How do you apply for a Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC)?
A UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) gives you the right to access state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay in the European Union (EU).
Existing European Health Insurance Cards (EHICs) remain valid until their date of expiry, so you do not need to apply for a GHIC if you hold a valid EHIC.
Learn about the GHIC and how to apply
What your card covers
You can use your card to get state healthcare that cannot reasonably wait until you come back to the UK (sometimes called “medically necessary healthcare”). This includes things like:
- Emergency treatment and visits to A&E
- Treatment or routine medical care for long-term or pre-existing medical conditions
- Routine maternity care, as long as you’re not going abroad to give birth.
You’ll need to pre-arrange some treatments with the relevant healthcare provider in the country you’re visiting – for example, kidney dialysis or chemotherapy – as it’s not guaranteed that local healthcare providers will always have the capacity to provide this care.
Whether treatment is medically necessary is decided by the medical system in the country you’re visiting.
Not all state healthcare is free outside of the UK. You may have to pay for treatment that you would get for free on the NHS, if a local resident would be expected to pay in the country you’re visiting.
Before travelling, you should check the state-provided healthcare services in the country you’re visiting and any potential charges you may face.
What your card does not cover
A UK GHIC (or UK EHIC) does not replace travel and medical insurance or cover services like:
- Being flown back to the UK (medical repatriation)
- Treatment in a private medical facility
- Ski or mountain rescue.
We advise that you have a UK GHIC (or UK EHIC) and private travel and medical insurance for the duration of your trip.
