yankeewife
Registered User
- Messages
- 8
Hi, everyone.
I lost my job in the USA in March, and my husband, an Irish citizen who had been living in Northern Ireland for several years before he married me a year ago, moved us to Ireland to be near his family. We used up most of our savings to get here and we have been looking for work nonstop since we arrived. We have good skills and are employable. I have my GNIB card and we have PPSN numbers. We have rented a house and are permanent residents. We have no remaining ties to the US.
My husband believed that when we got here we could register for temporary assistance for a little while until we found work. Unfortunately we got turned down because they said he could not prove we were "habitual residents". I am a diabetic and have high blood pressure. We applied for medical cards but when we called for information, we were told we would not qualify unless we have an income or were on other benefits. There's nothing in their published guidelines about this!
We have only about two months rent and bills left in savings. My husband's family is not in a position to help us much (we really thought we could help them when we found work). I have about two months worth of medications left but I need to be checked and to have my blood pressure medication re-evaluated. I'm very concerned about my health and our future.
Folks, we took a chance and we did our best based on the information we had. Chances are we could still find work in the next couple months, but I'm starting to get very anxious. We don't want to be on assistance at all unless we have to be, but it looks very much like we might have to, especially for my health issues. What can we do?
I lost my job in the USA in March, and my husband, an Irish citizen who had been living in Northern Ireland for several years before he married me a year ago, moved us to Ireland to be near his family. We used up most of our savings to get here and we have been looking for work nonstop since we arrived. We have good skills and are employable. I have my GNIB card and we have PPSN numbers. We have rented a house and are permanent residents. We have no remaining ties to the US.
My husband believed that when we got here we could register for temporary assistance for a little while until we found work. Unfortunately we got turned down because they said he could not prove we were "habitual residents". I am a diabetic and have high blood pressure. We applied for medical cards but when we called for information, we were told we would not qualify unless we have an income or were on other benefits. There's nothing in their published guidelines about this!
We have only about two months rent and bills left in savings. My husband's family is not in a position to help us much (we really thought we could help them when we found work). I have about two months worth of medications left but I need to be checked and to have my blood pressure medication re-evaluated. I'm very concerned about my health and our future.
Folks, we took a chance and we did our best based on the information we had. Chances are we could still find work in the next couple months, but I'm starting to get very anxious. We don't want to be on assistance at all unless we have to be, but it looks very much like we might have to, especially for my health issues. What can we do?