The National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015 have been amended by The National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) (Amendment) Regulations 2017.
The 2015 Regulations implemented a system of payments for some services provided to individuals not ordinarily resident in the UK.
The 2017 Regulations make a number of changes, including the following:
- overseas visitors will be charged for services provided by non-NHS providers as well as NHS-funded services; and
- based on an estimate of the full charge of a service, some of the charge will be required as security before the service is provided to the individual, except in certain circumstances.
The changes have been made so that no income is lost for the NHS in relation to migrants and visitors to the UK who may be required to fund their own medical costs whilst in the UK. If an individual is not ordinarily resident then they may be required to pay for their medical treatment, subject to some exceptions.
When will they come into effect?
Some of the changes, including the provision for advance payments and refunds, will come into effect on 23 October 2017. The changes for all other purposes will come into effect on 21 August 2017.
