Healthcare in Rome: how Brits get covered, from the GHIC to the S1 and private cover

Italy's public health service, the Servizio Sanitario Nazionale (SSN), works a lot like the NHS: a family doctor, free hospital care and small charges for tests and medicines. The question for a Brit in Rome is which door you come in by.

The short version

• Visiting? Your UK GHIC or EHIC covers medically necessary state care in Italy, but it isn't travel insurance [3][4].
• Retiring on a UK State Pension? You can usually register a UK-issued S1 with your local health authority (ASL) and be treated like an Italian, with the UK paying [2].
• Working in Italy? Employees and the self-employed register with the SSN for free once they're resident [2].
• Not working and no S1? You can usually join by paying a yearly voluntary fee, with a minimum of EUR 2,000 (about £1,670), or rely on private insurance [2][5].
• Brits who were living in Italy before 1 January 2021 can register free under the Withdrawal Agreement [1].

Which route are you on?

Pound conversions use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = EUR 1.2002).

Visiting: the GHIC and travel insurance

The UK Global Health Insurance Card is free and covers necessary state healthcare in the EU, including emergency treatment, ongoing conditions and routine maternity care, on the same terms as a local [4]. It doesn't cover private treatment or getting you home to the UK, so the FCDO says you still need travel insurance [3]. In an emergency, dial 118 for an ambulance [3], or 112, the European emergency number.

Italian pharmacies, marked by a green cross, won't fill a UK prescription, but they may sell you an equivalent medicine, and a local doctor can write you an Italian prescription [3].

A GHIC is for people who live in the UK. Once you move to Rome, it's no longer your main cover unless you hold a UK S1 or have Withdrawal Agreement rights, in which case you may be able to get a UK-issued card for trips elsewhere [4].

Living in Rome: getting into the SSN

With an S1

If you live in Italy and get a UK State Pension (or some other exportable benefits), the UK may fund your Italian healthcare through an S1. You ask for the form by phone from the NHS Overseas Healthcare Services on +44 (0)191 218 1999, then register it with your ASL with your passport, codice fiscale and proof of residence or your permesso di soggiorno [2]. You then get an Italian health card valid throughout Italy and are treated "on the same basis as an Italian citizen" [2]. Our guide to the NHS when you live abroad and the S1 explains who qualifies.

If you were covered as the dependant of a UK pensioner, your cover ends once you claim your own State Pension, and you'll be sent a new S1 [2].

Working or Withdrawal Agreement residents

Employed and self-employed people register for free at their ASL with a residence certificate or permesso di soggiorno, passport, codice fiscale and an employment contract, and can add dependants at the same time [2]. Brits who were resident before 2021 can register free too, and the FCDO says they don't have to make voluntary contributions [1].

Everyone else: voluntary registration

If you aren't working, paying Italian social security or covered as a dependant, you can usually join the SSN by paying a yearly fee [2]. Since 2024 the fee is 7.5% of your income up to about EUR 20,657 plus 4% of the slice up to about EUR 51,646, with a minimum of EUR 2,000 (about £1,670) and, in most cases, a maximum of about EUR 2,789 (about £2,320) [5][6]. It covers the calendar year to 31 December, can't be split and isn't backdated [5]. Voluntary members don't get an Italian EHIC [2].

That's the route for many Brits on the elective residence visa without an S1 [6]. Our registering with the SSN guide goes through the forms in detail.

How the system works in Rome

Rome is served by three local health authorities, ASL Roma 1, ASL Roma 2 and ASL Roma 3, depending on where you live. Once registered, you:

1. Choose a family doctor (medico di medicina generale, often called the medico di base) from the ASL's list for your area [2].
2. Get your health card, the tessera sanitaria, which you'll show at the pharmacy and hospital.
3. Pay the ticket (co-payment) for specialist referrals, diagnostic tests and some medicines, unless you're exempt, for example for a chronic condition [2].

GP visits, hospital stays and emergency care are free once you're registered [2]. Waiting lists for specialists can be long, which is one reason many Romans pay privately for faster appointments.

English-speaking doctors and hospitals

The FCDO keeps a list of medical providers in Italy, some with English-speaking staff [3]. Options in Rome that market care in English include [7]:

These are private, so check prices or your insurance first. For a real emergency, go to the pronto soccorso (A&E) of any public hospital or call 118.

Private cover: top-up or must-have?

Private health insurance does two jobs in Italy. For visa applicants it's often a requirement: UK government guidance says you must show proof of healthcare cover when applying for a visa and before registering as a resident [2]. For residents who are in the SSN, it's a top-up for quicker specialist appointments and a private room.

Check what a policy excludes, whether it meets your consulate's visa rules, and whether it covers pre-existing conditions. And look after the UK end: your NHS entitlement changes when you move, and our moving abroad checklist covers telling your GP back home.

Got a question about a Rome GP or which ASL office is quickest? Our community group for Brits in Italy is full of people who've done it.

Sources

1. GOV.UK (FCDO): Living in Italy (last updated 28 October 2026)
2. GOV.UK: Healthcare in Italy (last updated 25 October 2022; still current at 11 November 2026)
3. GOV.UK (FCDO): Italy travel advice – health (updated 3 November 2026)
4. NHS: Apply for a free UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) (last modified 11 November 2025)
5. ASL AT (Piedmont health authority): Voluntary registration with the health service, in English (2026)
6. The Local Italy: How much does it cost to register with Italy's national health service in 2025? (30 January 2025)
7. Romeing: English-speaking medical practitioners in Rome (updated 3 December 2025)

Keep reading

• Registering with the SSN: Italian public healthcare for Brits
• Italy's elective residence visa for British retirees
• Cost of living in Rome vs London and the UK average
• The NHS when you live abroad (and the S1 for pensioners in the EU)