Will GHIC cover Britons for 12-month French visa?
Health card provides ‘medically necessary’ healthcare at same rate as for citizens
One of the requirements when applying for a visa to visit France is proof of adequate medical insurance covering your stay
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Reader question: I am a British national looking to apply for a 12-month VLS-TS visa. Will my GHIC be sufficient for insurance requirements?
One of the requirements when applying for a visa to visit France is proof of adequate medical insurance covering your stay.
TLScontact, the third-party firm that collects applications for the consular services, asks applicants during its application process to “be aware that compliant travel insurance is mandatory for [their] visa application.”
This should be shown during your application for the visa, otherwise it may be rejected.
UK residents applying for a six-month VLS-T visa are deemed to fulfil this insurance requirement with their Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC), which provides medically necessary care at the same cost as for citizens in the EU country being visited.
For France, this provides coverage as if the person had a carte Vitale but no top-up mutuelle, for example covering 70% of the cost of a sector-1 GP visit.
Be aware, coverage varies between exact medical procedures/appointments and the ‘sector’ a doctor belongs to.
However, obtaining additional coverage is often recommended for eventualities such as refunding the part of any costs that is not covered by French social security, which can become significant, especially in the event of hospitalisation or other costly procedures, as well as, for example, mountain or sea rescue or medical repatriation.
A GHIC is, however, not considered sufficient for a 12-month application for UK applicants because a year is considered a more settled move, and separate insurance will be asked for.
US visa applicants will require separate medical insurance for all visa types, including for six-month trips.
Private cover must provide minimum coverage of €30,000 for urgent medical care and medical repatriation costs for the duration of the stay.
Note that if you were planning to use the 12-month visa as a route to move to France permanently, it is recommended to apply to join France’s social security system after three months.
In this case, taking out a policy that can be cancelled once you sign up to the system may be optimal. You may also wish to take out a top-up healthcare mutuelle.
