Did you know that Cyprus is carving out a niche for itself as a high-grade medical tourism destination? Which means that if you expatriate you will benefit from excellent medical care on your doorstep when living in Cyprus.
You can of course take out expatriate health insurance to ensure you never pay more than your excess for care and treatment – and you may very well be best advised to do so – but even if you don’t, you will find that medical care in Cyprus – both North and South of the Green Line - is highly affordable. In fact, medical care in southern Cyprus, about which this article is written, is up to five times more affordable than in the UK.
When people think about medical tourism they generally assume it only relates to cosmetic procedures – but in Cyprus there is particular focus on offering dental treatment to international patients and there are even private fertility clinics for example, not to mention doctors in all areas of medicine who are happy to take on private patients.
As an expatriate living in Cyprus you have certain levels of free accessibility to healthcare thanks to reciprocal agreements between the UK and Cyprus – but usually these benefits only exist for a limited time and once you have settled in and fully relocated, it will be up to you to either get health insurance in place or pay your way for any treatment.
The good news is that you will get excellent medical care when living in Cyprus with all Cypriot doctors having studied and then practiced in the UK, mainland Europe or the US – this is because there are no medical schools on the island. English is widely spoken by all medical staff, which makes British expats feel particularly at home, and procedures are likely to be state of the art and up to date as is the equipment used.
Apart from the private clinics offering all sorts of treatment, Nicosia is home to a massive and impressive brand new hospital, and all over the island a great deal of private and public investment is made into the provision of quality health care facilities for locals and international patients alike.
If you’re thinking of living in Cyprus and you’re concerned about getting medical attention – don’t be. Just ensure you look into the affordability of health insurance versus going it alone and paying for any treatment. There are expatriate healthcare plans available or you can be insured by a local Cypriot insurance company.
Finally, if you do decide to take out health insurance when you move to Cyprus look at exemptions, exclusions and your excess.