Cyprus: Health Insurance

Overview

Whether you’re living or working in Cyprus or just visiting, it’s extremely risky not to have health insurance for your family; if you’re uninsured or under-insured you could be faced with some very high bills. You won’t be covered under the Cypriot health system unless you pay social security contributions. However, all international visitors are offered free emergency assistance and treatment if they fall seriously ill or have a serious accident while visiting Cyprus.

When deciding on the type and extent of health insurance to buy, make sure that it covers all your family’s present and future health requirements. A policy should cover you for all essential healthcare whatever the reason, including accidents and injuries, whether they occur in your home, at your place of work or while travelling. Don’t take anything for granted, but check.

If you’re planning to take up residence in Cyprus and will be contributing to social security there, you and your family will be entitled to subsidised or free medical and dental treatment, but not immediately. In the meantime, and if you aren’t covered by Cypriot social security, it’s important that you have private health insurance; indeed it’s mandatory if you want to apply for residence. Proof of health insurance must be provided when applying for a residence permit.

Visitors

Short-stay visitors to Cyprus (i.e. those spending less than 90 days on the island) should have travel insurance (see Travel Insurance Fact Sheet). You may be covered by a reciprocal social security agreement between your home country and Cyprus, but this may not provide adequate cover, and you should check. Citizens of certain countries should obtain a European Health Insurance Card (see below). This is only for short stays such as holidays and business trips and covers you only for essential (and not routine) healthcare. If your country doesn’t have an agreement with Cyprus and you aren’t covered by Cypriot social insurance, you must have private health insurance.

If you plan to spend up to six months in Cyprus, you should take out either a long-stay policy or an annual international health policy, which should cover you in your home country and when travelling in other countries.

European Health Insurance Card

If you’re a citizen of an EEA country or of Switzerland, you should apply for a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) from your local social security office at least three weeks before you plan to travel to Cyprus. This entitles you to free or reduced cost medical treatment in Cyprus for up to 90 days.

UK citizens should apply for a revised E111 form (i.e. one issued after 19th August 2004). This is valid until 31st December 2005, when it will be replaced by the EHIC itself. The new card (and, in the interim, the revised E111 form) should now be valid in all 25 EU countries, but local arrangements (especially in the new member states, including Cyprus) are taking a while to put into place, so check before you go. The EHIC will be open-ended and valid for life provided you continue to make social security contributions in the country where it was issued; if you become a resident in another country (e.g. in Cyprus) it becomes invalid. An EHIC covers emergency hospital treatment but doesn’t include prescribed medicines, special examinations, X-rays, laboratory tests, physiotherapy and dental treatment.

Britons can obtain further information about the UK’s reciprocal health agreement with Cyprus from the Department of Social Security, Pensions and Overseas Benefits Directorate, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE98 1BA, UK (0191-218 7777, www.dwp.gov.uk).

Residents

If you’re planning to work in Cyprus, you will be covered by Cyprus social insurance (see below). EU pensioners also qualify for Cyprus social insurance cover. All other residents must have private health insurance.

Cyprus Social Insurance

The Cyprus social insurance scheme is compulsory for all those working in Cyprus. It provides pensions and benefits in all areas of social security and is financed by contributions from employees, employers and the state. Currently, social insurance contributions are 16.6 per cent of earings (6.3 per cent of your gross salary is paid by both employee and employer and the state pays the remaining 4 per cent). Self-employed people pay a total of 11.6 per cent of income and the state contributes 4 per cent.

If you contribute to Cypriot social insurance, you and your family are entitled to free or subsidised medical and dental treatment. Anyone who has paid regular social security contributions in another EU country for two full years prior to coming to Cyprus is entitled to similar cover for a limited period (see EU Citizens below).

Benefits (which are free or subsidised according to your status – see Medical Cards below), include general and specialist care, hospitalisation, laboratory services, discounted drugs and medicines, basic dental care, maternity care, appliances and transportation. Cyprus has an efficient network of government general hospitals and clinics in urban areas with health centres and dispensaries in more rural areas. Nevertheless, most Cypriots and foreign residents who can afford it take out private health insurance, which offers a wider choice of medical practitioners and hospitals, and more importantly, frees them from public health waiting lists.

