Compulsory Health Insurance

Dear MM,

Welcome to the Colombia forums of expat.com ....

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Yes, it was widely reported by Expats living in Colombia in recent years that they had to buy into the EPS government-mandated insurance program, anecdotally at a cost of about $30 US per month (for an individual).  Many Expats have felt the need to supplement the program with additional private insurance.

Of course, the EPS rates could go up -- if the information in your post is correct, they may have already risen -- as the Colombian government is prone to change the tax law and other laws at any time.  And then change the same laws again next year.  It can get confusing:  the tax law or Reforma Tributaría of 2016 is still being massaged by the bureaucrats .. and, as you may have noticed, it is now mid-2018.

Ecuador has been attempting to implement a new law that supposedly will peg a person's mandatory-insurance rate to his/her level of personal income.  Colombia is probably watching for the results of that effort.

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If you move here and stay here, you'll have to get a visa and cédula .. buy insurance .. pay value-added tax of 19 percent on many things .. possibly have to file a tax return based on your worldwide income whether you believe you owe taxes to Colombia or not (depending on your accountant's understanding of the law) .. and in some years may be subject to taxes on your worldwide assets even if none of them is in Colombia.

Based on your concerns and South American governments' needs to obtain more and more income from its residents, Colombia does not appear to be a good fit for you.

cccmedia in Depto. de Nariño, Colombia

Hi thanks for your answer...I'm just a little confused because I can see that I'm writing in the Forum of Ecuador but you speaks about Colombia? I'm in  the wrong place?
Thanks a lot

MM74 wrote:

Hi thanks for your answer...I'm just a little confused because I can see that I'm writing in the Forum of Ecuador but you speaks about Colombia? I'm in  the wrong place?
Thanks a lot

Cccmedia moves around a lot, not always sure where he is, but you can believe what he tells you about how the governments of Colombia and Ecuador almost work concerning said topics.  The last heard about health insurance in Ecuador was that it is mandatory, could be based on a percentage of your declared income for visa purposes, but little has been reported concerning implementation of said changes.

From previous post...
Ecuador has been attempting to implement a new law that supposedly will peg a person's mandatory-insurance rate to his/her level of personal income.  Colombia is probably watching for the results of that effort....

cccmedia in Depto. de Nariño, Colombia
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I am active on both forums.  The information about Ecuador and Colombia health insurance in my prior post is correct, although I realize, MM, that you had been inquiring about Ecuador in particular.

I've been staying in a city on the Ecuador-Colombia border since last October.

cccmedia in the Ecuador-Colombia border town of Ipiales, Colombia

If you do not need/want insurance for any purpose other than to satisfy visa requirements, it can be had for $30/month or less (high deductible, limited access).  I know because my daughter and I have insurance at around $300/year.

Edit: Also, though compulsory, I've heard there may be a constitutional challenge to the law, but haven't heard about details/progress.

Would you be willing to share the name of the company?  Thanks.

If I can remember...

It was a BMI policy through AMB Seguros (on the web at aseguradeuna (dot) com).  Gave the rep that contacted me some basic info and explained I needed the cheapest policy that satisfied gov't requirements  and he came back with a quote of ~30/month for the both of us. 

However, I will say that it was a pain in the ass doing all the paperwork via the post and communicating via whatsapp - apparently here they normally do this sort of thing in person, but since the company is in Quito and I'm not, that wasn't going to happen.  If you can find a local insurance agent who can sell a policy, I'd imagine it would be much easier (except for the Spanish medical terms on the forms, which were a challenge).

I have also been asking the same questions regarding clarification on what EXACTLY is an when are the compulsory insurance requirements. If we are only visiting for two months, what are the requirements ???

Get some traveler's insurance that covers you....probably the cheapest way to go...international type!

Cindym37 wrote:

Get some traveler's insurance that covers you....probably the cheapest way to go...international type!

Seconded.  We used Allianz when we first got here and they were pretty cheap.

First the requirement for compulsory insurance if you are a visitor is on hold till July 22nd. It's likely it will disappear.
Compulsory Health insurance for residents was supposed to be in force for start of this year. Great big fuss and then it faded away. It was supposed to be a percentage of your income / pension .I think it got a lot of negative publicity and I don't think they could get a definite hook up into the computers contains the initial visa money declarations. So its faded into the background. One thing you learn about here is rules may be rules but only today

I also have Allianz.  $125 per year. Allianz manages its corporatefinances pretty well, which is an important point.

I  wasn't asked for proof of insurance at immigration when I came in March. But at that price, I don't see a reason not to buy it.

lebowski888 wrote:

I also have Allianz.  $125 per year.

.... at that price, I don't see a reason not to buy it.

The great Lebowski and Antialiased are onto something.

I just got quotes from Allianz at allianztravelinsurance.com .. and was impressed by the wide coverage available at lower pricing than I had seen from other insurers before.

cccmedia near the Colombia-Ecuador border

As said before health insurance for visitors is not needed. Resident insurance would have to come from an approved supplier from the government list. So there is your gotcha .

Health insurance for a tourist stamp or tourist extension is not required in order to enter the country and stay beyond 90 days.

As to whether insurance will be needed, that cannot be accurately predicted for any individual traveler.

  -- cccmedia

If you live in Colombia why do you keep answering questions about Ecuador? You may live on the border but that is not Ecuador and not where policy is being decided
The Cuenca IESS office has been the spearoint on this along with Quito