Question – How do foreign students have their health care cards issued? They originally entered Italy on basis of family rejoining because they were minors, then they turned eighteen and their permits were converted into study visas. Do they need to apply to health cards as foreign university students do? Their families are still supporting them, can’t they apply to cards on basis of the fact that their parents are still taking care of their expenses?
Answer – We are talking about non-EU citizens that in the past took advantage of family rejoining. They at first we inserted in their parents’ residence papers, then once they turned eighteen they were issued their own permit to stay.
The rules for the enforcement of Immigration law expressively provide for that “permits are renewed on basis of real employment or study”.
In other words, a person that holds a permit issued on basis of family rejoining can work and he/she does not need to change permit.
Police headquarters’ interpretation
We have many times noticed that police headquarters usually have citizens that turn eighteen cancelled from parents’ papers. And this happens in spite of the fact that they keep on living with their parents and that parents still pay for their expenses. These citizens are treated as foreigners that come from abroad (on basis of flows decrees). This means that when papers expire they need to prove that thay do work. If they do not work they will be issued a temporary looking-for-a-job permit, which lasts six months. When this permit is over and no job is found, these citizens’ legal stay is over.
We meet the same problem when study visas are issued, when schooling is over these citizens are not anymore renewed papers.
We have already referred of an appeal to Veneto TAR Court. A “former” minor does not study nor work, he/she takes care of his/her brothers/sisters when parents are at work. He/she was refused papers.
TAR Court suspended the refusal but it has not sentenced yet.
The way police interpret law and rules is rather disputable and it may raise many other problem (such as the issuing of health care cards).
The juridical status of family rejoining beneficiaries
International conventions state that foreign workers have the right to family rejoining. They need to regularly work and they also need to respect all requisites provided for by national laws (income and lodging in case of sons/daughters). Sons/daughters are considered to be at families’ expenses until they start working and this happens even if they turn eighteen. We therefore do not understand different rules that do not even exist should be applied by police.
Health care card
When citizens that benefit from family rejoining turn eighteen and they still study, Asl treat them as they were foreign students coming from abroad. They need to follow specific proceedings: they need to prove that they have enough money, they need to pay for a health care insurance or a contribution to Asl.
When foreigners’ children turn eighteen and they study – even though they came to Italy on basis of family rejoining – they are asked to pay for an insurance to have health care granted. This expressively goes against the rule that establishes that regular migrants have the right to be enrolled to health care service (SSN).
This right leads to a very simple fact: if both parents work, they are already paying for SSN and we do not understand why their children should again pay for it if they are eighteen. If parents support them, no extra-contribution, we believe, should be paid for.