Schengen Visa / Health insurance

[PST]

Is health insurance needed to obtain a Schengen visa?

 

PST

[theoldgit]

If by health insurance you mean travel insurance, it most cases yes it is.

[jcowle]

Yes, it is, I used  Allianz Global Thailand, the web link is. https://aga24h.allianz-assistance.co.th/en/home/. You can do it all online.

 

John

 

[Jip99]

MSIG.... 705 Baht for the minimal cover of 1.5m Baht for one month.

 

 

https://www.msig-thai.com/ecommerce/travel.php?lang=en

[rasg]

When my wife applied for a Schengen visa for Iceland we didn’t supply travel insurance but we both had EHIC cards.

 

We only bought travel insurance after she had got the visa.

 

Because my wife was traveling with me we did have the free expedited visa direct from the Danish Embassy. The documentation required is a lot less and I don't know if that makes a difference.

[Donutz]

4 hours ago, rasg said:

When my wife applied for a Schengen visa for Iceland we didn’t supply travel insurance but we both had EHIC cards.

 

We only bought travel insurance after she had got the visa.

 

Because my wife was traveling with me we did have the free expedited visa direct from the Danish Embassy. The documentation required is a lot less and I don't know if that makes a difference.

For the free, expidited visa under EU law the medical travel insurance is not required. So the embassy would not have made a problem of the 'missing' insurance if the staff was properly instructed. 

 

For a regular Schengen visa such insurance is mandatory and need a to be provided as part of the application. Such insurance should be done via a company that refunds the insurance fee incase of a visa refusal.

 

Details on the regular and expidited Schengen visa procedure can be found in the Schengen sticky topic near the top of this forum.

[rasg]

Thanks for chipping in. You seem to know about all things Schengen.?

 

One thing that amuses me is that there are pages and pages of people arguing/complaining on here that Thailand is thinking of introducing compulsory insurance to go to Thailand and yet the Schengen area does exactly that! Time that the UK introduced it too.

[theoldgit]

9 hours ago, rasg said:

Thanks for chipping in. You seem to know about all things Schengen.?

 

One thing that amuses me is that there are pages and pages of people arguing/complaining on here that Thailand is thinking of introducing compulsory insurance to go to Thailand and yet the Schengen area does exactly that! Time that the UK introduced it too.

As Donutz points out spouses of EU Nationals do not need to produce details of insurance cover, that was what I was reffering to in my earlier post when I answered "in most cases yes", clearly it's sensible to have cover though.

I'm aware that UKBA staff have for years been trying to persuade Ministers to include an insurance requirement for visa nationals, this has always fallen on deaf ears, maybe because there are more non visa nationals seeking to enter the UK, and maybe they are a bigger problem.
Unlike Schengen countries, emergency healthcare cover is available to all at the point of delivery within the NHS.  

[rasg]

5 hours ago, theoldgit said:

Unlike Schengen countries, emergency healthcare cover is available to all at the point of delivery within the NHS.  

I do know that but it would save the NHS a bundle of cash if we introduced compulsory insurance for travelers to the UK.

[theoldgit]

1 hour ago, rasg said:

I do know that but it would save the NHS a bundle of cash if we introduced compulsory insurance for travelers to the UK.

The last briefing papers I read on the issue concluded that the cost of implementing and policing such a scheme far outweighed any potential savings.

Most people are responsible and do purchase insurance, those that don't probably find their way into The Sun. 

[PST]

Thanks for all the replies Guys, so basically, if my Thai wife wants to go to Europe for a few days whilst we are visting the UK, then she will need travel insurance when the application is handed in at the Embassy in question?

 

Also, do most of the Embassy offer a postal delivery service to return her passport the same as the British Embassy does with or without Schengen visa, or does it need to be collected in person?

[theoldgit]

Thanks for all the replies Guys, so basically, if my Thai wife wants to go to Europe for a few days whilst we are visting the UK, then she will need travel insurance when the application is handed in at the Embassy in question?
 
Also, do most of the Embassy offer a postal delivery service to return her passport the same as the British Embassy does with or without Schengen visa, or does it need to be collected in person?

What nationality are you and which member state are you visiting?
If you’re visiting the UK no doubt you’ll have insurance in place, not compulsory but eminently sensible, that insurance should satisfy the requirements of most member states.
If by chance you’re British there’s actually no need to provide insurance details with the Schengen application.
Your wife should apply at the Consulate with jurisdiction for country you intend visiting, I think most application centers offer a return service, but I’m not sure about Consulates.

[PST]

Hi, i'm British, and living in Thailand, my wife has been to the Uk several times, with me and our children, but we have never taken insurance as our length of stays are only a month or so, so for the sake of 3 or 4 days in a Schengen  country it's a necessity for her to take it out to receive a Schengen visa?

[theoldgit]

Hi, i'm British, and living in Thailand, my wife has been to the Uk several times, with me and our children, but we have never taken insurance as our length of stays are only a month or so, so for the sake of 3 or 4 days in a Schengen  country it's a necessity for her to take it out to receive a Schengen visa?

No it isn’t legally required, if your wife is traveling as the spouse of an EU national.
However, I’m rather surprised that you don’t take insurance as you’re only in the UK for a “month or so” you and your wife would be liable for 150% of any medical care, some may think it’s a false economy.
My wife and I booked a last minute long weekend to Singapore a few years ago, on the day before departure I purchased insurance for about 1,500 Baht, on our second night there I had a massive heart attack, my wife, my then girlfriend, called an ambulance and got me to hospital where I was resuscitated. Whilst I was being resuscitated she was persuaded to pay a deposit of SGD 5,000 on her credit card, the final bill was 600,000 Baht which was refunded by the insurance company on our return to Thailand.
You may wish to consider your stance on insurance for both the UK and mainland Europe.

[PST]

Hi, what I mean is myself and my family are a covered when we are in the UK already through other means,   I don't take out  a separate policy when we travel to the UK just for a month or so each year.

 

If we are travelling outside of the UK, eg  HK, KL SNG or anywhere else, then yes, of course I take it out. This is the first time we have travelled outside of the UK ( to mainland Europe) together.  

[theoldgit]

This is the first time we have travelled outside of the UK ( to mainland Europe) together. 

I personally would but it’s not a requirement, the cost would be negligible.



Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[PST]

Thanks for your help TOG, much appreciated.

 

PST

[Donutz]

Indeed TOG, PST since you are a Brit and you are married to a Thai, she can take the expedited Schengen visa route (Schengen visa for a family member of an EU/EEA natiomal) . Which means no visa fee, minimal paperwork and no insurance required. But obviously you may wish to get proper insurance (for all of you ) anyway. You never know and it only costs a small sum of money. 

[BobbyL]

Always worth getting when applying. My wife has had 3 Schengen visas in the last 5 or 6 years and always provided an insurance proof.