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Medical aid

Waiting periods, late-joiner penalties and switching

A scheme can apply a general waiting period and a condition-specific waiting period. A late-joiner penalty can last. Do not cancel the old membership until you know the new one has accepted you.

Reviewed 29 October 2026 by the WiT Money editorial team. This is general information, not a recommendation from a named adviser.

Key points

  • Waiting periods are lawful in the circumstances the Act allows. They are not a scam by default.
  • A late-joiner penalty is based on years without cover. It is not removed by shopping around.
  • Resign from the old scheme only when the new scheme has confirmed membership.

Open schemes must accept applicants, subject to the Act. They may still impose a general waiting period, often up to three months, and a longer waiting period for an existing condition, often up to twelve months, where the Act allows it. During a general waiting period, benefits are limited. During a condition-specific period, that condition is not paid. Prescribed minimum benefits have their own protection once any general waiting period has run, on the terms of the Act. Do not assume every claim is paid from day one.

A late-joiner penalty applies when you join after a long stretch without credible cover, on the formula in the regulations. It is a percentage added to the contribution. It can stay. Joining a different open scheme does not reset it.

Switching

Apply to the new scheme, disclose conditions honestly, and wait for acceptance in writing. Ask whether your previous membership reduces the waiting period. Then resign from the old scheme at month end so you are not uninsured for a month, and not paying two contributions by accident. Employer restricted schemes have their own membership rules.

Maternity

Some options pay maternity from a benefit, some from a savings account, and some treat a pregnancy that began before membership as a pre-existing condition. Read that rule before you rely on a brochure photograph.

Questions readers ask

Can I join a scheme only when I get sick?

You can apply. Waiting periods exist so that the scheme is not only used for an immediate claim. The cover you get in the first year may not be the cover you need that week.

Related

Sources

Page updated 29 October 2026. A source date is the day WiT Money checked that page, not a promise the institution has not changed it since.