GUIDELINE FOR INSURANCE COVERING FOREIGN RESEARCHERS AT THE GHENT UNIVERSITY

E.E.A. insured (*) and Switzerland insured

1. You are legally obliged to have a health insurance during your stay in Belgium ( for you and your family members staying in Belgium)!! You need to pay the premium yourself!
• the E.E.A. researcher and the researcher from Switzerland who has a health insurance in a country of the European Union, has to apply in his/her country of insurance for a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC);
• the holder of a EHIC has the right to take the medical care during his stay in Belgium, at the same conditions as provided by the Belgian legislation, but he/she can only get (partial) reimbursement for the medical care that is necessary during his/her stay, taking the nature of the medical care into account and the duration of the stay; attention: healthcare in itself may not be the aim of the visit;
• if obtaining a EHIC is impossible in any specific situation, then the researcher will have to approach a health fund (**) immediately upon his/her arrival in Belgium, in order to obtain insurance cover; the researcher will have to provide this health fund with a certificate that shows that his/her insurance cover abroad has ceased to be in effect;
• the EHIC is valid throughout any of the countries of the European Union (27 Member States), Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland;
• if you can’t obtain a EHIC and if you can’t get the health insurance directly with the health fund (**) in Belgium, you will need to subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH – fill in the application form to subscribe this insurance), which covers as well health (sickness and disability) as civil liability in private life and travel insurance. It is not possible to subscribe a separate health insurance, because the premium for the separate health insurance is the same as the premium for the combination insurance.
  
  
2. (only if you have an employment contract with the Ghent University or if you receive a (post-)doctoral grant from the Ghent University) As a health insurance normally does not cover most of the costs for hospitalization as a result of illness or accident, you can, if you have an employment contract with the Ghent University or if you receive a (post-)doctoral grant from the Ghent University, subscribe to a collective hospitalisation policy that the University has signed for the benefit of its members of personnel and their families. A hospitalisation insurance policy is an insurance that covers most of the costs for hospitalisation as a result of illness and accidents that remain unpaid after the intervention of your health insurance fund (mutual fund, in Dutch „ziekenfonds‟) within the framework of the national health service. Remark: you are not automatically subscribed to this collective hospitalization policy, but you can subscribe to it upon request and you need to be paid for separately. If you subscribe, you need to subscribe also for your members of family, if any, staying with you in Belgium. See also all the other conditions of the policy! (DEXIA VERZEKERINGEN - fill in the form to subscribe this insurance).
   
    
3. (only if you did not subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH)) You are not obliged, but we recommend you strongly to subscribe also the insurance for civil liability private life (ETHIAS, fill in the form (20KB) to subscribe this insurance). This insurance may be important in case of a bicycle accident, as a pedestrian, in the weekend, … You need to pay the premium yourself! Attention: if you subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH), you do not need to subscribe the apart insurance for civil liability private life (ETHIAS), because these risks are already included in the combination insurance. 
    
4. (only if you did not subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH)) You are not obliged, but we recommend you strongly to subscribe also the insurance for travel assistance (VANBREDA RISK & BENEFITS, fill in the application form to subscribe this insurance). This insurance is for example important when you need to be repatriated to your country of origin or if you need to return prematurely to your country of origin because a relative had died. You need to pay the premium yourself!Attention: if you subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH), you do not need to subscribe the apart insurance for travel assistance (VANBREDA RISK & BENEFITS), because these risks are already included in the combination insurance.
    
5. In case of an employment contract with the Ghent university, you will be insured automatically by the Ghent University for industrial accidents;
   
   
6. If you receive a (post-)doctoral grant from the Ghent University, you will be insured automatically for industrial accidents (here you can find more information)
    
7. If you have no employment contract with the Ghent University nor with another institution and you do not receive a (post-)doctoral grant from the Ghent University, you need to ask to your promotor / to the professor who accompanies you, to  subscribe the insurance "physical accidents during university activities" (ETHIAS - fill in the form (75KB) to subscribe this insurance). You do not need to pay the premium: the Ghent University pays it.
   
   
8. Through your employment agreement or other agreement with the Ghent University, you are automatically insured by the ghent University as regards your "civil liability during university activities" (which does not include, however, the journey to and from such university activities).
   
   
9. If you rent a property for you accommodation in Ghent, the landlord will normally oblige you to subscribe a so-called fire insurance to cover your responsibility concerning fire and related dangers as well as electrical and water damage (in some contracts the landlord subscribes himself this insurance, but you as the tenant has to pay your share in the costs; so, it is important to read well your rent/ lease contract). Moreover we recommend you to contact an insurance company to subscribe an insurance for your personal belongings (it is not possible to subscribe such a policy via the Ghent University; you need to approach yourself an insurance company).

Non-E.E.A. insured (except Switzerland)

1. You are legally obliged to have a health insurance during your stay in Belgium ( for you and your family members staying in Belgium)!! You will have to approach a health fund (**) directly, immediately upon arriving in Belgium;  this health fund will examine your specific situation; in some cases, an E111-/E128 form will be possible for non-E.E.A. nationals, too; in most cases, however, it will be necessary for you to obtain health insurance cover from the health fund for yourself and for the members of his/her family residing in Belgium:
• you need to pay the premium yourself!
• the health fund will normally not require any waiting period;
• to be able to register with the health fund as a researcher, the researcher must be able to present to the health fund a certificate of enrolment as a researcher at the Ghent University.
• as per January 1, 2009, according to the information available at the Legal Department of the Ghent University, the following rates are in force for any enrolment as a researcher: legal contribution 49.88 Euro per quarter + health fund membership contribution (mostly 5 Euro per month). For the correct amounts you have to contact the health fund!
• as soon as the researcher will be in a position to produce proof of his/her registration with the register of foreigners (can take quite some time) as well as of a stay of more than three months in Belgium, and has signed a statement of his/her income, he/she may request the health fund, in principle, to be registered as a “resident” (also referred to as “party entitled according to the national register”); the following rates are in force as per January 1, 2009 for a “ registration as a resident” according tot the information available at the Legal Department of the Ghent University (but: for the correct amounts and conditions you have to contact the health fund!):
  
  

• as soon as the researcher will be in a position to produce proof of his/her registration with the register of foreigners (can take quite some time) as well as of a stay of more than three months in Belgium, and has signed a statement of his/her income, he/she may request the health fund, in principle, to be registered as a “resident” (also referred to as “party entitled according to the national register”); the following rates are in force as per January 1, 2009 for a “ registration as a resident” according tot the information available at the Legal Department of the Ghent University (but: for the correct amounts and conditions you have to contact the health fund!): health funds will not charge, in principle, any extra rate for possible family members;
• if the health fund refuses (possibly on a temporary basis) to register any researcher, then this researcher you will need to subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH – fill in the application form to subscribe this insurance), which covers as well health (sickness and disability) as civil liability in private life and travel insurance; you need to pay the premium yourself! It is not possible to subscribe a separate health insurance, because the premium for the separate health insurance is the same as the premium for the combination insurance.
  
  

2. (only if you have an employment contract with the Ghent University or if you receive a (post-)doctoral grant from the Ghent University) As a health insurance normally does not cover most of the costs for hospitalization as a result of illness or accident, you can, if you have an employment contract with the Ghent University or if you receive a (post-)doctoral grant from the Ghent University, subscribe to a collective hospitalization policy that the University has signed for the benefit of its members of personnel and their families. A hospitalisation insurance policy is an insurance that covers most of the costs for hospitalisation as a result of illness and accidents that remain unpaid after the intervention of your health insurance fund (mutual fund, in Dutch „ziekenfonds‟) within the framework of the national health service. Remark: you are not automatically subscribed to this collective hospitalization policy, but you can subscribe to it upon request and you need to be paid for separately. If you subscribe, you need to subscribe also for your members of family, if any, staying with you in Belgium. See also all the other conditions of the policy! (DEXIA VERZEKERINGEN - fill in the form to subscribe this insurance).
   
