European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)

What is EHIC?

With EHIC (European Health Insurance Card) you can get state-provided medically necessary healthcare during a temporary stay in any of 27 EU countries, as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, on the same conditions and at the same cost as people insured in that country.

Among care covered by EHIC are, for example, treatments related to sudden illness or accidents, as well as treatments required for pregnancy/childbirth and long-term illness.

EHIC is not an alternative to travel insurance (for example, it does not include ambulance flights), as well as it does not cover private healthcare costs.

Am I Entitled to EHIC?

You are entitled to an EHIC if you are covered by the state social security system of any of the 27 EU countries, as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland.

Please note that being a citizen of some country does not necessarily mean that you are covered by that country’s social security system.

This is because different social security systems are tied to different factors, such as residing long enough or being employed in the country.

Check the “Healthcare By Country” section on our website, where we describe the conditions for being covered by the different EU countries’ social security systems.

If you are not sure in what country you are covered, you can contact the relevant country’s social security institution to find this out.

Example – Antti:

Antti is a Finnish citizen, but for the past 5 years he has lived in France. Because the Finnish social security system is tied to residing in the country, Antti is no longer covered by the Finnish social security system, and thus cannot get his EHIC from the Finnish social security institution.

However, the French social security system is also tied to residing in the country, and since Antti has lived long enough in France, he is covered by the French social security system and can thus get his EHIC from his French local health insurance fund.

People from non-EU countries that are covered by some EU country’s social security system can get an EHIC, too.

However, please note that if you are a non-EU citizen, you cannot use your EHIC card in Denmark, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, and you may want to consider taking private health insurance when you travel to those countries.

Example – Tunç:

Tunç is a Turkish citizen and he moved to the Netherlands 2 months ago for work. Since people working in the Netherlands are covered by the Dutch social security system, Tunç can get his EHIC from his Dutch health insurer.

Tunç is soon traveling to Denmark, and even though he has a Dutch EHIC, he cannot use it in Denmark since he is a non-EU citizen and takes out private health insurance for the duration of his travels.

How do I get my EHIC?

In some countries, your EHIC is on the reverse side of the national health insurance card, but in some countries, you may need to apply for an EHIC separately.

Getting an EHIC is free of charge. Contact the social security institution where you are insured to find out how you can get your EHIC (in some countries, the institution itself issues EHICs, and in other countries, local health insurance funds or other bodies are responsible for this).

Check out the list of institutions and bodies responsible for issuing EHIC in different countries here.

How Does EHIC Work?

There are several important points to keep in mind as to how EHIC works:

EHIC gives you access only to medically necessary care.

Medically necessary care means medical treatments that cannot wait until you return to the country where you normally live.

Whether care is medically necessary is assessed on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the duration of stay, as well as the medical criterion (is the treatment necessary for the person to be able to continue their stay abroad and not be forced to return to the country where they normally live?).

Emergency care is always considered as medically-necessary. Consultations with general practitioners, pregnancy/childbirth treatments, and long-term-illness-related treatments and examinations would be considered necessary care as long as the purpose of your visit is not to receive such care.

Please note that if you travel to another EU/EEA country with the sole purpose of obtaining certain medical treatment, you cannot rely on your EHIC as rules for planned treatment apply in that case.

Example – Anton and Wilma:

Anton and Wilma both have a Swedish EHIC. Anton is an Erasmus student and he just moved to Estonia where he will be studying for the next 6 months, and Wilma is visiting him for 2 weeks.

They go on a biking trip where Anton breaks his leg and Wilma breaks her arm. Both require an urgent operation which is considered a necessary care and is thus covered by EHIC. Both also require post-surgery physiotherapy.

Considering that Wilma goes back to Sweden soon, obtaining physiotherapy in Estonia is not considered necessary and thus is not covered by her EHIC.

For Anton, on the other hand, physiotherapy is necessary for him to be able to continue his Erasmus studies in Estonia and hence it is considered necessary and is covered by his EHIC.

EHIC covers only treatments from providers affiliated with public healthcare system.

EHIC can be used with public healthcare providers, as well as with private healthcare providers that have an agreement with the public healthcare system.

Getting treatment from private healthcare providers that are not affiliated with the public healthcare system is thus not covered by EHIC.

If you want to use your EHIC, make sure that the provider is connected to the public healthcare system before getting the medical treatment from them.

If you wish to also be able to use private healthcare during your visit, find out about the available private health insurance options.

You can use EHIC in the country where you are staying only if the stay is temporary.

You are considered to be staying temporarily in another country as long as you do not move your habitual residence to that country.

When assessing where a person’s habitual residence is, several factors are taken into account, such as the person’s intentions, their family ties, source of their income, etc.

Some examples of temporary stays are short travels and exchange studies abroad.

You might know that if you are an EU citizen and you move to another EU country for more than 3 months, you are required to register with the local authorities – however, this does not necessarily mean that you moved your habitual residence to that country and that you lost your right to use EHIC there.

Please note that if you do move your habitual residence to another EU/EEA country, you need to register with an S1 form instead of using an EHIC if you want to receive medical care in your new country of habitual residence.

Example – Csenge:

Csenge is Hungarian, has a Hungarian EHIC and stays in Austria for 6 months for her Erasmus studies. Since she is staying in Austria for more than 3 months, Csenge has registered with the Austrian authorities.

However, Csenge is planning to stay in the country only for 6 months, meaning that she has not moved her habitual residence there, and she can use her EHIC there for the duration of her Erasmus studies.

However, if Csenge decides to continue living in Austria after her Erasmus is done, it will be considered that she has moved her habitual residence to Austria and she will have to register with an S1 form instead of using her EHIC in order to get access to Austrian healthcare.

You get treatments on the same conditions and at the same price as people insured in that country.

It is important to remember that EHIC does not guarantee free medical services, but it rather allows you to get them on the same conditions and at the same price as people insured in that country.

If locals get medical treatments for free in the country you visit, you will also get them for free with your EHIC.

If locals pay a certain amount and receive reimbursement later, you will also have to pay upfront and will need to claim the reimbursement afterwards.

If locals pay a certain non-reimbursable fee, you will also have to pay it and it will not be reimbursed to you.

Common EHIC-Related Issues

1. I went to travel but forgot my EHIC/don’t have one yet.

If you are staying temporarily in another EU/EEA country and forgot your EHIC back home or don’t have one yet, you will need to pay the actual cost of the treatment yourself and apply for the reimbursement once you are back home.

Alternatively, you may ask the doctor to contact the social security institution/body where you are insured and verify that you have an EHIC or are entitled to one. Once verified, you will get the treatment on the same terms as the locals.

2. My social security institution refuses to issue EHIC.

If you are entitled to an EHIC, your social security institution/body has to provide you with one at your request. Alternatively, if they cannot issue your EHIC for some reason, they have to provide you with a provisional replacement certificate.

If they do not provide you with an EHIC/provisional certificate when you believe you are entitled to one, you should be able to appeal their decision.

Additionally, if the issue persists, you can submit your problem to SOLVIT (an EU online service that helps to resolve problems with your EU rights).

3. Healthcare provider does not accept EHIC.

If the healthcare provider does not accept EHIC when they must and you have to pay the actual cost of the treatment yourself, you can claim reimbursement of the applicable amounts from the social security institution of the country where you are insured or, alternatively, from the social security institution of the country where you got the treatment.

If the issue persists (e.g., you are not reimbursed eventually when you believe you should be), you can submit your problem to SOLVIT.

Last updated on 31 January 2025