Health insurance when living outside the Netherlands

If you are going to live and work abroad, you have to cancel your Dutch health insurance. Enquire in your new country of residence what would be the best health insurance arrangement for you.

Tip: if your family members are moving with you, they will probably have to cancel their Dutch health insurance as well. Questions? Please contact us.

If you are moving abroad but will continue to work in the Netherlands, or you already live abroad and are going to workBy ‘work’ we mean the place where you do the actual work. If you, for example, work for a Dutch employer but do your work in Belgium, you work in Belgium.
in the Netherlands, you will need Dutch health insurance. The arrangements you will have to make in your country of residence depend on the country you are moving to:

• Do you live in anEU member state, EEA country, or another treaty countryEU member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus (not including Northern Cyprus), Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France (including Guadeloupe, French Guyana, Martinique, Mayotte, Réunion, and St. Martin), Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal (including Madeira and the Azores), Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain (including Ceuta, Melilla, and the Canary Islands), and Sweden.
  EEA countries: These countries are not part of the EU, but EU rules apply all the same: Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. The same applies to Switzerland.
  Treaty countries not part of the EU/EEA: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cape Verde, Montenegro, Morocco, North Macedonia, Serbia, Tunisia, Turkey and the United Kingdom (including Gibraltar).
  ?
  Register with a health insurer in your country of residence. In most cases, they will automatically receive confirmation that you are insured in the Netherlands. You will then also be entitled to healthcare in your country of residence under the terms and conditions of your health insurer there. If the health insurer in your country of residence does not receive automatic confirmation that you have health insurance in the Netherlands, please ask us for an S1 (106) form.
• Do you live in a country with which the Netherlands does not have a treaty?
  Your healthcare in the Netherlands and your country of residence will be covered under the Dutch terms and conditions of insurance. Enquire in your country of residence how to take care of your health insurance.

If you move abroad while receiving a pension or benefits (not including sickness or unemployment benefits) from the Netherlands, you will in most cases not be able to keep your Dutch health insurance. You will then also have to register with the Dutch Central Administration Office (CAK). It all depends on the country you’re moving to:

• If you are moving to an EU member state, EEA country, or another treaty countryEU member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus (not including Northern Cyprus), Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France (including Guadeloupe, French Guyana, Martinique, Mayotte, Réunion, and St. Martin), Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal (including Madeira and the Azores), Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain (including Ceuta, Melilla, and the Canary Islands), and Sweden.
  EEA countries: These countries are not part of the EU, but EU rules apply all the same: Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. The same applies to Switzerland.
  Treaty countries not part of the EU/EEA: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cape Verde, Montenegro, Morocco, North Macedonia, Serbia, Tunisia, Turkey and the United Kingdom (including Gibraltar).
  and you receive a pension or benefits from the Netherlands, please ask CAK for an S1 document/121 form. Use that form to register with a health insurer in your country of residence. Your healthcare will then be covered as per the terms and conditions that apply in your country of residence. Check CAK’s website for details.
• If you are moving to a country with which the Netherlands does not have a treaty, or you do not receive any of the above pensions or benefits, you cannot keep your Dutch health insurance. Enquire in your country of residence what to arrange for your health insurance.

If you move abroad while receiving Dutch sickness or unemployment benefits, you will continue to be insured in the Netherlands. What exactly you need to arrange in your country of residence depends on the country you are moving to. For more information, please give CZ Customer Services a call on +31 88 555 77 77. If you want to find out more about drawing Dutch benefits while living abroad, please go to the website of the Dutch Employee Insurance Agency (UWV) (in Dutch).

If you are emigrating and don’t have a job, pension, or benefits, you will have to cancel your Dutch health insurance from the date that you take up residence abroad. Enquire in your country of residence what to arrange for your health insurance.

In most cases, your Dutch health insurance will continue as normal.

• If you are posted to an EU member state, EEA country, or another treaty countryEU member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus (not including Northern Cyprus), Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France (including Guadeloupe, French Guyana, Martinique, Mayotte, Réunion, and St. Martin), Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal (including Madeira and the Azores), Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain (including Ceuta, Melilla, and the Canary Islands), and Sweden.
  EEA countries: These countries are not part of the EU, but EU rules apply all the same: Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. The same applies to Switzerland.
  Treaty countries not part of the EU/EEA: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cape Verde, Montenegro, Morocco, North Macedonia, Serbia, Tunisia, Turkey and the United Kingdom (including Gibraltar).
  , or to Canada, Chile, India, Japan, the United States, or South Korea, please ask ‘Sociale Verzekeringsbank’ (SVB) (national insurance scheme implementation body) for an A1 statement. You can use this statement in the country you are posted to as proof that you are insured in the Netherlands. If SVB will not give you an A1 statement, this often means that you cannot keep your Dutch health insurance. Contact us for information.
• If you are posted to a country with which the Netherlands does not have a treaty, SVB will assess whether or not you can keep your Dutch health insurance. Ask SVB to conduct an assessment based on the Dutch Long-Term Care Act (‘Wet langdurige zorg’, Wlz), and send us a copy of the statement.

Tip: if your family members are moving with you, their health insurance may also be affected. Please contact us. We are happy to help.

Your Dutch health insurance will continue as normal, regardless of whether you maintain your residence in the Netherlands or move to another country.

Tip: if your family members are moving with you, their health insurance may be affected. Please contact us. We are happy to help.