EHIC vs GHIC: which health card European and UK students need after Brexit

Two cards, one purpose

Both cards do the same job: they prove you can access state-run healthcare during a temporary stay abroad, on the same terms as a local resident, for treatment that cannot reasonably wait until you get home. Neither card replaces travel insurance and neither covers private hospitals, medical repatriation, or planned treatment you travel abroad specifically to receive. The difference is which system issues the card and who is eligible.

EHIC: for EU and EEA nationals

The European Health Insurance Card is issued by your national health insurance provider once you are insured under the public health scheme of an EU country, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, or Switzerland. If you study in France, Germany, Portugal, or any other EU or EEA country and stay insured through your home country's public system, your EHIC lets you access public healthcare in your host country at the reduced or free rate a local resident pays. Each family member needs their own card. Brexit did not change this side of the system. If your public cover comes from an EU or EEA country, you keep using EHIC exactly as before, including for a semester or exchange in another EU or EEA country.

GHIC: the UK's post-Brexit replacement

The UK Global Health Insurance Card was introduced after the UK left the EU to maintain reciprocal healthcare access for UK residents, replacing the EHIC that UK nationals used to hold. You qualify for a GHIC if you are ordinarily and legally resident in the UK, and it covers you for the same kind of medically necessary treatment as EHIC, when you travel to an EU or EEA country or Switzerland.

What changed for UK students on exchange

UK students who started studying in an EEA country or Switzerland before 1 January 2021 may still qualify for a UK Student EHIC under transitional Withdrawal Agreement rights, while students who started their program after that date need to apply for a UK Student GHIC instead. Universities generally ask for a letter confirming your institution, study address, qualification, and UK residential address as part of either application. If you already hold a UK-issued EHIC, it stays valid until the date printed on the card, and you only need to apply for a GHIC once it expires.

What EU visitors get in the UK

EU and EEA citizens who travel to the UK, including for a short study exchange, can still present an EHIC and get access to necessary NHS treatment. This recognition comes from the reciprocal healthcare terms in the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement rather than from the pre-Brexit EU-wide EHIC scheme, so the underlying legal basis changed even though the card in your pocket looks and works much the same for a short visit. It does not cover you for care unrelated to medical necessity, and it does not substitute for the immigration or visa health requirements that apply if you move to the UK for a full degree program.

Quick reference

Check which card matches your situation before you travel, apply through your national insurer for an EHIC or through the NHS for a GHIC, and carry the physical or digital card with you during any exchange or short study period abroad.

Common student questions

Both cards are free to apply for, and neither charges you a fee to hold or use. Both carry an expiry date printed on the card, and validity periods differ depending on your issuing country and personal circumstances, so check the date on your own card rather than assuming a standard length. You cannot hold and use both an EHIC and a GHIC for the same trip, since each card ties to one insurance system, your home EU/EEA scheme or your UK residency, not both at once.

What these cards do not cover

Neither card covers a full degree program's ordinary healthcare needs once you move your main residence to a new country. If you relocate for a multi-year degree rather than a short exchange, you typically need to register with the host country's health system directly, through comprehensive sickness insurance requirements similar to those covered under EU free movement rules, or through the host country's own residence permit conditions if you are a UK student moving to the EU after Brexit. Treat EHIC and GHIC as your safety net for unplanned treatment during a temporary stay, not as your main healthcare plan for a program that lasts a full academic year or longer.

If your card is lost or stolen abroad

Contact your national health insurer, for EHIC holders, or the NHS overseas healthcare services team, for GHIC holders, to report the loss and ask about a replacement or a temporary provisional certificate you can use for treatment while the new card is issued. Most public hospitals in the EU and EEA can also verify your entitlement directly with your home system in an emergency, even without the physical card in hand, though carrying the card avoids delays.

Applying before you travel

Apply for your card well ahead of departure rather than at the airport or after you arrive. EHIC applications go through your national health insurance provider, and processing usually takes longer than a walk-in request, especially during peak exchange season in late summer. UK students apply for a GHIC directly through the NHS website, and the application asks for basic identity and residency proof rather than anything study-specific unless you are applying for the UK Student GHIC, which needs your university's letter. Set a reminder to check your card's expiry date each year you study abroad, since a card that expired mid semester leaves you without cover for the rest of your stay.