How Does the Waiting Period Credit Work When You Port Health Insurance?

According to the circular issued by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) in 2011, policyholders can migrate from their existing insurer to a new insurer as per their needs. During this porting procedure, the new insurer will credit you for the waiting period that you already served under the previous insurer, ensuring continued coverage for pre-existing conditions.

We will explore how this waiting period applies when migrating to a new policymaker with an existing insurance plan.

What is the Waiting Period Credit in a Porting Process?

When you have already served the waiting period for a pre-existing disease or treatment for a particular illness, you do not need to serve it again when porting to a new health insurance plan. The new insurer credits the waiting period during the porting process.

What are the Things to Remember on Waiting Period Credit?

Here are a few factors to keep in mind regarding waiting period credit during health insurance porting:

Reduction of Pro Rata

During porting your existing policy to a new insurer, you have to serve only the remaining waiting period after deducting the waiting period you have already served under the old insurer.

Guarantee of Coverage

The new insurer will provide credit for the waiting period served up to the sum insured of the old health insurance plan.

Moratorium Period

The 5-year moratorium period is maintained and carried forward into the new insurer’s policy.

Applicability

The waiting period credit applies to an individual plan, a family floater plan, and migrations from a group policy to an individual health insurance plan.

What are the Key Features and Rules?

There are some limitations and guidelines for obtaining the waiting-period credit facility when porting. These are outlined below.

Only at Renewal

Porting is allowed only at the time of renewal of your existing health insurance plan, and during this time span, you can enjoy the waiting period credit benefit.

Waiting Period for the Increased Sum Insured

When porting to a new insurer, if you increase coverage, the waiting-period credit will apply only to the original sum insured in the existing policy. For the increased sum, you have to serve a fresh waiting period in accordance with the new insurer's regulations.

30-day Deadline

You must apply to port 45 days before the current policy expires, as per the IRDAI regulations.

No-break Policy

To avail the continued benefits, your existing policy must not have any break in policy tenure.