Thousands of British Ex-Pats worried about Health Care Costs and Prescription Charges in Spain make plans for the move to Portugal

Portugal's healthcare system is ranked the 9th best in Europe and 12th in the world.

Worries over private health care charges and increases in prescriptions in Spain are forcing thousands of British ex-pats to move to Portugal.

Having recently spoken to a group of ex-pats regarding health care and pension issues i discovered 70 percent of them were already in process of the move to Portugal. Some of the members were also aware that many of their friends were doing the same.

When asked exactly why this would force them to move, they all came back with the same replies, “We just cannot afford, on our UK pensions, to live here anymore”

Various members then went to explain more deeply, basically, on average they receive a total of 1100 euros a month state pension, some had more some had a bit less. A few of the lucky ones had private pensions to top it up.

The vast majority used the Spanish Health Care system, so treatment and prescriptions were mostly free, but this is about to change with the exact details not yet known.

Basically, Private Health Insurance will be required after December 2020, and it’s not cheap, typically for a retired couple, expect to pay over €250 a month, this amount varies widely of course and depends on pre-existing health conditions, etc.

For those people already struggling with their state pensions, it would be impossible to survive here in Spain.

Portugal, on the other hand, is cheaper however with many private health companies 20 percent cheaper than here in Spain. At the moment rentals and properties are cheaper but expect to change as demand skyrockets. Couple this with the tax incentives mentioned last week and its easy to see why there is a long line of Ex-Pats moving to Portugal.

A recent survey revealed that Portugal. With a small population of about 10 million people, Portugal’s healthcare system is ranked the 9th best in Europe and 12th in the world. The Portuguese, who are among the world’s healthiest people, have one of the highest life expectancies in the European Union.

Perhaps when bars, restaurants, and businesses start to lay off staff the Spanish Government will start to realise that the “Golden Goose” really has flown its nest.

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Written by

Tony Winterburn

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