A Look at Social Security and Public Health Care in Cyprus

If you are preparing your self to move abroad to live and work overseas in Cyprus you many be wondering if Cyprus has a social security system and public health care in place and if expatriates are eligible for the system. Cyprus does indeed have a social security system that offers low or no cost public health care services and treatment for all that have contributed to the system. If you will be working for a Cypriot company while living in Cyprus then you will have contributions to the social security system automatically taken out of your pay. This means that if you will be working legally in Cyprus then you will be eligible for the social security system in Cyprus and therefore you will be entitled to the public health care system's services and treatments. Retirees that are European Union nationals are also eligible for the Cyprus social security system.

If you are working in Cyprus then the social insurance system is compulsory for you. The advantage for you is that your contributions entitle you to all that it provides such as pensions and other benefits. Your contributions are not the only things that fund the social insurance system. Contributions from employers and the state also fund the social insurance system.

Social insurance system contributions add up to 16.6 percent of your earnings. This percentage is shared though between you, your employer and the state. Both you and your employer contribute 6.3 percent of your gross salary and the state contributes the remaining 4 percent on your behalf. If you happen to be self-employed in Cyprus then you will need to pay a total of 11.6 percent of your income and the state will still contribute its normal 4 percent for you.

As long as you are contributing to Cypriot social security then you and your family are all eligible for free or low cost medical and dental treatment. If you have made social security contributions in another European Union country for two full years before you came to Cyprus then you are also entitled to coverage for a limited time period. And if you are a European Union pensioner then you are entitled to receive free treatment and services.

Benefits that you can expect to enjoy are general and specialist care, hospital benefits, and lab services. You also get discounted prescriptions and other medications. Basic dental care and maternity care are also part of the benefits. However be warned that there will be waiting lists and not very many choices in the pubic health sector. For this reason, many people have private insurance as well.

If you qualify for social insurance benefits you will have to get a health card in order to be able to receive services. There are two kinds of cards, a medical card A and a medical card B. Medical card A offers free healthcare based on your income and medical card B offers half price health care based on your income. It takes around a month to get your health card and it will be valid for a period of two years. You can renew it before it expires.