Health Insurance for Expats: Plans, Costs, and How to Choose
How expat health insurance differs from travel cover, what Cigna, Allianz, and SafetyWing plans cost, and how to pick one for long-term life abroad.
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If you are moving abroad for more than a short trip, expat health insurance is the private plan that pays for both everyday doctor visits and serious emergencies wherever you live, and it renews each year for as long as you keep it. As of July 2026, monthly costs range widely: budget travel-medical plans start under $70 for young, healthy applicants, while comprehensive plans that include the United States can run into five figures a year. The right choice depends mostly on your age, the region you want covered, and how much you are willing to pay out of pocket before the plan starts paying.
This guide explains how international health insurance works for people living, working, or studying abroad long term, using publicly listed plans from insurers such as Cigna Global, Allianz Care, and SafetyWing as reference points. It covers private international plans, not enrolling in a country's public health system, and it is general information rather than legal, financial, or medical advice. Prices and rules change, so treat every figure here as a starting point and confirm current terms with the insurer or a licensed broker.
What expat health insurance actually covers
Expat health insurance, sometimes called international health insurance, is a private policy that pays for medical care while you live outside your home country. Unlike travel insurance, it is built for people who settle somewhere new: it covers routine checkups, prescriptions, and the treatment of ongoing conditions, not only emergencies. Cigna Global, for example, describes worldwide plans that operate across more than 200 countries, so a member can move between them without buying a new policy each time.
The line between this and travel insurance matters more than most people expect. Travel insurance is designed for short trips, usually up to about three months, and its medical benefit is really there to stabilize you and get you home. International health plans are meant for stays of a year or more, and they let you choose your doctor and hospital within your region of cover. If you are weighing the two, our guide to travel insurance for tourists walks through where short-term cover stops. A simple rule: if you have a return ticket, you probably want travel insurance; if you have a lease, you want health insurance.
How much does expat health insurance cost?
There is no single price, but three things drive almost all of it: your age, the region you want covered, and your deductible (the amount you pay yourself before the insurer starts paying). Age is usually the biggest lever, and premiums climb at each renewal as you get older. Region comes next, since insurers treat the United States, Singapore, and Hong Kong as expensive zones; comparison guides commonly cite U.S.-inclusive plans costing roughly 50 to 100 percent more than the same plan without them. A higher deductible lowers the monthly price in exchange for taking on more risk yourself.
To make that concrete, SafetyWing lists its Nomad Insurance Essential plan from $62.72 per four weeks and its Complete plan from $161.50 per month for applicants aged 18 to 39, with prices rising by age. Those sit at the younger, more affordable end; comprehensive family coverage from a full-service insurer costs considerably more. The table below sketches the main tiers you will run into.
| Plan type | What it typically covers | Rough monthly cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Travel-medical | Emergencies, hospital stays, evacuation | From about $63 per 4 weeks (age 18 to 39) | Short stays, budget nomads |
| Mid-range health | Emergencies plus outpatient and some extras | Often $150 or more | Longer stays wanting routine care |
| Comprehensive health | Full inpatient and outpatient, high limits | Often $250 or more | Families, chronic conditions, U.S. cover |
What plans include, and where the gaps are
A comprehensive expat plan is usually built in layers. Understanding them helps you avoid paying for cover you don't need, or discovering a gap only after a claim. The core pieces are:
- Inpatient care — hospital stays and surgery. Cigna Global's plans, for instance, list annual maximums such as $1,000,000 or $2,000,000 for inpatient treatment.
- Outpatient care — doctor visits, specialists, and diagnostics you don't stay overnight for. This is often a separate, optional module.
- Chronic and pre-existing conditions — some plans cover ongoing conditions such as diabetes or asthma once you are enrolled, but many exclude conditions you already had. Read this part closely.
- Maternity, dental, and optical — usually add-ons with waiting periods rather than standard benefits.
- Evacuation and repatriation — transport to adequate care, or home, in a serious emergency. This is the one benefit worth keeping even on a tight budget.
Insurers package these differently. Allianz Care, for example, sells three levels — Essential, Classic, and Premier — where the higher tiers layer outpatient, dental, and repatriation on top of core hospital cover. When two quotes look far apart on price, the difference is almost always in which of these layers is switched on.
Do you need it for a visa?
Often, yes. Many long-stay and digital nomad visas will not approve you without proof of health insurance, and the exact rule depends on the country. For short stays, the Schengen visa system requires travel medical insurance with a minimum of €30,000 in coverage for emergency treatment and repatriation, valid across all member countries. For longer moves the bar rises: Spanish consular guidance for the digital nomad visa asks for private insurance from a company authorized to operate in Spain, with full coverage and no copayments, and states that ordinary travel insurance is not accepted.
Because the requirements vary so much, check the specific visa before you buy, not after. Our rundown of 2026 digital nomad visa requirements covers where different countries set the bar. A plan that suits your health can still fail a consulate's paperwork test if it is the wrong type or bought from the wrong provider.
How to choose a plan without overpaying
Work through a short checklist before you start comparing quotes, roughly in this order:
- Set your region first. Decide whether you genuinely need the United States in your cover. Leaving it out is the single easiest way to lower the price.
- Pick a deductible you could actually pay. A higher deductible cuts your premium, but only choose an amount you could cover in a bad month.
- Check the pre-existing rules. If you manage an ongoing condition, confirm in writing whether it is covered before you sign anything.
- Keep evacuation. Even on a budget plan, emergency evacuation and repatriation is the benefit that turns a catastrophe into a bad week.
- Confirm renewability and age limits. Look for plans that renew for life so you are not dropped as you age; Cigna Global, for one, lets adults enrol from 18 with no upper age limit.
- Get two or three quotes. Prices for near-identical cover differ between insurers, so compare like for like.
Once you know your region, your budget, and your must-have benefits, the field narrows quickly, and having real cover in place is what frees you to focus on actually living where you have landed.