If a withdrawal agreement were to be adopted, a transition period up to 31 December 2020 would ensure the same rights and obligations as currently effective legislation. If there is no withdrawal agreement, France and the UK will each apply their own national rules, and EU rules on coordination of social security systems will no longer apply between the two countries.

With a withdrawal agreement

In this case, your contribution periods in France will be taken into account to calculate your pension in the UK according to the provisions of the withdrawal agreement.

Without a withdrawal agreement

In this case, factoring the contribution periods in France into the calculation of your pension in the UK will be contingent on the measures which will be adopted by the British government. The French government is fully primed to ensure that these rights are subject to optimum protection, as part of safeguarding the rights of British citizens living in France.

If you return to the UK after 1 January 2021, factoring the contribution periods in France into the calculation of your pension in the UK will be contingent on the measures which will be adopted by the British government. The French government is fully primed to ensure that these rights are subject to optimum protection, as part of safeguarding the rights of British citizens living in France.

With a withdrawal agreement

Your health insurance coverage and the conditions under which you are insured will not change. The current EU rules on coordination of social security systems will continue to apply during the transition period (until 31 December 2020). For someone in your situation, these rules provide that – if you are receiving a pension from one Member State and reside in the territory of another Member State – your healthcare costs will be covered by the Member State that pays your pension. Therefore, your French healthcare costs will be paid by the United Kingdom. For this to happen, you must request an S1 form "Registering for healthcare cover" (the equivalent of the former E121 form) from your British pension fund. This document will allow you to register with the health insurance fund in your place of residence in France. Until 31 December 2020, you will continue to receive benefits under the same conditions as you do now.

Without a withdrawal agreement

Although you will still be considered as a British social security beneficiary, the healthcare costs for both you and your dependants will be covered under the same conditions as French beneficiaries for a period of two years from the entry into force of the Order on various measures relating to the United Kingdom leaving the European Union without a withdrawal agreement concluded on the basis of Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union as regards citizens' rights (Article 7). During this period, the two Member States must reach an agreement enabling them to continue to ensure effective financial coverage of their respective beneficiaries.