but then you would say that we are abandoning HIS family.  We can't win with you.

Does the US allow next day spouse visas? I thought it took nearly a year to get a spouse visa to the US, even with finances in place??

Does your husband have siblings who live in the UK who could care for his parents when they get old?

If you are an only child and you move to a country that doesn't allow chain migration (or a country that doesn't have a reciprocal agreement with your country) then perhaps these things should be thought about when you decide you would like to settle in that country.

Does the US allow next day spouse visas? I thought it took nearly a year to get a spouse visa to the US, even with finances in place??

Does your husband have siblings who live in the UK who could care for his parents when they get old?

If you are an only child and you want to move to a country that doesn't allow chain migration, then these things do have to be thought about.

Susan you are an artist.