What I've been up to, part 2: adventures in registration

(In which our heroine fails to pull one over on the Gardaí)

So, it's that time of year again, when I need to register with the Irish government as a legal alien. Last year, the process was fairly painless-- just a lot of waiting in line. I expected this year to be similar.

The only worry I've had about the whole thing is that one of the requirements for registration is health insurance that covers you in Ireland. Well, I'm an American in her mid-twenties, too old to be on her parents insurance, without a job that would provide it, and poor. Of course I don't have any health insurance! What I do have is my old insurance card-- expired, but nothing on the card indicates this. And last year, it worked just fine, and I was able to register.*

Well, this year, I once again gathered my registration materials (plus a book to read) and headed to the Garda National Immigration Bureau office at the buttcrack of dawn. Waited in line for two-and-a-half hours, alternately reading and dozing. Finally, when my number was called, I handed the stack of papers to the Garda. He looked at them all, and then picked up the insurance card. He stared at it so long I began to get worried, turning it over and over, and finally said "There's nothing on here that indicates that you're covered in Ireland."

Crap. I'm not, of course. I'm not even covered in the 'States. So it looks like my clever ruse didn't work this year. Disheartened, I went home and looked up insurance policies online. I can get a basic policy for €40 a month, which isn't too bad, so I bought that online on Saturday (after depositing my stipend check). Now, I just need to wait until the card comes in the mail, and I'll be able to go back and register-- with real health insurance this time. If money gets too tight later on, I can always cancel it, and then buy a policy again when registration time rolls around next year.





*NB: I know why insurance is required-- Ireland has socialized medicine, with great medical services for anyone who needs them. In return, however, EU citizens pay taxes toward this service. Understandably, they don't want people who don't pay EU taxes to take advantage of the medical care they haven't paid for. I am entirely sympathetic to this. However, I can count the number of times I've been sick enough to need a doctor on one hand, if we discount high school sports injuries. I'm a pretty healthy, resilient person, so I have no intention of ever needing to use the hospital services here.