Hello,
As a PR, if I leave the country without giving away my PR (as I’m planning to come back in few years), could I still pay the NHI to keep having coverage when travelling to Japan?
I’m asking because I had a surgery here and I’ll have to come back from time to time to do checkups, and I want to be covered in case anything happens
Thanks!
3 comments
>could I still pay the NHI to keep having coverage when travelling to Japan?
No. If you’re planning to end residency in Japan for >1 year, you have to remove yourself from the resident register via filing your moving out notice at your municipality office. I.e you’d no longer have a juminhyo.
Just because you may not physically leave for a whole year as you intend to return to Japan for short trips, but returning for short trips does not make you a resident. You need to have the intention reinforced by actions of returning for >3 months to be a registered resident again.
>I’m asking because I had a surgery here and I’ll have to come back from time to time to do checkups, and I want to be covered in case anything happens
NHI is only for registered residents. You Can’t have your cake and eat it too.
Also to my understanding, if you were incorrectly maintaining your juminhyo, then because you won’t be declaring income to Japan, won’t your NHI premiums be put on a default higher rate?
Each time you come to Japan for a holiday/check up, I’d highly recommend you take out travel insurance with the country you’re going to be residing in.
As an alternative, maybe just pay any bill for the checkup?
Even without the regular coverage, it could be cheaper than what co-pay might be in the US. Eg, one of our daughters was back for a visit recently and found a clinic to have a few tests done, and just paid out of pocket. It was cheaper than what she’d have gotten in the US with her insurance, and also basically a walk-in, no appointment (also different than getting the same tests done in the US).
I’ll guess that your checkups are at the same place that did your surgery–so you’ll know, at least ask/price what a checkup would cost without insurance. They could easily be understanding or your situation.
Depending on what surgery you had, could you not have check ups in your new country? Just ask the doctor here for the medical notes (get them translated) and then take them to a local hospital in the new place.