A pensioner who is settled abroad can continue to benefit from his rights to health insurance. But this possibility depends in particular on the time he was insured in this area in France, and especially on the country where he resides. Some countries have signed agreements with France which ensure the continuity of health insurance rights for French people residing there, and others have not.
A pensioner who lives outside France but in a European country has the possibility of transferring his health insurance rights to his new country of residence, provided that he does not benefit from health care rights specific to his new country.
By European countries we mean those of the European Economic Area (EEA) i.e. these countries:Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy , Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Sweden. In terms of rights to health insurance, Switzerland is added to this list.
To transfer their health insurance rights to their new country of residence, the retirees concerned must, before leaving France, contact their pension fund and obtain the registration form (a certificate certifying that the holder has entitled to health benefits called "S1") from the social security organization of their place of residence in order to benefit from the health insurance coverage of this country.
This document in their possession, these retirees, living outside France but in a European country mentioned above, must submit it to the competent social security organization in their country of installation.
Thanks to this approach, these retirees can benefit from the coverage of their health care according to the legislation and formalities in force in their host country.
In addition, during their stays in France, thanks to their Vitale card which they must keep, it is also possible for them to be treated and to be reimbursed for their health expenses, this time, according to the procedures provided for in France.
For retirees who go to live in a country that does not belong to the European Economic Area, their situation with regard to their rights to health insurance is different.
It depends on their host country, and especially whether or not the latter is linked with France by a bilateral social security agreement. The list of the situation of each country with which such an agreement has been signed, or is in progress, is available on the website of the Center for European and International Social Security Liaison (Cleiss). As the organization indicates, "Bilateral social security conventions (also called bilateral agreements) aim to coordinate the legislation of two States or territories in order to guarantee the continuity of social protection rights to people in situations of mobility .
A retiree residing in a country that has signed a bilateral social security agreement with France, such as Morocco, Algeria, Senegal, Madagascar, etc., benefits from equal treatment with the inhabitants of this country. That is to say that his host country takes into account his duration of health insurance in France and studies his situation to find out what benefits in force in the country he can claim. In this case, the pensioner must first ask his French health insurance fund for a "conventional form of attestation of periods" during which he benefited from health insurance in France. This document is then used to open any rights to local health insurance benefits in the host country.
The health insurance rights of a retiree living abroad are thus open according to a period determined in the bilateral social security agreement signed with France.
A retiree who lives in a country that does not have such an agreement benefits from the rights to the social security system in force locally. If the latter are insufficient to ensure good health coverage, he must himself take out insurance that improves his health insurance rights. He can also join the Caisse des Français de l'étranger (CFE) for this purpose.
