GESY requirements

Not  unless you are working legally  and paying social insurance.  You cannot do so untill you have permanent residency  if you currently have temporary residency IE pink slip 

Once you have your S1 you can progress but its never easy as there are still a few more hoops to jump through

If you have fast tracked through property investment which include's PR Then you are entitled to join and benefit from GESY

    Hello
OK I think I understand the GESY system
Please correct me if I am wrong
I need to wait until I am 66 and able to draw my uk pension then I can prove a benefit from uk to start the process for GESY.
But why is it when I go to doctors or a chemist here they are so polite and they keep asking why I am not on GESY
These are the same people!!
I explain why !
So the question is am I missing something?
Is there a way I can get it by another route.
Many thanks Kevin

-@kevinlewis2323

Hi Kevin,

Have you had a read of this, maybe contact them?

https://crpg.com.cy/healthcare-in-cyprus/who-qualifies-for-healthcare

Thanks both

I really appreciate your response

OK I will need to wait a while (2 years ) before hopefully I can get some GESY benefits

If I fit the criteria!

Thanks again

Sorry to be thick😀, but I've read the article in the link a couple of times and I'm still not sure if you have to be a permanent resident to get GESY and have an S1 or you can join GESY as soon as you have an S1 whether you've achieved permanent residency or not (I.e. your still on temp residency)

If you do not work and pay social contributions  you cannot join GESY until you you are in receipt of UK state pension and can get your form S1.

If you have completed 5 years of legitimate residency you can get Perm Res and that in itself entitles you to Join and benefit from GESY.

Otherwise it's private healthcare.

Thanks, thats what i was hoping 😀. We're still planning our move to Paphos and just wanted to confirm position

I got my S1 last year and completed the online application. I then sent all the docs required by post to Nicosia the same day by taking them to the post office in Peyia. I checked the web site each month and saw my application in progress all the time. Then after 6 months I recvd an email stating my application was denied as the documents were not recvd in time!

I then went to the Citizen center in Paphos and took my documents. The lady completed some stuff on the compute and said wait 3-4 weeks and you will recv a white medical card in the post (yeah that will be good as post never arrives in Tala).

Then with the white medical card I can go to a doctor and he will sign me up for Gesy.

As usual slowly slowly :-)

Might be worth calling back into the citizens centre after 4 weeks. Ours were supposed to be posted out to us, purely by chance we went back to the citizens centre and the lady said our cards had been issued and she was able to give us them there and then, handwritten number on them but still valid. I got the impression that most people got them from the citizens centre when they hadn't arrived in the post!

Good advise and I will check back.

Hi all

First post here but I've been reading the forum and find it very informative.

Can I ask a question please. I'm have UKW3 permanent residency status but my wife a UK citizen does not. Is she entitled to register with Gesy along with myself?

Many thanks

No...I believe not unless YOU are state pensioned with a valid form S1 then she can piggy back on yours...or if she is in receipt of a state pension and can get a valid form S1

Nb private pensions don't count

Must be resident.

Must be working legally and paying social contributions

OR

Must be legally resident and be in receipt of state pension with a valid form S1... If just one of you holds that then the spouse can also get a S1 in their name on the back of the main holder.

Once you have your S1(s) you must then apply for the white medical card(s) at your local Citizen Service Centre.. then you can register at a local medical centre and eventually join and benefit from GESY

Otherwise it's Private Healthcare until one of the above conditions are met

Good news! I recvd the white medical card in the post last Friday! Now need to go to the doctor to get the GESY setup :-)

@phildraper

Well done

Excuse ignorance, so to clarify you cannot get gesy even if you are over 66 with an S1 if you only have temporary residency, is that correct

Thanks in advance

No you are entitled to get GESY under an S1 even with Temporary residence as UK  will be  paying for your reciprocal health care....

Its entirely possible those depts involved may not be fully up to speed with these things as with many others.

Unless of course things have changed ..and  I suggest it hasn't...as Phil has Temp Res and has s1 and can now apply for GESY

@Toon Thank you Toon, as per usual your responses are very informative and extremely helpful, thank you

@Toon

Correct on all counts lol

I found a doctor at Veramedica in Chloraka taking GESY and went down today. I took the medical white card, S1 form from the UK and yellow slip. They registered the details on the computer and said 'It needs to go to Nicosia for approval and will take about 2 months'

Another step forward....

So when I am registered do I need to pay to see a doctor? If I have prescription medication do I need to get this from the doctor or can I get it from the pharmacy by presenting the white medical card? I have been obtaining the UK prescription drugs from the pharmacy without a prescription and just paying.

Once you're accepted into GESY your doctor issues prescriptions as required onto the computer system and you collect them from the pharmacy, you still have to pay a contribution to the cost of the prescription which varies on the drug involved, but you won't need your medical card to collect it, only your ARC number and date of birth. If your prescription is for more than a month, you have to go too the pharmacy every month to collect it, they won't give you 3 months worth as they do it the UK.

The only use I've found for the white medical card is to complete my tax return when you need to quote it to get exemption from GESY contributions as an S1 holder!

I have a tax exemption certificate issued by the Health authorities for gesy to ensure I don't pay that 2.65% tax as an S1 holder....  ... I wonder if that certificate has to be renewed  when renewing the white medical card to ensure continuity of GESY tax exemption.

Is there a charge to see the doctor?

No

But there is a charge if you are referred to a specialist I've seen several in the last 4 years.. usually between €6-€10. Each visit

No charge to see the doctor, you are limited to a certain number of visits p.a. depending on age before charges kick in but even then the costs are very cheap

GESY exemption certificate lasts 4 years I believe, then you have to re confirm it with the ministry of health but I think the medical card just continues.

All looks very reasonable then.  The service is also way better than the UK. Not that I want to use it but I might need a cataract op soon :-/

@Chris Yorkie...

The medical card only lasts 5 years ..it must be renewed ..we ve just had to do it via the Citizen Service Centre ..

The tax exemption certificate I have yet to get a reply 

@Toon

Thanks for the update Toon, that's another entry in the calendar!

@Chris Yorkie

They send an email reminder when it's due.. but they don't mention the tax exemption certificates

@Toon

Thanks for the info. We got our first tax exemption letters by email, lightning quick same day reply from the ministry of finance !!

Just got this reply

Dear Sir/Madam,

Please note that White Medical Card holders can use the information on their white medical card for the tax declaration and they will be able to be excluded from GeSY contributions.

Best regards,

Sotiris Stratis

Ministry of Health

Email: [email protected] | Website: www.moh.gov.cy

Yes that makes sense, amazingly!

I got the official tax exemption letter last year but didn't need any of that to complete my tax return online, only the details from the white medical card!