Medical Cards: If you qualify for Cyprus social insurance benefits, you must obtain a health card. There are two cards, which are allocated according to your means, as follows:

• Medical Card A – This is issued to individuals without dependants and an annual income of under CY£9,000, couples with an annual income of under CY£18,000 (increased by CY£1,000 for each dependent child), and members of families with four or more children (irrespective of income). It entitles the holder to free healthcare.

• Medical Card B – This is issued to individuals without dependants and an annual income of between CY£9,000 and CY£12,000, and to members of families with up to three children and an annual income of between CY£18,000 and CY£22,000. It entitles the holder to half-price healthcare.

If you earn above these amounts, you must pay around CY£7 for a consultation with a doctor and around CY£50 per day for in-patient hospital care.

You should complete the appropriate application form (which you can obtain from any general hospital in Cyprus) and submit it, along with proof of income and evidence of payment of tax and social insurance contributions, to the Ministry of Health in Nicosia. You can normally do this via your local health centre or general hospital in Cyprus. You should receive your medical card within around three weeks. Medical cards are valid for two years, and you must apply for renewal a month before expiry.

Further information about entitlement to a health card can be found on the Ministry of Health website (www.moh.gov.cy).

EU Citizens

Anyone who has paid regular social security contributions in another EU country for two full years prior to coming to Cyprus is entitled to public health cover for a limited period from the date of their last contribution. Social security form E106 must be obtained from the social security authorities in your home country and presented to your local Social Insurance office in Cyprus.

Pensioners: Retirees living in Cyprus and receiving a state pension from another EU country are entitled to free or subsidised state healthcare on the same conditions as wage earners (see above). You will need to obtain the necessary forms from your home country and submit them with your application for a medical card in Cyprus (see Medical Cards above). In the UK, you should contact the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), Medical Benefits Section (0191-218 7547, www.dwp.gov.uk). When you contact the DWP about getting your pension paid in Cyprus, they should automatically check that you have the required form, which is currently form E121.

Private Health Insurance

If you aren’t covered by the Cyprus social security system, you must take out private health insurance. Even if you are, you should consider doing so; most Cypriots and foreign residents who can afford it take out private health insurance, which offers a wider choice of medical practitioners and hospitals, and more importantly, frees them from public health waiting lists. If you already have private health insurance in another country, you may be able to extend it to cover you in Cyprus.

When buying private health insurance, choose a company that will pay large medical bills directly. Most private health insurance policies don’t pay family doctors’ fees or pay for medication that isn’t provided in a hospital, or charge an excess (deductible), which often exceeds the cost of treatment. Most will, however, pay for 100 per cent of specialist fees and hospital treatment. The insurance market in Cyprus is highly competitive and sophisticated and there’s a huge range of both Cypriot and international insurance companies offering policies.

It’s impossible to give reliable price information, as premiums and conditions are constantly changing in this highly competitive market. Due to the enormous diversity of cover, it’s essential that you research the market thoroughly before you decide on a policy. Generally, the higher the premium, the more choice you have regarding doctors, specialists and hospitals. There may be an annual surcharge for those over 60, which increases with age, and supplements for certain services such as basic dental treatment or for pregnant women. You may be able to obtain a discount if you accept a larger excess value.

Changing Employers or Insurance Companies

When changing employers or leaving Cyprus, you should ensure that you have continuous health insurance. If you and your family are covered by a company health plan, your insurance will probably cease after your last official day of employment. If you’re planning to change your health insurance company, you should ensure that important benefits aren’t lost, e.g. existing medical conditions won’t usually be covered by a new insurer. When changing health insurance companies, it’s advisable to inform your old company if you have any outstanding bills for which they’re liable.

© Survival Books Limited 2005

“Buying a Home in Cyprus” 3rd Edition, Anne Hall.

Reproduced with the permission of Survival Books Limited.

Further information on this topic can be found in “Buying a Home in Cyprus” 3rd edition, by Anne Hall.

For extensive information about buying a property in Cyprus, you can purchase this book at www.survivalbooks.net