Travel Insurance for a Schengen Visa: The Rules Your Policy Must Meet

Your Schengen visa file needs proof of travel medical insurance, and every Schengen consulate judges the policy against the same rule: Article 15 of the EU Visa Code. Below is what the policy must cover, what the certificate has to show, who is exempt, where to buy it and the extra rules some consulates add, checked against official sources in October 2026.

Schengen visa insurance requirements under Article 15

Article 10 of the Visa Code puts proof of insurance on the core Schengen document list with the form, passport, photo, fingerprints and fee, and Article 15 sets what that insurance must be. Before deciding, the consulate checks under Article 21 that you hold adequate and valid cover for the stay you applied for.

A uniform visa is the standard short-stay Schengen visa, valid in every Schengen country. Visas limited to some countries and airport transit visas follow different rules, set out further down.

What the policy must cover

Article 15 names 4 risks, and the policy has to cover each of them. The Netherlands describes the cover in plainer words: hospital admission and treatment, emergency treatment, prescription medicine, and repatriation to your country of residence, including in the event of death.

The €30,000 is a minimum, set in euros, so a policy with a €50,000 or €100,000 limit meets the rule too. Article 15 does not ask for trip cancellation, lost luggage, dental care or COVID-specific cover, and it sets no limit on the excess, the share of a claim you pay before the insurer pays. A policy can include those extras, but the visa rule does not require them.

Valid in all 29 Schengen countries

The cover must be valid throughout the territory of the Member States. As of October 2026 that means 29 countries: 25 EU members plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Cyprus and Ireland are in the EU but outside the Schengen area, so a policy does not need to include them.

You need cover in all 29 even if you visit only one, because a uniform visa is valid in all of them. The exception is a visa with limited territorial validity, issued for some Schengen countries only: the insurance then has to be valid at least in those countries. A policy for “Europe”, or for a named list of countries, fails if it leaves out even one Schengen state.

How long the cover must run

Article 15(3) asks for cover for the entire period of your intended stay: from the day you enter the Schengen area to the day you leave, as stated in your application. The Commission’s Visa Code Handbook (2020 edition) tells consulates that cover is needed for the period of effective stay, not for the validity of the visa, and not for the 15-day “period of grace” that a single-entry visa’s validity normally includes.

A consulate can ask for more. The German Embassy in Dhaka wants the policy valid for the entire duration of the requested visa, so applicants there insure the visa dates, not only the trip. Where your consulate’s checklist is stricter than Article 15, follow the checklist.

If the policy is shorter than the stay, the handbook gives the consulate 2 options: limit the stay it grants to the period the insurance covers, or ask you to buy cover for the full period.

What the insurance certificate must show

You prove the cover with a certificate or the first page of the policy. The Netherlands asks for a document such as the policy schedule, and it must show that you are covered, that the cover applies in all Schengen countries for your full stay, and that it pays at least €30,000 for the listed risks. If your insurer cannot issue proof in your name with that information, the Dutch insurance requirements say to take out insurance with another insurer.

What to check	What the certificate should state	What fails	Source
Insured person	Your full name	A certificate in someone else’s name, or one that does not name you	Netherlands; Greek visa centre (UK)
Territory	All Schengen states, or the Schengen area	“Europe” or a country list that misses a Schengen state	Art. 15(3)
Dates	Your entry date to your exit date, or longer	Cover that ends before your return flight	Art. 15(3)
Amount	At least €30,000	A lower limit	Art. 15(3)
Risks	Medical repatriation, urgent care, emergency hospital treatment, death	No repatriation line	Art. 15(1); Netherlands
Bank or card cover	A bank letter confirming the cover	A bank statement alone, or a letter over 30 days old	Greek visa centre (UK)

Recheck the dates last. The insurance should start no later than the day you arrive and end no earlier than the day you leave. If you move a flight or a hotel night after buying the policy, ask the insurer for a reissued certificate: cover that ends a day before you fly home does not meet Article 15(3).

Who needs Schengen visa insurance and who is exempt

Article 15 applies to applicants for a uniform visa, so what you need depends on the visa you ask for and on who you are:

• Single-entry or double-entry visa: cover for every day of the stay, in all 29 countries, for at least €30,000.
• Multiple-entry visa: cover for the first trip when you apply, plus the signed statement on the application form about later stays.
• Visa with limited territorial validity: cover valid at least in the countries the visa is issued for.
• Airport transit visa: the handbook lists these applicants as exempt, and the Spanish Consulate in Edinburgh states on its checklist that the requirement does not apply to transit visas.
• Diplomatic passport holders: exempt under Article 15(7).
• Seafarers and similar professions: the requirement can be treated as met when your job already gives you adequate cover (Article 15(6)), and the Netherlands does not ask seafarers for proof.
• Family members of EU or Swiss citizens: the handbook exempts family members of EU citizens covered by Directive 2004/38/EC, and family members of Swiss citizens.

Multiple-entry visas: insure the first trip, then each later one

For a multiple-entry visa you insure the first planned trip when you apply. The application form carries a statement for multiple-entry applicants: you confirm you are aware that you need adequate travel medical insurance for your first stay and any later visits.

The Netherlands adds that on every later trip you must be able to show proof of insurance for that stay. It also says that when you travel to the Netherlands on a Schengen visa, you must be able to show the insurance is valid for the full stay, so the certificate belongs with the documents you carry at the border, not only in the visa file.

