Conditions
The insured person may, under certain conditions, receive an immediate refund at the agency in the form of:
- an instant payment
- a cheque
To receive an immediate reimbursement at a CNS agency, two conditions must be met:
- the total amount of medical expenses must be at least 100 EUR per household;
- the invoices must have been paid less than 15 calendar days ago on the day they are presented at the agency.
Are there any services that cannot be reimbursed in an agency?
The following invoices cannot be reimbursed in an agency:
- All services abroad, with the exception of the funeral allowance and monthly or half-yearly flat-rate refunds for medical food products and nappies
- All physiotherapy invoices
- All dietician invoices
Terms of coverage
Reimbursement by instant payment
The insured person can visit a CNS agency to receive a reimbursement by instant payment. If the conditions for reimbursement by instant payment are met, the CNS reimburses the portion of the costs covered by health insurance to the insured person's bank account. The bank transfer is made within a few seconds.
Unable to attend on your own - Procuration
If the conditions for reimbursement by instant payment are met, but the insured person cannot personally come to the counter, they may give permission to a person of their choice to come to the CNS with the invoices. This is only possible with a procuration given by the insured person. The CNS provides a standard form. The insured person must enclose copies of identification documents: their own ID and the ID of the person they authorise to receive the instant payment.
The instant payment is then made to the account of the person who is authorised to present the invoices on behalf of the insured.
Advantages of the instant payment
- Fast and secure
- No travel and no waiting for a cheque to be cashed
- Sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative
The instant payment can be executed to all European banks that are SEPA-ICT-ready.
SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) is a single euro payments area that simplifies the execution of bank transfers and direct debits between participating countries through the standard use of IBAN and BIC. ICT (instant credit transfer) allows for instant payments.
If you are not sure whether your bank is ready for SEPA-ICT, you should check with your bank.
Reimbursement by cheque
The insured person can visit a CNS counter to receive a reimbursement by cheque. If the conditions for reimbursement by cheque are met, the CNS reimburses the portion of the costs covered by health insurance by issuing a personal cheque.
Unable to attend on your own - Procuration
If the conditions for reimbursement by cheque are met, but the insured person cannot personally come to the counter, they may give permission to a person of their choice to come to the CNS with the invoices. This is only possible with a procuration given by the insured person. The CNS provides a standard form. The insured person must enclose copies of identification documents: their own ID and the ID of the person they authorise to receive the cheque.
The cheque is then issued in the name of the person who is authorised to collect the cheque on behalf of the insured.
Nominative cheque
The cheque is nominative which means that it must be cashed by the person to whom it has been issued.
Where to cash a cheque
A nominative cheque issued by the CNS must be cashed in a Post office no later than 30 days after its issue date. The cheque must be cashed by the person to whom the cheque has been issued. The expiry date is indicated on the cheque.
Important note: A cheque cannot be cashed later than 30 days after its issue date.