any thoughts on medical insurance as this can be a minefield.
assuming you are moving from the UK

1) retiring to another EEC country
2) retiring to another county outside the EEC
3) moving to another EEC country to live and work
4) moving to another EEC country to live but continue to work and pay NI in the UK
5) as 3 and 4 but outside the EEC

there seem to be so many different senarios here. any experiences and tips would help us all

Even though I am healthy, the one thing I am not prepared to do is go without entirely. You *have* to take responsibility for your own health.

We hear too many horror stories involving "but I never knew" even though the relevant web-sites of most countries are clear about what you need to do (as is UK government advice).

I would certainly check out what the country has on offer to its residents in terms of state health care. The country I live in has both a "social system" and "insurance based".

Self-employed, I have currently a PMI from a UK insurer for non-UK residents, whilst I seelte down. They tend to be Europe-wide and so are particularly useful if you go between several countries (includes the UK).

Of course, the price depends on how much risk you bear. You can get "basic" (for catastrophic stuff like a seirous accident or chemotherapy) or more "comprehensive". There is an excess and that non-curable conditions are excluded (such as diabetes or asthma).