For the later trips, either buy a new single-trip policy before each one, or use a multi-trip policy whose dates and per-trip limits cover every trip you make on the visa. Each policy has to meet the same 4 conditions: the risks, €30,000, all 29 countries and every day of that stay.

Where to buy Schengen visa insurance

Article 15(4) says you should, in principle, take out insurance in your country of residence, and where that is not possible, in any other country. The 2020 handbook puts it as a company based in your country of residence or in a Schengen state, and elsewhere only if neither is possible. The insurer does not have to be European.

Under Article 15(5), the consulate checks whether claims against the insurer would be recoverable in a Schengen state. A local insurer meets the rule if a claim for treatment in Europe could be recovered from it there.

Local practice can narrow the choice. Under Article 48, the consulates in each country share information on insurers that provide adequate cover, including the type of cover and any excess. German missions in India accept Indian travel medical insurance only from approved Indian insurance companies, and their tourism checklist also asks for a signed declaration of travel with valid medical insurance.

When a sponsor or host buys the policy

Someone else can take out the insurance in your name, for example the relative or friend who invites you, and the same conditions apply: all Schengen countries, every day of the stay and at least €30,000 (Article 15(4)). The Netherlands lets you buy cover in another country when no insurer in your country of residence sells Schengen cover, and says a sponsor in the Netherlands can take out the insurance for you there. The certificate still has to name you as the insured person.

Credit card travel insurance

Card cover can count, but not everywhere. The 2020 handbook says credit card travel insurance may be accepted if it meets the Visa Code criteria, and the Greek visa centre in the UK takes cover through a bank when you add a bank letter no older than 30 days. The German Embassy in Dhaka does not accept medical insurance from credit cards at all. Read the insurance line on your consulate’s checklist before you rely on a card.

Consulate insurance rules that go beyond Article 15

Every consulate applies Article 15, and some checklists add conditions of their own. Where your consulate’s checklist adds a rule, follow it; where it says nothing, Article 15 decides.

Consulate	Territory and period	Card or bank cover	Extra rule
Netherlands	All Schengen countries, full stay	Not stated	Proof in your name, such as the policy schedule; if your insurer cannot issue it, change insurer
Greece (visa centre, UK)	All Schengen states, full stay	Bank letter no older than 30 days	Full name on the policy; €30,000 minimum stated for repatriation, urgent care, hospital treatment and death
Spain (Consulate, Edinburgh)	All Schengen countries	Not stated	Medical expenses of at least 30,000 and repatriation stated; not needed for transit visas
Germany (missions in India)	All Schengen countries, full trip	Not stated	Indian policies only from approved Indian insurers; signed insurance declaration
Germany (Embassy, Dhaka)	All Schengen countries, full duration of the requested visa	Not accepted	Repatriation must be covered; applies when Germany or Estonia is the main destination

What happens if your insurance is missing or falls short

A file without proof of insurance can be refused. Missing proof of adequate and valid travel medical insurance, where it applies, is a refusal ground under Article 32 of the Visa Code and reason 16 on the standard refusal form that consulates issue.

Cover that exists but falls short is treated differently. The 2020 handbook says inadequate insurance should not automatically lead to refusal: the consulate should let you provide proof of adequate cover before the final decision, and where the policy is only too short, it can limit the stay it grants to the dates your policy covers. That is guidance to consulates rather than a right you can rely on, so correct the certificate before the appointment.

A refusal also costs money. The visa fee, a standard €90 for adults as of October 2026, is not refunded when a visa is refused. The insurance is a separate purchase: the Netherlands notes that some insurers refund all or part of the premium when an application is denied, so read the refund terms before you buy.

How to buy and check a policy before you apply

Buy and check the policy in this order

1. Take the trip dates from the flight reservation in your file and your hotel bookings, so the insurance starts on the day you arrive and ends on the day you leave.
2. Read the insurance line on your consulate’s checklist for local rules: approved insurers, card cover, or cover for the length of the visa.
3. Buy cover in your country of residence for at least €30,000, valid in all 29 Schengen countries, naming repatriation, urgent care, hospital treatment and death.
4. Get the certificate or policy schedule in your name, stating the territory, the dates and the amount.
5. Check each line against the certificate table above, and ask the insurer for a corrected certificate if anything is missing.
6. Scan any QR code or verification link and confirm it opens a record with your name and dates.
7. Sign the insurance statement on the application form if you apply for a multiple-entry visa.
8. Carry a copy on the trip, and buy new cover before each later trip on a multiple-entry visa.

This is an invented sample, not a real applicant or insurer.

Applicant: Grace Mensah, 41, a pharmacist in Accra, Ghana. Trip: 9 to 22 September 2027, 8 nights in Amsterdam and 5 in Brussels. Applies to: the Netherlands, her longest stay. Policy: single-trip travel medical insurance from an insurer in Ghana, bought 5 weeks before the appointment.

Check	Her first certificate	Result
Name	Grace Abena Mensah, as in her passport	Meets the rule
Territory	All Schengen states	Meets the rule
Dates	9 to 21 September 2027	Fails: her return flight leaves Brussels on 22 September
Amount	€50,000 for medical expenses	Meets the rule
Risks	Hospital treatment, emergency treatment, prescription medicine, repatriation including death	Meets the rule
Verification	QR code opens the insurer’s record with her name and dates	Meets the rule

Grace asked the insurer to extend the cover by 1 day. The reissued certificate runs from 9 to 22 September 2027, the same dates as her flight reservation, hotel bookings and employer’s leave letter.