5 years passed, no insurance coverage implications?

[Devayan Mandal]

Hi, my friend has been legally studying and residing in the US for exactly 4 years, 6 months, 27 days on F-1 visa.

We read that if he stays more than 5 years, he'll have to get ACA compliant health insurance plan.

Assume 5 years have passed, and for some reason my friend gets unemployed for 20 - 25 days during his OPT. The employer terminates his health insurance too. Will not having insurance coverage for those 20 - 25 days be grounds for future visa (H1b) or adjustment of status (Conditional Green Card) denial?

If we get an accurate response now, we can avoid problems in the future.

Thanks in advance.

[Trinity71]

5 years passed, no insurance coverage implications?

Hi, my friend has been legally studying and residing in the US for exactly 4 years, 6 months, 27 days on F-1 visa.

We read that if he stays more than 5 years, he'll have to get ACA compliant health insurance plan.

Assume 5 years have passed, and for some reason my friend gets unemployed for 20 - 25 days during his OPT. The employer terminates his health insurance too. Will not having insurance coverage for those 20 - 25 days be grounds for future visa (H1b) or adjustment of status (Conditional Green Card) denial?

If we get an accurate response now, we can avoid problems in the future.

Thanks in advance.

Being required to carry an ACA compliant health plan only applies to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Your friend is neither. While on an F1 visa / OPT, you only need meet the F1 insurance requirements. This can be done through a temporary or short term plan. They can be attained immediately so if he looses his insurance through an employer, he has options for coverage.

This is my opinion and not legal advice. Use of this information is strictly at your own risk.

Trinity71