Health insurance

If you are a European national (including Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland), you can travel to Italy with your European Health Insurance Card, EHIC (in Italian “Tessera Europea Assistenza Malattia”, TEAM).

The EHIC allows you to:

• Receive urgent or necessary medical treatments that cannot be postponed until returning to your home country;
• Access the local public healthcare system under the same conditions and costs as Italian nationals.

If you need to go to a general practitioner (“Medico di Base”), please select and contact one from this list

The EHIC does not allow you to:

• Receive planned medical treatments;
• Cover healthcare in private facilities.

Please note that EHIC is not an alternative to travel insurance: it does not cover any costs such as a return flight to your home country.

For more information on how to use your EHIC, we recommend you visit the European Health Insurance Card website and read the guidelines carefully before departing from your country of residence.

If you are a Non-EU national, you need to subscribe to a Health Insurance policy for the entire duration of your stay in Italy. Please note that this is compulsory in order to obtain a residence permit, that will last as long as your health insurance.

You have two options:

1. Get private insurance: you can purchase private insurance before leaving your country or once in Italy. We recommend familiarising yourself with the specifics of an international health insurance policy, noting coverage limits, inclusions and any exclusions. Check if your insurance policy encompasses coverage for medical emergencies, including hospitalisation, emergency surgeries and urgent medical treatments.
2. Register with the Italian National Health Service (“SSN”) to get the Health Card (“Tessera Sanitaria”) and rely on public healthcare as if you were Italian. The SSN will give you access to a general practitioner and reduced prices for medical examinations and treatments.