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Let's suppose that an Italian lives in Brussels but works in Lille (France).

I know that they can work and live in any other EU country with little restrictions, but how does that apply to a person who works and lives in two EU third countries?

When it comes to unemployment benefits, which is the person going to take when they lose their job, the one according to French law or the one according to Belgian law? Are unemployment benefits related to the place of residence or work?

phoog
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abdul
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  • I replaced "chômage" with "unemployment benefits." I think this phrase should be understood by most readers. I hope you don't mind, but if you do you can use the "edit" link to make further changes or to restore the original version. – phoog Dec 23 '19 at 14:18
  • No issues, I wrote chômage because I'm accustomed to read and write in French. No problem for that – abdul Dec 23 '19 at 14:20

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Unemployment is an insurance for which you make contributions to (mostly based on your salary), thus payments from that insurance will be paid out from the (mostly national) organisation.

Your income tax is paid where you earn your income.

For cross borders workers (working in one country but living in another) things become complicated in the area of social services such as health insurance.

Here again you pay an organization that is often (but not always) based in one country.

Often there are organizations that help these cross border workers in such questions as choosing a health sevice based in France (where you work), but allows you to go to a doctor in Belgium (where you live).

Lille, being a border town, will no doubt have one.

Also asking your employer would probably result in some good tip since, for them, it is possibly an everyday affair.

Mark Johnson
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  • Thanks for the answer. But how can health insurance be an issue since every EU citizen is granted health coverage anywhere in Europe? – abdul Dec 23 '19 at 14:02
  • @abdul You are not 'granted' health insurance. Having one is mandatory. You are basically a member of a specific health insurance company. So you must make sure that this company offers unrestricted coverage in both countries. – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 14:08
  • I don't have one here in Italy. I mean, I depend upon a national health insurance system (if I can call it this way), basically the states takes care of my health expenses if I ever have any health issue. I guess it's samewise anywhere in Europe for every resident. – abdul Dec 23 '19 at 14:10
  • @abdul No its not so in every country. Belgium and Germany have individual companies where you can choose which one you want to belong to. Italy, UK and it seems France have a National health service. – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 14:20
  • @abdul it's not the same everywhere in Europe. I don't know about Belgium or France, but in the Netherlands, if I understand correctly, employers are required to insure their employees. People without employers must buy insurance. – phoog Dec 23 '19 at 14:20
  • Well I thought otherwise because here I have a "Tessera sanitaria" which has both Italian and European flags, which I assumed meaning validity in every EU country. – abdul Dec 23 '19 at 14:22
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    @abdul You are covered when traveling in another EU Country, but more in the since of an emergency service. For a yearly checkup you may not be covered (depends on the conditions). – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 14:30
  • @phoog The Netherlands also have private companies. I assume there that when you are already a member, you just report that to your employer and thexy transfer the monthy fee to the company (that howbit is done in Germany). The employer must make sure an arrangement exists. There are also cross border arrangements between NL and Germany. See: https://www.krankenkassenvergleich.com/krankenversicherung-niederlande/ – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 14:34
  • @MarkJohnson yes, I didn't mean to imply that there aren't private companies, just that the employer pays for their employees' health coverage. – phoog Dec 23 '19 at 14:42
  • @abdul Italian citizens, living long term outside of Italy must also register in the AIRE system to avoid tax payments on foreign earnings (among others thing for Nationl health). See: https://expatriates.stackexchange.com/a/19599/17166 – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 14:43
  • @phoog The link I gave says that the Employee must pay the sum to the health insurance company themselves. In Germany the Employer pays it directly to the company. – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 14:48
  • I'm not talking about the mechanics of how the money gets from the employer to the insurer. I'm talking about who is responsible for the costs: "Zudem beteiligt sich der Arbeitgeber noch mit einem einkommensabhängigen Betrag an den Kosten." – phoog Dec 23 '19 at 15:57
  • @phoog The employer contributes (i.e. pays part of) to the payment, whereas required to insure their employees implies they are paying in full which is not the case. – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 16:09
  • @MarkJohnson perhaps, but we routinely use that phrase in the US despite the fact that employees pay a portion of the cost. – phoog Dec 23 '19 at 20:31
  • @phoog But this is a European topic and your mistranslating the German text, giving it a completely different meaning. beteiligt means contributes in this context. Your quote translates as: The employer also contributes to the costs with an income-related amount. (Google Translate) – Mark Johnson Dec 23 '19 at 21:48
  • @Mark Johnson well with regards to AIRE, I don't know whether it will create issues for me in terms of taxes, since I currently do not work nor am I enjoying unemployment benefits. – abdul Dec 23 '19 at 22:17
  • I mean, currently I'm not paying taxes because I have no incomes. – abdul Dec 23 '19 at 22:20