Provision of Health Services to Persons Not Ordinarily Resident Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015

In these Regulations—

• “authorised child” means a child who—

  1. a

     has been granted leave to enter the United Kingdom with a parent or legal guardian for the purpose of the parent or legal guardian receiving a course of treatment in respect of which no charge may be made or recovered under regulation 11; or

  2. b

     is a child of an authorised companion;

• “authorised companion” means a person who has been granted leave to enter the United Kingdom to accompany a person who is obtaining a course of treatment in respect of which no charge may be made or recovered under regulation 11;

  1. a

     F13obtaining a course of treatment in respect of which no charge may be made or recovered under regulation 11;F14or

  2. b

     ordinarily resident in Ukraine and is obtaining a course of treatment;

• “Board” means the Regional Health and Social Care Board established under section 7 of the Health and Social Care (Reform) Act (Northern Ireland) 2009 M3;

• “child” means a person who is—

  1. a

     under the age of sixteen; or

  2. b

     a qualifying young person within the meaning of section 138 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992 M4 or section 142 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 M5 (“Child” and “qualifying young person”;

• “Continental Shelf” except in reference to a designated area of the Continental Shelf, means the sea bed and subsoil of the submarine area (other than in the Baltic or Mediterranean Seas, including the Adriatic and Aegean, or the Black Sea), adjacent to the coasts, lying north of the latitude of 25 degrees north and between the longitude of 30 degrees west and 35 degrees east, of the territory (including islands) of—

  1. a

     any country situated on the Continent of Europe; or

  2. b

     the Republic of Ireland;

where the submarine area is outside the seaward limits of the territorial limits of those countries and the Republic of Ireland and is an area with respect to which the exercise by any of them of sovereign rights in accordance with international law is recognised by the Government of the United Kingdom;

• “core hours” means the period beginning at 8am and ending at 6.30pm on any day from, and including, Monday to Friday except a public holiday and a local holiday agreed with the Board;

• “designated area of the Continental Shelf” means any area which is for the time being designated by an Order in Council under section 1(7) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964 M6 as an area within which the rights of the United Kingdom with respect to the sea bed and subsoil and their natural resources may be exercised;

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• “general health services” means Part VI services being primary medical services, general dental services, general ophthalmic services or pharmaceutical services, provided under the Order;

• “GMS Contracts Regulations” means the Health and Personal Social Services (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2004 M7;

• “health professional” means a person other than a social worker who is a member of a profession regulated by a body mentioned in section 25(3) of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002 M8, (the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care;

• “HSC trust” means a Health and Social Care trust established under Article 10 of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 M9;

• “the Order” means the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972”;

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• “Personal Dental Services” means dental services of a kind that may be provided by a general dental practitioner in accordance with Part VI of the Order;

• “Primary Medical Services” means services of a kind that may be provided by a general medical practitioner in accordance with arrangements under Article 57A of the Order;

• “reciprocal agreement” means arrangements mutually agreed between the Government of the United Kingdom and the Government of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom for the provision of health care;

• “refugee” means a person who is a refugee within the meaning of Article 1 of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees 1951 M10 and Article 1 of the Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees 1967 M11 and any other person taking refuge in the territory of a member State with leave of the Government of that State;

• “regulation (EC) 883/2004” means Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29th April 2004 on the coordination of social security systems M12

• “services forming part of health services” means accommodation, services and other facilities provided under Article 5 of the Order (the Department's duty to provide accommodation and medical services, etc) and includes accommodation, services and other facilities provided by a HSC trust, but does not include any accommodation, service or facility made available or provided under—

  1. a

     Article 31 of the Order (accommodation and services for private patients);

  2. b

     Article 3(2) of the Health and Medicines (Northern Ireland) Order 1988 M13 (powers to make more income available for improving health services); or

  3. c

     paragraph 14 of Schedule 3 to the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 M14 (accommodation and services for private patients of HSC trusts);

• “ship or vessel” includes hovercraft;

• “treatment the need for which arose during the visit” means—

  1. a

     diagnosis of symptoms or signs occurring for the first time after the visitor's arrival in the United Kingdom; or

  2. b

     treatment which, in the opinion of a medical practitioner or dental practitioner employed by, or under contract with, a Board or a HSC trust, is required promptly for a condition which—

     1. i

        arose after the visitor's arrival in the United Kingdom;

     2. ii

        became acutely exacerbated after the visitor's arrival; or

     3. iii

        but for the treatment would be likely to become acutely exacerbated after the visitor's arrival;

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• “visitor” means a person not ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland.

In calculating a period of residence in Northern Ireland for the purposes of these Regulations, any interruption by reason of temporary absence of not more than 182 days shall be disregarded. The temporary absence cannot include an absence where the visitor was not lawfully entitled to enter or remain in the United Kingdom.

The services listed in paragraph (1)(a) – (h) are not exempt from charge if it appears that the visitor has travelled to Northern Ireland specifically to receive those services.

No charge may be made or recovered in respect of any services forming part of health services provided to a visitor who has resided lawfully in the United Kingdom for a period of not less than twelve months immediately preceding the time when such services are provided.

Paragraph (1) does not apply to a person who has leave to enter the United Kingdom for the purpose of undergoing private medical treatment, or a person in relation to whom a determination under regulation 11 has been made.

Where a person meets the residence qualification in paragraph (1) on a date during a course of treatment for which charges could have been made prior to that date, no charge may be made in respect of services subsequently received.

In this regulation “the competent authorities” means the competent authorities of the United Kingdom for the purposes of the Convention, and “the Convention” means the Council of Europe Convention on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings M20.

Where a visitor who has been granted leave to enter the United Kingdom for a course of treatment applies (or someone on his behalf applies) for exemption from charges for services forming part of health services, and the Department determines exceptional humanitarian reasons justify it, then no charge may be made or recovered in respect of that visitor and that course of treatment.

No charge may be made or recovered in respect of any services forming part of health services provided to a visitor who is a person to whom Article IX(5) of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Status of Forces Agreement M22 applies.

This regulation applies where the services in question cannot readily be provided by the medical services of the armed forces of the visitor's own country, or those of the United Kingdom.

A visitor to whom paragraph (2) applies is to be treated for the purposes of these Regulations as if, at the time the services forming part of health services were provided, the visitor was a visitor in respect of whom no charge may be made or recovered for those services forming part of health services.

In this regulation, the “relevant period” means the period from and including 24th February 2022 until the coming into operation of these Regulations.

No charge may be made or recovered in respect of any services forming part of health services consisting of treatment the need for which arose during the visit, provided to a visitor who is a member of the family of another visitor and is lawfully present on a permanent basis with that other visitor whilst that other visitor is residing in or visiting the United Kingdom, if that other visitor is exempt from charges under regulation 8 (reciprocal agreements), or regulation 21(1) (a) or (b) (treatment the need for which arose during the visit only).

None of the provisions in this regulation affect any entitlement which any member of the family of a visitor may have to the provision of any services forming part of health services by virtue of an enforceable EU right or any other exemption which they may be entitled to in their own right.

Where general health services are provided to a visitor under this regulation no charge may be made or recovered in respect of those services, except to the extent that charges would be payable by a person ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland.