Expat Health Insurance Comparison

There are several expat insurance options available for expats. Each company also has different plans available. 

To help you choose a suitable insurance plan for yourself, we compare basic plans of popular expat insurance providers in order to give you a quick overview on what you will get. 

We also give you a quick explanation on what each coverage option is about after the table. 

Please note that insurance plans are always subject to change. You should check with the insurance company again before purchasing any plan. 

Here’s a quick overview of each expat insurance provider:

Alternatively, you can use an insurance company such as International Citizen to help you choose the right plan.

Provider
Annual Limit	$1,000,000	$1,500,000
Area of Coverage	Worldwide excluding USA	Worldwide with restricted cover in the USA
Hospital Room	Private	Semi-private
Surgery Fee	Paid in full	Paid in full
Hospital Expense	Paid in full	Paid in full
ICU	Paid in full	Paid in full
Cancer Treatment	Paid in full	Paid in full
Parental accommodation	$1,000	Not cover
MRT, CT, and PET Scans	$5,000	Paid in full
Physio Therapy	$2,500	Not cover
Home Nursing	$2,500	Not cover
Medical Evacuation	Paid in full	Paid in full
Newborn Care	$25,000	Not cover
Out-Patient Treatment	After hospitalization only	After hospitalization only
Deductible	$0-$10,000	N/A
Co-Share	0%/10%/20%/30%	N/A
Partnered Hospitals	1.65 million hospitals	40,000 hospitals
	Get Quote	Get Quote

Provider
Annual Limit	Unlimited	$1,750,000
Area of Coverage	Worldwide, including the USA (for travel accident and sickness)	Worldwide excluding USA
Hospital Room	Private Room	Paid in full
Surgery Fee	Paid in full	Paid in full
Hospital Expense	Paid in full	Paid in full
ICU	Paid in full	Paid in full
Cancer Treatment	Paid in full	Paid in full
Parental Accommodation	Not cover	Paid in full
MRT, CT, and PET Scans	Paid in full	Paid in full
Physio Therapy	Paid in full	N/A
Home Nursing	Paid in full, maximum 30 visits	N/A
Medical Evacuation	$250,000	Paid in full
Newborn Care	Not cover	Optional
Out-patient Treatment	Paid in full	After hospitalization only
Deductible	$0-$10,000	$2,000
Co-Share	N/A	N/A
Partnered Hospitals	Over 180 countries	Over 165,000 hospitals
	Get Quote	Get Quote

Provider
Annual Limit	$10,00,000 (Lifetime limit)	$3,000,000
Area of Coverage	Worldwide excluding USA, Canada, China, hong Kong, Macau, Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan	Worldwide excluding USA
Hospital Room	Semi-private	Full Refund
Surgery Fee	Paid in full	Full Refund
Hospital Expense	Paid in full	Full Refund
ICU	Paid in full	Full Refund
Cancer Treatment	Paid in full	Full Refund
Parental accommodation	N/A	Full Refund
MRT, CT, and PET Scans	$600	Full Refund
Physio Therapy	N/A	5 Visits
Home Nursing	N/A	$100/30 Visits
Medical Evacuation	$50,000	Full Refund
Newborn Care	N/A	$100,000
Out-Patient Treatment	$300 per visit	After hospitalization only
Deductible	$250-$10000	$1000-$15,000
Co-Share	N/A	10%/20%
Partnered Hospitals	Expansive	Over 5,000 hospitals
	Get Quote	Get Quote

Plan Explaination

Let’s take a look at more details on each terms.

Annual Limit

Annual limit is the total maximum amount an insurance provider will pay you in that year. Normally, the higher limit the better.

However, it can also depend on the country you are living in. If you are living in a country like Thailand or Indonesia, an annual limit of $1,000,000 is usually enough. 

For a more developed country you may need a higher limit than that. 

Area of Coverage

Area of coverage is about the country or countries you will be covered in by your health insurance. Normally, expat insurance comes with worldwide coverage except for the United States. 

Most insurance providers have an option to cover the United States, but the premium will also be significantly increased. 

This is why GeoBlue is usually recommended for U.S. expats in this regard since their plans usually come with US coverage from the get go. 

Hospital Room

If you are hospitalized, your expat insurance provider should pay for the hospital room in full.

However, you should check out your policy well since some providers may only pay for a semi-private room. They may also not pay for premium hospitals in your country. 

Surgery Fees

If you need to have surgery, your insurance should cover the cost in full. 

Please note that some plans may not pay for the surgeon’s assistant fee.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, you might need to do a COVID-19 test before the surgery. Some plans might not cover this cost either. 

Hospital Expense

Hospital expenses are general expenses for the hospital, such as nursing fees, medications, and so on. 

Some insurance providers may also pay for food and drinks while you are hospitalized. 

ICU coverage usually covers both intensive care units and cardiac intensive care units. 

Cancer Treatment

Cancer treatment coverage may not include preventative surgery.

Parental Accommodation

While you are hospitalized, insurance providers may give an additional daily budget if your parents stay with you. 

MRT, CT, and PET Scans

If you are hospitalized, all basic plans should cover MRI, CT scans, PET scans, and medical imaging, including X-rays. 

On the other hand, for out-patient treatment, basic plans might not cover it. 

If physiotherapy is medically necessary, your insurance may pay for it. 

Home Nursing

If you need home nursing, the insurance company may also pay for it. They usually have a limit on how much they pay per day. They also have a cap at 30 visits per year on average. 

Medical Evacuation

Expat insurance basic plans usually come with domestic medical evacuation. If you need international medical evacuation, you may need to upgrade your plan. 

Newborn Care

Your insurance company may pay for the cost of baby delivery and maternity-related expenses. Each company has a different definition on this. It’s best to read the policy details. 

Newborn care usually has a waiting period of 10 to 12 months. 

Out-patient Treatment

Out-patient treatment is usually not covered in basic plans unless it’s for follow-up treatment after hospitalization. 

If you upgrade your plan to include out-patient treatment coverage, insurance companies usually have a seperate limit on how much you can claim per visit, and how many times you can use this coverage per year. 

A deductible is a way to decrease your insurance premiums. It basically means the amount of money you need to pay out of pocket before the insurance company pays you. 

Each insurance provider has different rules on deductibles as well. 

With some providers, you only need to pay deductibles for in-patient treatment. With others, you may need to pay a deductible if you visit a hospital outside of their network. 

Co-Share

Co-share may also be called “Co-pay”. It basically means the percentage you need to pay out of pocket when you make a claim. 

For example, if your plan has a 10% copay and you make a claim of $10,000, it means you need to pay $1,000 yourself and the insurance company pays the rest. 

Partnered Hospital

A high number of partnered hospitals is usally better. It means that the insurance provider has an agreement with that hospital. They may also have the direct-billing system set up, so that you don’t need to pay first and make a claim later when visiting a hospital in their network.  

However, it doesn’t mean that the insurance company will always pay when you visit a hospital in their network. You should contact them to get prior authorization first.