Cyprus has a comprehensive two-tier healthcare system.
Tourists and Visitors
Short term visitors to Cyprus are entitled to emergency (A&E) healthcare treatment from the Government Hospitals. In order to access emergency treatment visitors from the UK must show their European Health Insurance card or the new UK Equivalent Health Insurance Card.
In all other cases short term visitors are required to have private medical insurance.
Tourists should always arrange travel medical insurance before travelling to Cyprus.
Residents
For permanent residents of Cyprus, the two-tier comprehensive health care system consists of:
- The General Health System (GESY) – a publicly funded healthcare system
- Private Medical Healthcare System – paid for individually or via Health Insurance
Individuals who are temporary residents of Cyprus must have private medical insurance unless they meet the qualification criteria for access to GESY.
In order to access GESY an individual must normally be a permanent resident of Cyprus and meet the qualification criteria.
Holders of an S1 form can register for GESY and can in some circumstances receive an exemption from contributions to the scheme.
To find out more about who is eligible for GESY please click here.
And did you know that you can get free Preventative Dental Care for GESY beneficiaries?
What you need to know when using a Dentist in GESY:
Dental visits are done directly and no referral is required.
For each beneficiary, GESY covers one visit a year.
The basic service covered is cleaning.
Please click here for more information on how to access a Gesy dentist.
