Health Insurance

Healthcare Insurance Requirements

It's vital that British students have health insurance cover whilst studying abroad. This has become increasingly important as visas for European countries cannot be issued without students having adequate cover.

This section provides practical advice on health insurance for British students at European universities only. We will update you on information about health insurance in other popular study destinations such as America and Australia as soon as we can.

We are also not able to offer advice on specific products and their suitability for your requirements, so please treat the information provided below as of general relevance only.

The GHIC Card for UK Nationals

According to the NHS, British students are entitled to a Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) for the duration of their courses, as long as they intend to return to the UK at the end of the courses and they are not working part-time or undertaking a paid internship simultaneously with their studies. You need to have a specific student GHIC and not the general card. This requires you to provide proof of your student status. As such, you cannot apply for the GHIC until you have an offer from a university in the EU>

The GHIC replaces the EHIC for nearly all students. There are some exceptions which are explained on the NHS's website.

Ordinarily the GHIC has a validity of 12 months for temporary residence abroad but there is a clear exception made for students on non-UK university degrees on the NHS's website.

The GHIC will cover your treatment until you return to the UK. It also covers treatment of pre-existing medical conditions. The cover you receive will be based on the national standard healthcare system of the country where you're studying, and will not be based on NHS terms and conditions. As a result you might find yourself having to pay for treatments that would ordinarily be provided for free in the UK.

Make sure you always carry your GHIC card because you will need to show it if you use any of the health services abroad.

Applying for a Student GHIC

When you apply for GHIC you will need to include the address of where you will be studying, the period of study and details of the qualification you're studying for. You will also need to apply by post as the student EHIC card is not the same as the regular card.

Apply for a GHIC card

 

Health Insurance over and above the GHIC

It might be advisable for EU students to take out health insurance for conditions not covered by the GHIC but it is absolutely vital for British and other non-EU nationals. Please check out our website Study in Holland for more further information about terms and conditions of Dutch public health insurance.

Travel Insurance for Studying Abroad

You should also consider purchasing travel insurance as this will also cover your possessions while you are abroad as well as repatriation should it become necessary. This is typically not a feature of health insurance in other countries and is certainly not covered by the GHIC.

We have worked for a number of years with COE Connection who provide British students with travel cover. You should purchase this before you move abroad. This product is currently only available for UK residents.

STUDY ABROAD TRAVEL INSURANCE for UK and EU RESIDENTS

 Please go to https://agent.coeconnections.co.uk/get-a-quote-astarfuture/ and click on POLICY TYPES for full details of our STUDY ABROAD scheme, then GET A QUOTE for your personal quotation in the equivalent of days and to complete the purchase online.

Covid-19 is included in the cover provided through COE Connections.

The cover is leisure travel insurance and not the same as private health insurance.

A Star Future receives a small commission if you take out this cover. In our experience it is cheaper and more comprehensive than other products on the market but we advise you to consider all your options before purchasing.