Your entitlement comes first, and the health card follows
Public healthcare in Spain is run by each region, but the right to use it is recognised by the Instituto Nacional de la Seguridad Social (INSS). If you work or receive a pension you may already be entitled, and eligible family members can be included. Once your entitlement is recognised, you ask your regional health service for the health card, the tarjeta sanitaria, at your health centre.
How it works
Join a health insurance fund or apply for public healthcare cover.
How you get public healthcare depends on the country: you may need to join a health insurance fund or insurer, or ask the public health system to recognise your right to care. If you work, your employer often registers you; students, self-employed people and family members may need to arrange it themselves. You usually need your ID, proof of address, your social security number and proof of work, study or income. If you are already covered by another EU country, an S1 form or a European Health Insurance Card may apply. Once registered, you get a health insurance card or number for doctor and hospital visits.
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At a glance
Social Security centres recognise your right to care
Several branches in one city may handle this, and some ask you to phone and confirm which branch and steps apply to your case. Check an office’s details, and confirm opening times and booking rules before you travel.
Guides
Related services
Who to ask when money runs short, what a social worker can do and which centre covers your neighbourhood.
Which logins Spanish authorities accept, which steps need a visit, and where offices help you set up or recover yours.
Work out which report fits your application, whether your region or town hall issues it and which office to approach.
Which kind of proof of registration you can get, who can ask for it and how to pick the office in your city.
How registering with your regional employment service works, what to keep up afterwards and which office covers your home.
See why registering at your town hall matters, who should do it and what offices usually ask you to bring.
Other countries
Moving on, or comparing before you decide? See how this works elsewhere.
Most offices in Oberhausen, Berlin, and Cologne
Most offices in Poznań, Szczecin, and Białystok
Most offices in Seraing, Aalst, and Antwerp
Most offices in Rotterdam, The Hague, and Alkmaar
Where to next
Social Security centres that deal with your right to public healthcare, and how each one works.
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