Giving birth abroad and getting funding for it....

BernadetteN

custardy wrote: »

perhaps the OP wants the baby to have their/partners nationality

Nationality is not necessarily dependent upon country of birth and is far more complicated. For example, a baby born in the UK only gets British nationality dependent upon birth in the UK when neither parent is British.

Our children are British because I am British by country of birth.

My friends from the USA and Ireland have a British daughter because she was born in the UK AND her parents were married at the time of birth AND her mother was also legally a permanent resident in the UK at the time of birth - they had to prove all this before she got her British passport. Their daughter is also Irish because her dad was born in Dublin of Irish parents with Irish nationality at birth which can be passed through the father in these circumstances. She is also American because her mum is American with one parent born in the US with US nationality at birth.

Nationality of this baby will be dependent upon nationality of both parents and the circumstances surrounding how they obtained their nationality, possibly upon place of birth, possibly upon residency in country of birth and possibly upon whether parents are married at the time of birth or get married later. There are so many parameters in deciding nationality.......

hippychick1

It is possible to fly up to 36 weeks, but most airlines will not allow it. I flew from Cyprus to the uk when I was 35 weeks, with my three year old in tow. It's not ideal, but a flight to Spain is not that far.

trickytrolleys

If your wifes family and friends are all in Spain then why are you looking for the nhs to cough up for hotel accomodation ? I certainly would not want to be looking after a new baby in a hotel :eek: is this your first child ?? Certainly sounds like it is, i gave birth in an NHS hospital and I agree the worst thing was the food the professional care during the birth was brilliant

jedeye

Thanks for all your comments!! Some good, some bad and some indifferent!!! It's nearly time for us to go..... I haven't had time to write or contact the DoH or PCT so maybe we'll never know!!! I'll still try to draft something though.....

I wasn't looking for a hotel stay.......probably the cost of a flight or two would be something better than nothing. If you don't ask you don't get!!!

We have been seeing a Spanish doctor as well as our English NHS doctors so we have records on both systems just in case. The comment above above the midwife practice in Spain is correct - the Spanish system is very medical and 'clinical' where the English system is more 'holistic' but we are going over to be with the wife's family as the number 1 priority.

I'll keep you informed from Spain.....

LondonDiva

jedeye wrote: »

Thanks for all your comments!! Some good, some bad and some indifferent!!! It's nearly time for us to go..... I haven't had time to write or contact the DoH or PCT so maybe we'll never know!!! I'll still try to draft something though.....

I wasn't looking for a hotel stay.......probably the cost of a flight or two would be something better than nothing. If you don't ask you don't get!!!

We have been seeing a Spanish doctor as well as our English NHS doctors so we have records on both systems just in case. The comment above above the midwife practice in Spain is correct - the Spanish system is very medical and 'clinical' where the English system is more 'holistic' but we are going over to be with the wife's family as the number 1 priority.

I'll keep you informed from Spain.....

You cannot go abroad to get treatment then claim the money back, without making a case for the treatment. The NHS will only agree to funding treatment that has been agreed before you leave.

elisasolohayuna

Hi there,

I am also Spanish and after the birth in the UK of my first child 3 years ago I know that I am ready to go to Spain to have my second baby. Please let me know how you got on and how you did the paperwork. I have all the info on how to contact the DH to get approval for funding as the Spanish health service will not pay for it.

I look forward to hearing your news.

Elisa

SpanishLass_2

Jedeye, Elisasolohayuna,

Can you please tell me how did you get one?

I am in the same situation, I have been living in England for 8 years and I am Spanish, I want to have my baby in Spain, with my family and friends as my husband is not english either. We are doing it privetly though as I have private health in Spain and will be getting all my pregnancy appointments there.

Whether I do not want to claim to cover any medical costs, I would like to know how all the paperwork is, if any and if I will have any issues in claiming my maternity benefits. And ofcourse if there is any help in covering the costs for flights then that would be great as they are costing my a fortune and will save lots of money in hospital in UK

Another question for everyone else, if I did get pregnant in Spain again, how could I get from there a MATb1 certificate as I would be still employed by UK company and paying my taxes in UK so would not be entitled to spanish maternity benefits. Would a spanish equivalent suffice to prensent with to my english employer?

Thanks

elisasolohayuna

Dear SpanishLass,

In the end I did not go to Spain to give birth as I had quite bad SPD during the pregnancy and decided to stay at home instead.

However, you can find all the information you need from the Department of Health website. They even have a telephone number you can ring for advice.
http:// www .nhs. uk /England/Healthcareabroad/Pages/Givingbirth. aspx
(I have added some spaces to the link as thi forum does not allow me to post them! Please remove them before accessing the site)

Although you say that you are giving birth privately in Spain I would recommend you do the paperwork in case of compliacations. Should you or your baby need emergency treatment, this is likely to take place in a state-funded hospital and they may ask you for the E112 form. This is in addition of you having your European Health Insurance Card, which is an absolute must! (I travelled to Spain shortly after giving birth and my baby became ill. He was diagnosed with a congenital heart condition and spent two weeks in intensive care. The first thing the hospital asked for was my EHI Card).

With regards to receiving your maternity benefits in Spain, I do not think it would be a problem as long as they are paid into an English bank account. As far as I know there are no residency conditions attached to the benefits as long as you qualify for them in the first place.

In terms of your MATB1 certificate, I should think the Spanish equivalent should be enough for your English employer.

You should, however, get in touch with the Consejeria de Trabajo y Asustos Sociales attached to the Spanish Consulate in London. They offer all kinds of advice to Spanish nationals on work-related issues. You can find their address and telephone number here:

http:// www .maec. es /subwebs/Consulados/Londres es/MenuPpal/Informacion%20y%20vinculos%20de%20interes/Direcciones%20y%20telefonos/Paginas/consejerias_direcciones. aspx
(I have added some spaces to the link as thi forum does not allow me to post them! Please remove them before accessing the site)

I do wish you well. If you have any more questions and you think I can help do get in touch through this forum.

Kind regards,

Elisa