Healthcare

Steps

1. Short stay with a visa: buy travel medical insurance that meets Article 15 of the Visa Code (below) for the whole trip; for a multiple-entry visa, it must cover the first trip, and you sign a statement that you know you need insurance for later trips. Exceptions: the requirement may be considered met where adequate cover can be presumed from the applicant's professional situation (for example seafarers, Article 15(6)), and holders of diplomatic passports are exempt (Article 15(7)).
2. Visa-exempt short stay: insurance is not among the entry conditions listed in the Schengen Borders Code (Article 6), but medical care abroad can be expensive: travel insurance is your choice.
3. Long stay: read the destination's list for your route. Denmark and Ireland did not take part in the five directives below and are not bound by them (see the recitals of each text), so their rules are purely national. In the other EU countries, the directives ask for insurance "for all risks normally covered for nationals" for:
   • students and researchers, valid for the whole planned stay (Directive (EU) 2016/801, Article 7(1)(c));
   • family reunification, for the sponsor and the family, if the country requires it (Directive 2003/86/EC, Article 7(1)(b));
   • Blue Card and seasonal workers, for periods not already covered through the job (Directive (EU) 2021/1883, Article 5(1)(e); Directive 2014/36/EU, Article 5(1)(b) for stays up to 90 days and Article 6(1)(b) for stays over 90 days);
   • EU long-term residents, for themselves and for dependent family members (Directive 2003/109/EC, Article 5(1)(b)).
4. After arrival: ask whether your permit gives access to the public health system, and from when (see the destination's health fiche).

Documents

• An insurance certificate in the name of each person, with dates, cover, amount and territory.
• For a Schengen visa: proof that the cover is valid in all Schengen countries and is at least €30,000 (Article 15(3)); for a visa with limited territorial validity covering several Member States, the cover must be valid at least in the Member States concerned.

Costs and timelines

• Price: set by insurers. The Visa Code asks you to take insurance, in principle, in your country of residence, or in another country if that is not possible (Article 15(4)).
• Check: consulates verify that claims against the insurer can be recovered in an EU country (Article 15(5)).

Common pitfalls

• Cover too low or not valid everywhere. For a Schengen visa: at least €30,000 and valid in all Schengen countries.
• Wrong dates. The insurance must cover the whole stay or transit (Article 15(3)).
• Travel insurance for a long stay. A short-trip policy may not meet the "all risks normally covered for nationals" standard required for long-stay permits, and what each country actually accepts varies: ask the immigration authority directly before you buy.
• Gaps between the visa and the permit. Keep cover until you are registered in the public system or have the insurance the permit requires.

What changes by profile

• Workers may be covered through their job; the Blue Card and seasonal directives ask for insurance only for periods not covered by, or resulting from, the work contract.
• Retirees and people living on passive income follow national rules for national visas (for Portugal, see PT-VISA-TIERS-050).