Insurance for more than 90 days

A snowHead

One thing to note about the AAC policy is that it is designed to be a top up insurance. All Austrians (or Germans for the DAV) have medical insurance which would cover any hospital costs and most household insurances would cover things like loss of skis. No need for the travel insurance elements such as delayed flights etc. The Alpine Club insurance is designed to cover those things such as mountain rescue, repatriation costs or maybe treatment in a resort private clinic not already covered. For many brits it works fine with an EHIC card but it is not and is never intended to be general travel insurance.

Another, though not really, related issue, is that after a period of time, one month in Germany but might be different in Austria, you need to register at the local town hall. This would mean you would potentially be liable for Austrian tax (though, I guess if your residence is less than a certain period that would not apply), be able prove that you have appropriate medical insurance, any children would have to attend school and a few other less relevant things. Normally if you are renting it is a condition of the rental contract that you register within a certain time.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

@munich_irish, Agreed. The EHIC scheme provides the safety net, and experience has shown that, once the card is produced, in-patient treatment is free, as is out-patient treatment, the only expense being over the counter medication (and in my case 30 euros for a pair of crutches - which I still have and might come in handy again some day). Of course it's a different story if you wind up in a private clinic - hence the advantage in having the AAC top-up cover.

The requirement to register after one month in Germany is presumably part of the controls on immigration that other EU countries have famously imposed, and which our government has infamously neglected to impose. That requirement doesn't apply in Austria, otherwise most of the Brits we know, who own apartments in Saalbach, would be breaking the law. As I understand the position it only becomes an issue (from the tax residence standpoint) if you spend at least 183 days there in a year, which seems to make sense. I don't know who does the counting.

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@tatmanstours, The requirement to register is applicable in most countries, it has nothing to do with immigration and is a requirement whatever your nationality. The UK and Ireland are an exception.

You certainly have to register in Austria see https://www.help.gv.at/Portal.Node/hlpd/public/content/118/Seite.11802001.html#GeneralInformation . Even staying one night in a hotel requires recording of details of passport etc which are then collected at the local town hall. If you are renting out an apartment you are obliged to collect this information. Not to do so is a fairly serious matter. I agree about tax liability, though the number of days can be an issue especially if you are a property owner, tax law is never straight forward.

In addition Austrian law requires that "EU/EEA citizens and their relatives who intend to stay in Austria for more than three months and settle are required to apply for a registration certificate" something that was abolished years ago in Germany.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

@skier52, do Towergate continue to provide contents cover during those 60 days unoccupied? It seems to be something that other unoccupied policies aren't keen on. Think I need to give them a call tomorrow.

You'll need to Register first of course.

I have the temporary residency permit for Austria, but as I stay less than 6 months per year my tax country remains the UK. A basic cheap health insurance combined with the EHIC card and bank statements showing I was self sufficient was enough. The Anmeldebescheinigung is valid for 5 years.

"If you are a citizen of any of the EEA states (EU states plus Norway, Liechtenstein, Iceland) or Switzerland, you will be required to apply for a confirmation of registration within four months of your arrival in Austria. The criteria for EEA citizens and Swiss citizens to do so are as follows:

Must be employed or self-employed in Austria or
Have adequate means of subsistence to support themselves and their dependents and have sufficient health insurance coverage for themselves and their family members or
Attend an Austrian school or recognized education facility as a main purpose of their stay and earn a secure living and have a sufficient health insurance coverage.

If you qualify for an extended stay, you will have to register with the competent residence authority in order to receive a registration certificate (“Anmeldebescheinigung”)."
http://www.virtualvienna.net/moving-to-vienna/entry-and-residence-in-austria/permanent-residence/

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After all it is free

Some great information being offered here - thanks a lot everyone.

It could be an interesting time being out of the country in Europe as Brexit comes into being. One thing we are planning to arrange are international drivers permits - not a significant cost and my understanding is that in a no deal scenario the UK licence wouldn't be valid. That's reminded me - need to talk to my car insurer - so many insurance aspects to sort out!!
My guess would be that it's unlikely too many things will be rigidly enforced from day one if no deal happens but who knows...

@munich_irish, I'm pretty sure we'll be paying a daily tourist fee via the apartment we are renting. I'd assume this covers the registration aspect.

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@munich_irish, I suppose that the words, "...and settle" are of some significance.

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

@BandySteve, I am preparing for the possibility of IDPs too, but will see how it goes closer to the date.

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@BandySteve, The person who is renting you the property is required to sort the registration from the first day of your arrival. As to the residency permit, I dont know, here in Germany this was abolished for EU citizens years ago. However my interpretation of the words is that if you stay beyond 3 months you need to apply for a residency permit (Anmeldebescheinigung) the word "settle" in the English version seems to me to be an inaccurate translation (I would say "intend to be resident for 3 months or more" is better). You can probably ignore the issue if you plan to staying on slightly longer than 3 months but you could find someone from the town hall knocking on your door asking questions. If you plan on repeating the exercise it is probably worth doing properly the first time

@tatmanstours, Its a mistranslation. Given how much time you seem to spend in Austria you would almost certainly need the registration certificate (as a EU citizen you have the legal right to get one). It would also be likely to help after next March if you intend to stay. For the tax, while it is true about the 183 day thing, property is always taxed in the country were it is situated. If you own a property in Austria but are tax resident in the UK you are liable for tax on any income from the property in both places but the double taxation thing means any tax you pay in Austria would be deducted from your UK tax bill (likely to be an issue if you are in the higher rate of UK tax)

You know it makes sense.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-46103873 sad case from todays news. No Insurance, funding together to repatriate her body.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

@jafa, very sad but at "Charlotte did not have travel insurance which means that the medical and repatriation bills will be very high, estimated in the region of £40,000, increasing with each day that passes" I would (seriously) be flying out myself, having a cremation and bringing the remains back for a service at home.

A snowHead

I've been looking at https://www.assurski.fr for snow cover.
We use Intasure for house insurance and covers long unoccupied periods.

A snowHead

@holidayloverxx, +1. That is exactly what someone I know did when their husband died during a visit to see family in Canada. Cremation in Canada and ashes brought home for Uk funeral service.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

but just a thought. As UAE is Muslim, they may not allow cremation.

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@Hells Bells, good point, and a quick Google suggests cremation is possible but only for UAE residents

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

One thing that I have found, which is not very clear on the MPI website, is that you can take out a MPI multi trip, wintersports' policy and choose an option to extend cover from 31 days to 62 days per trip. Although it won't cover you for a continuous 90 day stay, you will be covered if you break your trip. This policy costs £324.80 (if booked online) for a couple (50-62) for Western Europe. It is slightly cheaper for France only. I have also found that this policy good in that it provides cover for all forms of water sports activity on inland waterways, rivers and up to 12 miles from the coast, which I find useful during the summer months.

You'll need to Register first of course.

Just had confirmation from Knox that their £500K medical cover can be tagged onto the end of the AAC’s £10K medical cover (included in membership for the first 8 weeks of any trip), so you take the Knox policy from day 57 of the trip and don’t have to be in the UK in order to do so. Probably the most economical way of securing basic cover for a whole season, at least for anyone who is content to rely on the AAC’s emergency top-up cover for the first eight weeks, coupled with the EHIC scheme.

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I've ended up going with an MPI long single trip policy given the duration of our time away. Not cheap but should have everything suitably covered...

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Insurance for more than 90 days

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