Healthcare

Tourists from European Union countries and countries with common immigration regulations (Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland) need the European Health Card (EHC) to receive healthcare in Andalusia and the rest of Spain. This card is available from the health service in your country of origin.

Private doctors and hospitals in Andalusia/Spain do not accept the EHC. If you require private healthcare you must settle your own bills or take out an insurance policy that covers it.

If you forget the EHC, you will have to pay any hospital, medical or pharmaceutical bills in advance, and then seek reimbursement from the relevant organisation in your country of origin, providing all corresponding receipts. 

Tourists from Andorra, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay or Peru need a special certificate from their country of origin in order to receive healthcare in Andalusia and the rest of Spain.

If you forget said certificate, you should pay any hospital, medical or pharmaceutical costs in advance, and your affiliated body will reimburse these on presentation of the corresponding receipts. 

If you are from a country not mentioned above, you have to pay for any healthcare. This means it is advisable to take out a medical insurance policy. 

In any case, you should contact the relevant office in your country of origin for full details regarding current requirements to receive medical care in Andalusia/Spain. 

To travel to Andalusia/Spain, you do not need vaccinations against any illness, although, as in any part of the world, it is advisable to have your tetanus vaccination up to date if you are going to be in contact with nature and the countryside. 

Medicines can be purchased at chemists, which are marked by a green cross. Bear in mind that only a doctor should prescribe the correct medication for each case.