How Can You Stay Covered During the CFE Waiting Periods?
When the CFE waiting periods apply (none, 3, 6 or 12 months) and how to stay covered with first-euro insurance until the CFE starts paying.
Reviewed by a licensed advisor
There is no CFE waiting period if you apply within 3 months of becoming eligible, usually within 3 months of settling abroad. Apply later and the CFE pays nothing for 3 months if you are under 45, 6 months if you are 45 or over, and 12 months if you rejoin after a cancellation not due to a return to France. To stay covered meanwhile, the usual answer is a first-euro policy that switches to a CFE top-up when the CFE starts paying.
Alea, the official CFE representative for Hong Kong, China and Singapore, as listed on cfe.fr, explains everything.
What is a waiting period?
A waiting period (délai de carence) is a set time after your cover starts during which your healthcare costs are not paid. It protects the principle of insurance: covering unforeseen risk, not planned expenses. At the CFE, you pay contributions during the waiting period but get no reimbursement.
For the bigger picture, read our guide to health insurance in Hong Kong for French expats.
Waiting periods and the CFE
Since the 2019 reform (in force on 1 July 2019), the rules are in article R762-8 of the Code de la sécurité sociale. They depend on when you apply and on your age.
Your situation | CFE waiting period | What to do |
|---|---|---|
You apply before leaving France or within 3 months of becoming eligible | None | Apply as early as you can |
You apply later, under 45 | 3 months: benefits from the first day of the 4th month after membership | Take private cover for the gap |
You apply later, 45 or over | 6 months: from the first day of the 7th month | Same, for a longer gap |
You rejoin after a cancellation not due to a return to France | 12 months: from the first day of the 13th month | Think twice before cancelling |
You return to France for good | None: the CFE keeps your rights for up to 3 months | Tell the CFE; give its end-of-rights certificate to your health insurance fund |
Source: Code de la sécurité sociale art. R762-8; CFE membership guide, guarantees (arrêté of 17 December 2025) and country list, 2026. Read 4 Nov 2026.
When does the 3-month window start?
From the day you live abroad and are no longer covered by French social security. After a change of status, such as the end of a secondment, ask the CFE in writing which date it uses.
Under 44 or under 45?
Some CFE pages say "under 44", but the legal text sets 6 months from age 45: under 45, you wait 3 months. Pages giving over-45s 3 months are out of line with the rule.
Can the CFE waiting periods be lifted?
No. The only route is to apply within the 3-month window. The CFE guide opens no rights during the wait and lists no exception for emergencies, so emergency care is not reimbursed either. If you think one was applied by mistake, write to the CFE with your dates.
How Can You Get Health Coverage During the CFE Waiting Period?
There are insurance plans known as "CFE top-ups". They work like complementary health insurance in France and cover what the CFE leaves unpaid, but only once the CFE starts paying. Take out both at once and you are only covered after the CFE waiting period.
For this reason, some insurers enrol you in their first-euro product during the waiting period, then switch you to their CFE top-up once it ends. This avoids a gap in cover and the possible exclusion of a condition that appears meanwhile. Compare both in our first-euro or top-up guide. Before you sign, ask:
Is the switch made without a new medical questionnaire?
Does a condition that appears before the switch stay covered?
For short-term or travel cover: does it insure residents abroad, beyond emergencies?
What this means in Hong Kong, Singapore, China and Thailand
Once the wait is over, the CFE pays 19% of a hospital bill in Hong Kong and Singapore (zone 5), 31% in China (zone 4) and 42% in Thailand (zone 3). In Thailand, its hospital direct billing (70%) is only available once your rights are open.
Which types of care are subject to a waiting period?
The CFE applies one waiting period to all care. Private top-ups and first-euro contracts usually target specific benefits:
Dental
Optical
Orthodontics
Maternity
Fertility treatment
Planned treatment
Can Waiting Periods for CFE Top-Ups and First-Euro Plans Be Lifted?
Often, yes. If you previously had cover of a higher or equivalent level, many insurers lift them on a certificate from your previous insurer. Ask how recent it must be.
The maternity exception
Maternity is the one waiting period you cannot work around. Private contracts usually set their longest wait for maternity. At the CFE, if you join more than 3 months after leaving France, the pregnancy must begin after your membership date. Plan as far ahead as possible, given the cost of private maternity care abroad.
How Alea can help
As the official CFE representative for Hong Kong, China and Singapore, Alea helps you join the CFE on time and compares top-ups and first-euro formulas, including waiting-period cover, from more than 50 insurers. Talk to an advisor.
How long is the CFE waiting period?
None if you apply within 3 months of becoming eligible, usually within 3 months of settling abroad. If you apply later, the CFE pays nothing for 3 months if you are under 45 and for 6 months if you are 45 or over. If you rejoin after cancelling for a reason other than a return to France, the wait is 12 months. The rule is article R762-8 of the Code de la sécurité sociale.
How can I secure health insurance while waiting for my CFE coverage to activate?
Use a first-euro policy. A CFE top-up only pays once the CFE does, so it cannot protect you during the waiting period. Some insurers enrol you in their first-euro product first, then switch you to their CFE top-up once your CFE rights open, which avoids a gap in cover. Ask whether the switch needs a new medical questionnaire and whether a condition that appears in the meantime stays covered.
Do private insurers apply their own waiting periods?
Yes. Both first-euro and CFE top-up contracts often apply waiting periods to predictable care such as dental, optical, orthodontics and maternity. Many insurers lift them if you prove prior cover of an equivalent or higher level with a certificate from your previous insurer. Maternity waiting periods are usually the longest and the hardest to avoid, so check them before you plan a pregnancy.
Is emergency care covered during the CFE waiting period?
No. The CFE guide says you pay your contributions during the waiting period but have no right to any reimbursement, and it lists no exception for emergencies. A hospital stay or an emergency visit during those months is at your own cost unless you hold private cover, such as a first-euro policy taken out for the gap.
Is there a waiting period if I cancel the CFE and rejoin later?
Yes. If you rejoin after a cancellation that was not due to a return to France, benefits start only on the first day of the 13th month after your new membership date, about 12 months later. The CFE guide calls it a one-year waiting period. Before you cancel, check whether keeping the CFE costs less than a year without its cover.
Is there a waiting period when I return to France?
Not at the CFE. If you tell the CFE about your return, it keeps your rights for up to 3 months while you are not yet covered by a French scheme. Ask for your end-of-rights certificate and file it with your local health insurance fund. If you start a job in France, your French rights open at once.
Written by
François Bossé
Insurance Advisor
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