Hi guys,

I am leaving the country in January end 2012. I have my outstanding swisscare insurance bill from November till January 2012. It is almost, December end, I haven't payed the insurance bill yet. Should i have to pay the insurance bill and cancel the contract before i leave the country in January end 2012? What happens if i don't pay the bill, will i not be allowed to leave the country or no exit visa ?

What happens if you become ill or have an accident in the meantime?

It does happen. I suppose then you can back pay- but ...

@Odile, I mean, i am still insured as long as i can pay the bills for which deadline is january end 2012. Hence if there is an accident, i can pay the bill and then get the treatment. I just don't want to pay for 3 months when i am leaving in a month. Should i consult some health insurance advisor or something, how can i get concrete answer for this question?

Question is, do you want to leave the country with debts? They will get you if you come back

Or do you want to leave on a clean slate? All your contracts will be calculated till the date of leaving, you wont pay for insurance when you are not in the country. Just go to the town hall and get a confirmation that you are leaving to go abroad and send it to any companies that you need to terminate the contract and they will send you a bill up to that date

Huh? Do you really need to ask this question? You need to pay the bill. It's your responsibility to pay until you leave.

As Tony says, you will be billed up until the month you leave. Not doing so is just wrong. I'm surprised anyone has to ask this question.

And this is why foreigners are sometimes not well liked...

Actually to cancel your health insurance (and to stop getting further charges) you need to go and get a certificate from your geminde which you then send to the health insurance. Without it they will not cancel your insurance.

sorry if I don't understand your logic here. What do you mean, you don't want to pay for 3 months when you are leaving in 1. You are talking about Nov - January, for which period of time you will be here and insured, right?

YOU PAY THE BILL!

And that's the reason we have to pay 3 months rents in advance, and get a lot of rejections for renting and other things.

As i just said a few posts above

You never know when you might return and of course these things can often come back much later to haunt you- and boy you will pay the consequences

Morally, of course you must pay - how would you feel if you provided a service to me and I cleared off ??

Guys! just relax, Do you think, i don't want to come to this beautiful country again, i was just curious to know to what extent the consequences can be. I didn't say that i am not going to pay the bill, infact i already had contacted my insurer to get the bill. lol why so serious?

If you ever want to come back and apply for a job, a flat, a loan, a lease- whatever- you will always have to get a certificate from the Office des Poursuites (the official debts office) - and you debt will be lodged there. Until it is cleared, you won't be able to do anything in CH - and as you will not be able to cancel your health insurance without paying first (as well as Gemeinde/commune certificate) - your debt could be enormous.

Perhaps people are giving serious replies, because it is a very serious question, sorry.

If you dont want a serious reply, i would tell you to lease a mercedes, get a credit card and a couple of girls from Langstrasse and drive home to show off your new found fortune.

But beware, if you come back into switzerland they may get you

Haha..lol, mercedes in langstrasse, sounds like a good option . I mean, i heard that the swiss are usually very passive in certain criminal offences, just wanted to know to what extent they would go. Yeah, i guess my tone in the first question was a bit serious. Cheers guys, merry chirstmas and happy new year, i will still keep the mercedes option in mind

I have friends who were responsible for finding someone from England a job over here. When he left without paying some bills (rent, gas, etc) they were chased for the outstanding amounts and had to pay in his place.
How do you think your ex-employer is going to react if they're pursued in a similar manner?

And people wonder why health insurance is so expensive....

Not necessarily. You have to pay what you owe but don't accept crap.

Schengen, actually.

Compared to where, exactly?

Tom