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You need to be registered as a resident in Portugal to access state healthcare.

State healthcare in Portugal is not completely free. Healthcare costs are covered by the state, and patients pay standard user fees, known as 鈥榯axas moderadoras鈥�.

UK nationals usually access the Portuguese healthcare system in one of these ways:

• registering to use the Portuguese national health service as a resident
• using a UK-issued GHIC or EHIC for temporary stays when studying, or as a 鈥榩osted鈥� (detached) worker
• registering a UK-issued S1 form (see 鈥楿K-funded healthcare: getting and using an S1 form in Portugal鈥� below)

Healthcare if you live and work in Portugal

If you are planning on moving to Portugal, see the guidance on Living in Portugal for more information about visa and residency requirements.

You must show proof of healthcare cover:

• before you can register as a resident
• when you apply for a visa

For details about the healthcare cover required for residency applications, contact local authorities in Portugal or the appropriate Portugal embassy or consulate in the UK.

Everyone who鈥檚 registered as a resident can also register to access the Portuguese national health service () on the same basis as a Portuguese citizen.

This is the same if you鈥檙e employed, self-employed or not working.

You may be entitled to a for travel, including visits to the UK.

You may also have the right to apply for a UK S1 if you start drawing a UK State Pension (see 鈥楿K-funded healthcare: getting and using an S1 form in Portugal鈥� below).

How to register for healthcare

Before registering for healthcare you need to register as a resident.

If you鈥檙e employed, you鈥檒l also need your social security number (NISS). Get this from your employer, or request it from the tax office if you鈥檙e self-employed.

To register for healthcare, go to your local health centre (centro de sa煤de). You鈥檒l need your:

• residence certificate
• passport
• tax identification number (NIF) from your local tax office (finan莽as)
• social security number (NISS) if you鈥檙e employed or self-employed

Once you鈥檝e registered you鈥檒l get a health number (n煤mero de utente de sa煤de). Show this when you visit a doctor in the state healthcare system.

How to access healthcare services

on the Portuguese Nation Health Service website (in Portuguese).

How much you鈥檒l pay

You pay standard user fees (taxas moderadoras) for state healthcare services in Portugal.

This means that you鈥檒l pay a fixed amount depending on the service. Your GP in Portugal will be able to tell you what you鈥檒l pay for any treatment.

How much you pay will depend on what you鈥檙e being treated for and how you鈥檝e accessed the healthcare system. The Portuguese ministry of health publishes (in Portuguese).

Examples of what you鈥檒l pay are:

• 5 euros for a GP appointment
• 15 euros to go to A&E

You鈥檒l need to pay something towards the cost of any prescribed medicine.

You may be exempt from paying fees for some services, prescriptions and treatments, for example if you鈥檙e:

• pregnant
• a child under 12
• unemployed

Find out more about paying user fees on the SNS website or speak to your GP in Portugal.

Dental care is not usually covered by the Portuguese national health service.

If your UK employer has sent you to Portugal temporarily (鈥榩osted workers鈥�)

A posted worker, also known as a 鈥榙etached worker鈥�, is someone who is employed or self-employed in the UK, but temporarily sent to a European Economic Area (EEA) country.

UK posted workers can access healthcare in Portugal using a GHIC, EHIC or S1 form.

HMRC has a helpline for National Insurance enquiries from non-UK residents. They can answer questions about posted worker status and explain which documents you will need to get healthcare while posted.

UK-funded healthcare: getting and using an S1 form in Portugal

There鈥檚 different guidance if you have an S1 as a 鈥榩osted worker鈥� (see 鈥業f your UK employer has sent you to Portugal temporarily (鈥榩osted workers鈥�)鈥� above).

You may be entitled to state healthcare paid for by the UK if you鈥檙e a resident in Portugal and receive a UK State Pension or an exportable benefit. See on the NHS website for more information about eligibility.

You may also be entitled to an S1 form if you鈥檙e a frontier worker (someone who works in one state and lives in another). You must contact HMRC National Insurance enquiries to find out if you鈥檙e eligible.

Once you have an S1 form, you must register it on the Portuguese social security system.

This means you and your dependants will be entitled to state healthcare in Portugal on the same basis as a Portuguese citizen.

You鈥檒l also get:

• a UK-issued GHIC or EHIC for travel
• planned treatments in other EU countries

You can find out more about and the rules on on the NHS website.

Dependants and family members may be classified differently in Portugal than the UK.

Check with the local authorities when you register your S1 form.

If you鈥檙e entitled to an S1 form as a dependant of a State Pensioner, your health cover will be cancelled once you begin claiming your UK state pension.

You will be sent a new S1 form to your registered address from NHS Overseas Healthcare Services. You must register this form to ensure continuation of healthcare cover.

You are responsible for informing NHS Overseas Healthcare Services if you change your address or your circumstances change.

How to get an S1 form

If you have a UK State Pension or another qualifying exportable benefit, you must request an application form by phone from NHS Overseas Healthcare Services (see contact details above).

How to use an S1 form in Portugal

Register your S1 form at any social security office (seguran莽a social). (website in Portuguese).

You also need to register your S1 form at your local health centre (centro de sa煤de).

You鈥檒l need your:

• S1 form
• passport
• residence certificate

You may also need your tax identification number (NIF). You can get this from your local tax office. Once you鈥檝e registered at a health centre, you鈥檒l be issued with a health number (n煤mero de utente de sa煤de). This shows that you鈥檙e entitled to state healthcare on the same basis as a Portuguese citizen.

Studying in Portugal

You should apply for a Student GHIC to get medically necessary, state-provided healthcare for the duration of your study period in Portugal, whether this is for part or all of your course. This means that you鈥檒l get necessary healthcare services on the same basis as an Portuguese citizen either for free or at a reduced cost.

If you already hold a valid Student EHIC you can use this until the card expires.

on the NHS website.

Getting treatment in the UK

Because the NHS is a residency-based system, under NHS rules UK nationals who move abroad on a permanent basis may lose their entitlement to free NHS healthcare.

If you are a UK national and move to the EU, you should not expect to be able to use NHS services for free when visiting the UK unless you have an EHIC, PRC or S2 to show your healthcare costs are funded by the EU country in which you now live, or another exemption applies.

Some former UK residents do not have to pay for NHS treatment when visiting England. This includes:

• UK war pensioners
• UK government employees
• UK nationals living in the EU on or before 31 December 2020, once they have a registered, UK-issued S1

Read more about using the NHS when you no longer live in the UK (see 鈥楿K nationals who no longer live in the UK鈥� in Healthcare for visitors to the UK from the EU).

If you return to live in the UK you鈥檒l be able to use the NHS like any other UK resident.

Read more about using the NHS when you return to live in the UK.