Private health insurance
Helps you choose and use suitable private health insurance.
Choose and manage private health insurance: when it is required or worth it, visa-compliant policies, how policies work, exclusions, buying, premiums, claims and switching.
- topics
- 10
- articles
- 68
- of reading
- 6.7 hours
Begin with
Public, private or both
You will be able to decide whether private cover is needed or worth paying for in your situation.
Public, private or both: which cover fits you in Spain? · Paying for public cover (convenio especial) and private insurance together · What private health insurance adds to the public system
More in private health insurance
9 more topics in this section, about 6.7 hours of reading in all.
Visa-compliant health insurance
You will be able to buy a policy that your consulate or immigration office will accept and keep it compliant.
Which Spanish residence routes require private health insurance? · What a visa-compliant Spanish health policy must include · Getting the insurance proof your visa application needs
Cover for your situation
You will find the cover approach that fits your age, visa type and household.
Health insurance for retirees and non-lucrative visa holders · Buying health insurance in Spain after 60 · Health insurance for digital nomads and remote workers
How policies and networks work
You will understand a policy's structure well enough to judge it before buying.
Provider network (cuadro médico) or reimbursement (reembolso) policy: which type? · How provider networks and hospital access work · What a full-coverage Spanish health policy actually includes
Exclusions, waiting periods and pre-existing conditions
You will know what your policy will not pay for, when you can use it, and how to disclose your health history safely.
What Spanish health policies exclude, including dental and optical add-ons · Waiting periods (carencias) on a new health policy · How the health questionnaire and pre-existing conditions work
Choosing and buying a policy
You will be able to compare quotes, avoid unauthorised products and complete a purchase.
Who sells private health insurance in Spain and how they differ · How to compare health insurance quotes in Spain · International expat plan or Spanish policy: which to buy?
Premiums, payments and tax
You will understand what drives your premium, how to pay it, and the tax treatment.
How much private health insurance costs in Spain and why · Copayment (copago) or no copayment: which plan costs less? · How premiums rise with age and at each renewal
Using your policy
You will know how to get appointments, authorisations and the right doctor.
Setting up and using a new health policy in Spain · Booking specialists, tests and hospital care under a policy · Prior authorisation (autorización previa) and how it works
Claims, refusals and complaints
You will know how to claim and what to do when the insurer says no.
How to claim reimbursement from your health insurer · Claims for out-of-network or foreign treatment · What to do when your insurer refuses an authorisation
Switching and cancelling a policy
You will change or end a policy without losing protection.
How to switch health insurers without losing cover · Why your first Spanish insurer is hard to leave · Cancelling a health policy: notice, renewal and refunds
Other sections in Healthcare and insurance
Public healthcare access
Helps you get and keep access to public healthcare.
Costs, prescriptions, and medicines
Helps you manage prescriptions, medicines and health costs.
Chronic care and continuity
Helps you keep treatment for a chronic condition going through the move.
Emergency, dental, vision, and mental healthcare
Helps you get emergency, dental, eye and mental health care.
Family health and vulnerable situations
Helps you set up healthcare for children, pregnancy and family members.
Home, life, and other insurance
Helps you choose and use home, life and other non-health insurance.
Need certainty before you act?
For important relocation decisions, speak with a qualified human specialist.
Always verify important information with the relevant official authority or a qualified adviser before acting. This website uses large language models together with various public data sources, official government documents and other established sources. Due to the amount of data on this website, some information might be wrong. Information may also be incomplete or outdated.