Moving to the Netherlands: non-EU pregnant spouse: good idea?

1POSTS

8 years ago

Hi everyone,
my wife and I are considering living in the Netherlands. We currently live in the U.S. She is American, I have dual citizenship (US/Slovakia). I'm wondering if it's too risky considering her pregnancy - she will be in her second trimester during our move (August). My understanding is that she will need a residence permit (family member of an EU citizen) to live in NL before applying for the health insurance. This can take up to 6 months (regarding ind.nl). So... the question is, how do you deal with health insurance in the meantime? Especially in terms of maternity care? Are there any other options?

My wife's family is from the Netherlands, but she is not able to become a Dutch national (because of her mom's naturalization in the U.S.).

I work for a company based in the U.S. but considering a self-employment registration at the Chamber of Commerce. I'm not looking for a full-time employment in NL, would like to work on a freelance basis. Not sure if this could complicate things even more.

Thanks for any suggestions!
Juraj

See also

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Cynic UK/Netherlands Expert

8120POSTS

8 years ago

Hi and welcome to the Forum.

At the top of the page is a link tour Handy Tools section; if you select that, you'll get access to our expat guides. These contain information that may help you plan your journey.

As an EU citizen, you have the right to live and work anywhere in the EU. I think you won't have any issues getting a visa for your wife and should be able to travel together; the IND website contains the relevant information; this link will take you there.

Once you arrive, you need to register with the Town Hall (Gemeente) within 5 days of arriving, when you register, you will get your BSN number, which will allow you to open a Dutch bank account, register with your doctor/get medical insurance and other stuff like pay your taxes, register a car - it's kind of like the US Social Security number.

Health Insurance is mandatory in Holland and you have 4 months before they start chasing you about it (and fining you for not having it!). However, in your case, your wife will probably need help from day 1; this link will take you to the Dutch ZorgWijzer website where you can compare prices. Maternity cover is included in the basic insurance package; they have to accept you and you can't be excluded for pre-existing conditions (like being pregnant).

Once you've read our Expat guides and checked out any links provided; if you have any further questions, please come back to us.

Hope this helps.

Cynic
Expat Team

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