   
   
3. (only if you did not subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH)) You are not obliged, but we recommend you strongly to subscribe also the insurance for civil liability private life (ETHIAS, fill in the form (20KB) to subscribe this insurance). This insurance may be important in case of a bicycle accident, as a pedestrian, in the weekend, … you need to pay the premium yourself! Attention: if you subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH), you do not need to subscribe the apart insurance for civil liability private life (ETHIAS), because these risks are already included in the combination insurance. 
    
4. (only if you did not subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH)) You are not obliged, but we recommend you strongly to subscribe also the insurance for travel assistance (VANBREDA RISK & BENEFITS, fill in the application form to subscribe this insurance). This insurance is for example important when you need to be repatriated to your country of origin or if you need to return prematurely to your country of origin because a relative had died. you need to pay the premium yourself!Attention: if you subscribe the combination insurance (MARSH), you do not need to subscribe the apart insurance for travel assistance (VANBREDA RISK & BENEFITS), because these risks are already included in the combination insurance.
    
5. In case of an employment contract with the Ghent University, you will be insured automatically by the Ghent University for industrial accidents;
   
6. If you receive a (post-)doctoral grant from the Ghent University, you will be insured automatically for industrial accidents (here you can find more information)
   
    
7. If you have no employment contract with the Ghent University nor with another institution and you do not receive a (post-)doctoral grant from the Ghent University, you need to subscribe the insurance "physical accidents during university activities" (DEXIA - fill in the form (75KB) to subscribe this insurance). You do not need to pay the premium: the Ghent University pays it.
   
   
8. 
   
Through your employment agreement or other agreement with the Ghent University, you are automatically insured by the ghent University as regards your "civil liability during university activities" (which does not include, however, the journey to and from such university activities).


9. If you rent a property for you accommodation in Ghent, the landlord will normally oblige you to subscribe a so-called fire insurance to cover your responsibility concerning fire and related dangers as well as electrical and water damage (in some contracts the landlord subscribes himself this insurance, but you as the tenant has to pay your share in the costs; so, it is important to read well your rent/ lease contract). Moreover we recommend you to contact an insurance company to subscribe an insurance for your personal belongings (it is not possible to subscribe such a policy via the Ghent University; you need to approach yourself an insurance company).
   

 (**) For purposes of information, you will find below a limited list of authorised health funds in Ghent, in alphabetical order:

• Bond Moyson: Vrijdagmarkt 10, 9000 Gent, tel: 09/265 55 11, fax: 09/265 59 99, e-mail: bond.moyson.gent@socmut.be, website: http://www.socmut.be/
• Christelijke Mutualiteit (CM): Peperstraat 6, 9000 Gent, tel: 09/224 77 11, fax: 09/223 19 45, e-mail: midden-vlaanderen@cm.be, website: http://www.CM.be
• Euromut: Franklin Rooseveltlaan 44, 9000 Gent, tel: 09/225 93 95, fax: 09/225 53 01, e-mail: info@euromut.be, website: http://www.euromut.be
• Liberale Mutualiteit: Brabantdam 109, 9000 Gent, tel: 09/223 19 76, fax: 09/224 11 74, e-mail: info@lmvlg.be, website: http://www.lmvlg.be
• Partena Onafhankelijk Ziekenfonds: Coupure Links 103, 9000 Gent, tel: 09/269 85 35, fax: 09/269 85 49, e-mail :
  Gent@partena-ziekenfonds.be, website: http://www.partena-ozv.be
• Securex: Verenigde Natieslaan 1, 9000 Gent, tel: 09/235 61 61, fax: 09/235 61 62, e-mail: gent.go-start@securex.be, website: http://www.securex.eu/be/portal/index.html     
• Vlaams Neutraal Ziekenfonds:  IJzerlaan 16, 9000 Gent, tel: 09/245 29 25, info@nvz.be, website: http://www.vnz.be/index2.htm