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Benefits - Ireland 🇮🇪

Erin McGarry
Erin McGarry
  • Updated

Your local benefits packages provide you with benefits tailored to your country. 

Coverage highlights

Some of the coverage highlights include:

  • Full coverage for up to 180 days in public and private hospitals
  • Some refunds on out-of-pocket expenses
  • Full cover for outpatient scans
  • Free dental check-ups, x-rays, and scale and polish
  • Some refunds for major and minor dental treatment costs
  • Full refund on eye exams 
  • Some refunds on prescriptions and eyewear purchases
  • Service by top Ireland providers

Your company will define the package applicable to you (it can be Competitive or Best-in-Class) and will define if they will cover your dependents or not.
Best-in-Class package has a more comprehensive coverage (higher limits and reduced out-of-pocket expenses) if compared to Competitive. For more details on the coverage of each package, you can check the links at the end of this page.

Benefits providers

Oyster works with top local insurance providers in Ireland who understand the market and offer reliable service.

  • Health Insurance: Irish Life Health
  • Dental & Vision: DeCare Dental

Enrollment process

  • You will receive an e-mail from our Broker (IHI) with the details of your coverage and a request for some information to complete your enrollment (and of your dependents, if applicable).
  • You will have one week to respond to this e-mail by sharing the required information or informing that you want to opt-out of the plan.
  • On the second week you will receive an e-mail from the carriers (Irish Life and DeCare) confirming your enrollment.
  • If you opt-in to the plan, coverage will be effective from the first day of next month.

How can I view my insurance enrollment status?

You will receive an e-mail from the carriers (Irish Life and DeCare) on the second week of the month confirming your enrollment. In case there is any issue with your process our broker (IHI) will connect with you.

When will my coverage be active?

In case you have opted-in to the benefits, coverage will be effective from the 1st day of the next month

How do I log in to the insurance platform?

You must follow the steps on the guides linked in the end of this page for both Irish Life and DeCare.

Where can I find my policy details?

You can find them on the links at the end of this page.

How can I opt out?

You will receive an e-mail from our broker (IHI) confirming which will contain the details of the benefits offered to you. In case you wish to opt out you must reply to that e-mail expressing your wish to do so.

Claims and reimbursement

How do I request reimbursement from Irish Life?

You can request a reimbursement-eligible expense through the Irish Life and DeCare apps.

Outpatient expenses

  • You must log in to your Member Online Account in the app.
  • Click on ‘CLAIMS’ in the top menu
  • Upload a photo of the receipt and fill in the required fields.
  • If all the information is correct you should receive the corresponding payment in 5 working days.

Inpatient expenses

  • All eligible inpatient expenses are paid directly by the insurance company to the hospital.

How do I request reimbursement from DeCare for dental expenses?

There are two ways of making a claim for dental expenses:

In-network care

You can choose to visit a dental practice that provides a direct payment service to DeCare and the payment for your treatment will be done directly by DeCare as per your policy coverage.

You can find in-network practicians following the below process on the DeCare app:

  • Select finder on the bottom navigation bar and select the view all button on the Dentist Practice tile
  • Select Filter on the top right corner to filter by direct pay and county and apply filter.
  • Select the dental practice from the list to view full details.

Out-of-network care:

In the app, follow the below process:

  • Select the member you are making the claim for
  • Upload or take a photo of the receipt
  • Select your dentist from the list or add manually and select submit
  • If all the information is correct you should receive the corresponding payment in 5 working days.

How do I request reimbursement from DeCare for vision expenses?

All vision expenses should be claimed through the DeCare app. In-network expenses will have a larger percentage of the value covered if compared to the ones made out-of-network.

You can find in-network practicians following the below process on the DeCare app:

  • Select finder on the bottom navigation bar and select the view all button on the Vision Practice tile
  • Select Filter on the top right corner to filter by county and apply filter.
  • Select the Vision Practice from the list to view full details.

In-network and out-of-network expenses:

In the app, follow the below process:

  • Select the member you are making the claim for
  • Upload or take a photo of the receipt
  • Select your dentist from the list or add manually and select submit
  • If all the information is correct you should receive the corresponding payment in 5 working days.

Taxation

Are there any taxes applicable to my Benefits?

Yes. Benefits in kind taxes are applicable to all premiums paid by the employer and are born only by you. But you can claim tax relief through revenue at the end of the year (up to € 200).

Also, Individuals over 34 years old might have additional fees on their premiums (Lifetime Community Rating, or "LCR") if they were not previously insured. Those costs will be borne by you as well.

Dependents

How do I add a dependent? Can I add them at any time?

If in your plan dependents cost are covered by the company, you must reach out to our broker (IHI) through the below e-mails:

You can add dependents at any time, but the coverage start is not immediate as the coverage for new plan members is only effective from the first day of each month. Please note that adding dependents to your plan may impact the cost for your employer, as additional coverage is required. If your personal situation changes and you need to add a spouse or a newborn child, please reach out to us using (this link) to provide the necessary information. We appreciate your collaboration in this process, as it helps ensure the best possible experience for all involved parties. Thank you.

In case your plan only covers your premium costs, you can add dependents at your own expense. To do that you must reach out to Irish life (# 01-5625399) and DeCare (# 094-9378608) after you receive your policy number (which will be on the week after the enrollment period).

Which dependents can I add to my plan?

You can add your spouse/partner and children up to 20 years old as dependents.

Emergencies

What are my emergency contacts? What should I do in such cases?

In case of medical emergencies, the best approach is to call 112 or go to the nearest hospital. Inpatient care expenses are paid directly by the insurer to the hospital. You must only inform your policy number in order to get fully covered medical attention.

Is there a benefits card?

No. But you will receive through e-mail (from Irish Life and DeCare) your policy numbers. With that information in hand, you will have access to all the coverage applicable to your plan.

Support

When do I contact Oyster Support or the Benefit Vendor directly?

In case of questions related to your insurances, you must connect with our broker (IHI) through the below e-mails:

If they fail to respond in time (1 working day) or you believe that the response was not satisfactory, reach out to Oyster Support.

Downloadable Brochures

System navigation and claims

Coverage details 

Taxation

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