Medical Treatment

Healthcare in Cyprus is of a very high standard. Private Doctors and Dentists are located in almost every town and Cyprus has one of the best ratios per head for healthcare professionals. Private Doctors typically charge 34 Euros for a consultation and referrals to specialists will vary as there is a great variation of Private clinics.

Most of these will accept your private Insurance provisions. However the Emergency services offered by the state can be accessed by any EU National holding a current European Health Insurance Card EHIC (formerly E111).

Cyprus is becoming a centre of excellence for many medical procedures and attracts some of the world’s top physicians to practice.

The EU Health Directive came into force on 1 January 2006. This allows EU Citizens to obtain state health service treatment anywhere in the EU and four other countries including Iceland and Switzerland.

In effect all the member states health services are now available to any EU citizen.

Resident of an EU Country
To obtain an EU health certificate, the EU citizen must apply to the Health Service of their resident country UK Dept of Health Most EU countries began issuing the card in 2005.

UK Residents: A UK resident planning to travel in Europe should apply for the EU Health Card before leaving. The UK Health Service will issue UK residents with a card confirming they will pay for medical treatment while living or traveling abroad in the EU for up to five years. There have been errors in the issue of cards, make sure it is dated correctly for five years.

This is adequate “health insurance” to meet Cyprus’ immigration requirements which means that a person under state retirement age does not need to have private medical insurance.

Note: The EU Health Card is not a substitute for full travel insurance.

Resident in Cyprus
A person who lives in Cyprus for more than three months a year is legally required to register with immigration in Cyprus.

A person who is resident for more than six months a year is legally required to register for Cyprus tax – both income and EU savings tax.

After being registered with the Immigration authorities and in receipt of a “pink slip” temporary residence visa, application can then be made for a Cypriot medical card. This is done through the Cyprus health service of the Ministry of Health (MOH). An application needs to be submitted along with supporting documents.

A person who is already resident in Cyprus and registered with immigration and tax authorities as retired or working can apply for the EU Health Card through the Cyprus health service.

· The application form (available in English) can be downloaded from the MOH website: Click here 

A pensioner in Cyprus still needs a certificate E121 from their home country, however, not if they are working in Cyprus.

Note: that applications are means tested and a person earning over a fixed rate per year pays fees in the Cyprus system on a rising scale. These charges are balanced by lower income tax with many people paying little or no tax in Cyprus on pensions under a fixed rate.

The EU Health Card covers travel or return visits home to other EU countries. For UK citizens this removes uncertainty as the UK NHS is cracking down on non-residents claiming medical treatment. With an EU Health Card, free medical care is available in the UK while on holiday there. A person can reregister into the system if they return “home” permanently.

Cyprus Health Service

The Cyprus health system is different to that of other western European countries: Specialist treatment and drugs may not be available locally or could require travel to Nicosia. There are no paramedics in ambulances. If a persons income is over the fixed minimum rate they have to pay towards the cost of treatment. Having said that the doctors are good and treatment is of high quality.

If private medical insurance is required there are three types of policy offering different levels of cover and premium:

· Local Cyprus Private Medical Insurance: lower cost, acute conditions only, limited cover
· International Private Medical Insurance: highest cost, suits international workers
· Bespoke Private Medical Insurance: medium cost, full cover, gets you home

Non-EU Resident
A non-EU citizen who moves to an EU country, including Cyprus, from a non-EU country will not qualify for the EU Health Card on arrival and will need private medical insurance in order to register with immigration to live in Cyprus.

European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)

The European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) has been introduced in many European Union countries. It allows that all legal residents of an EU member state who are traveling within the European Economic Area, (i.e. the European Union, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) and Switzerland, for private or professional reasons can use a European Health Insurance Card, to simplify the procedure when receiving medical assistance during their stay in a Member State.
The EHIC allows legal residents of Cyprus to benefit from emergency medical treatment and care when temporarily in a member country.

End of the E forms
The European Health Insurance Card replaces forms:
· E111 and E111B used by tourists,
· E110 used by international road transporters,
· E128 used by students and people working in a Member State other than their own,
· E119 used by people registered as unemployed and seeking work in another Member State.

Initially, the card replaces the E111, with others (the E110, the E119 and the E128) to follow later. In a second stage the card will be used to cover people posted on short stays to other European countries, as well as students, job seekers and those working in trades such as international transport. The intention is for the card to become electronic by 2008 to simplify the system.

Emergency and Helpful numbers: