Having a baby is a life-changing experience, and pregnancy is a nerve-wracking and exciting time. For expats who want to have children or are already pregnant, the thought of having a child abroad can be unsettling. New problems and questions often arise during pregnancy. Parents-to-be should inform themselves in advance about the health system in the host country to avoid any surprises. The following blog summarizes the most important information that you should be aware of before or during pregnancy. A deeper understanding of obligations, insurances, and decisions helps reduce uncertainty and ensure a smooth pregnancy.
Insurance and hospital
For birth to go smoothly abroad, you should choose suitable health insurance before pregnancy. Depending on the policy wordings, most insurance companies have a waiting period for a maternity coverage for 12 months or even more. The choice of hospital and doctor is also an essential decision that must be made in advance. If you already have insurance, you can find out whether the insurer can recommend hospitals or doctors in the host country.
What if I am already pregnant?
If you have not yet taken out an insurance scheme and you wish to apply while already pregnant, this will be counted as an exclusion to your coverage. You may contact directly your broker-agent or insurer of your choice to give you more detailed advice on your situation. By taking an expatriate health insurance during your pregnancy, can cover the baby itself immediately at the delivery. So in case of need, your baby will immediately be covered.
Important documents for the baby
Preparing the documents for the desired citizenship and the baby’s passport is a lengthy process, which is why it should be started early and before the child is born. It is therefore important to decide in advance which citizenships the child should have and to know what the regulations will be in the host country. Inquire with the competent authority about the required documents for application of a passport and citizenship. In principle, relevant information about passports or dual citizenship can be obtained from the embassy.
Will my baby directly be insured?
If you are already covered, even without maternity and if the delivery is not covered by the policy, once born, your baby is immediately covered as you are. It is important to always inform your insurer that your baby is born.
If you have just a hospitalization contract, the baby will be covered only for in-patient as well. In case the baby will need some hospitalization care immediately after the delivery, the insured will be able to cover directly the new-born bills from the hospital by doing a direct payment.
If you have a full contract with out-patient coverage, your baby will be covered for everything as you are, and we will recommend you ask the hospital to do 2 separate invoices for you and your new-born. All pediatric first consultations, vaccination, etc. will indeed be covered by your child’s own out-patient policy.
The insurer will request you the birth certificate from your hospital, with the name of the mother, date of birth, and name of the baby on it. Once the required documentation has been obtained, your baby will then be added under your policy and you will be able to claim his first expenses if so.
Having a baby should be a magical event abroad. To avoid problems during pregnancy, you should exchange ideas with friends and family as well as with local hospitals, doctors, and insurance companies.
Planning your citizenship is also one of the central tasks of future parents. At this point, the embassy is one of the most important institutions for receiving information about applications, attachments, and documents.
If you have further inquiries regarding maternity coverage under your health expatriate insurance, you may contact us directly at infos@aexpat.com. We will gladly assist you in accordance with your current situation.
