Foreigners in Italy: healthcare

Registration with the National Health Service for foreigners

Registration with the National Health Service (SSN) is compulsory for foreigners staying in Italy for:

• employment, self-employment or while waiting for a job;
• family reasons;
• political asylum or humanitarian reasons;
• awaiting adoption or foster care;
• acquiring Italian citizenship.

Registration gives the same rights and duties as an Italian citizen.

Registration is voluntary instead for:

• parents over 65 who joined their children through family reunification: this lets them obtain or renew a residence permit for family reasons and be covered throughout Italy (alternatively, private health insurance can be taken out);
• foreigners with a residence permit of more than 3 months who do not fall into the categories above: in this case an annual fee is paid, which also covers dependent family members.

Anyone not registered with the SSN pays for healthcare at the rates set by the Regions, unless international agreements signed by Italy provide otherwise.

Healthcare for undocumented foreigners

Undocumented foreigners can also access urgent or essential outpatient and hospital care, including ongoing care, for illness and injury, as well as preventive medicine programmes.

For more information and assistance, contact your nearest CCL office.