International students must cover the whole length of their studies in Italy with a Health Insurance.
Being covered by a Health Insurance is compulsory in order to apply for the Residence Permit that will last as long as your health insurance.
You have 2 options:
Option 1: register with the Italian National Health Service (“SSN”) to get the Health Card (“Tessera Sanitaria”) and rely on public Healthcare as if you were Italian. The SSN will give you access to a general practitioner and reduced prices for medical examinations and treatments.
The registration runs from January to December, therefore in January of the following year it must be renewed.
Following the financial law no.213 voted and approved by the Italian government on 30 Dec.2023, from 1st January 2024 the SSN insurance price for international students has been raised from 149 euros/year to 700 euros/year.
In order to register with SSN, students must pay via their own bank account or pay it in the Post Office choosing the F24 model inserting:
- regional code 10
- contribution code 8846
and specifying the contribution is for year 2025.
After the payment, please book an appointment with Pavia's local sanitary bureau ASST PAVIA to finalize the registration. On the day of the appointment, please bring the following documents:
- Fiscal code
- Residence permit or the receipt
- Self-declaration of residence (the form will be provided by sanitary bureau to be filled out)
- Receipt of F24 payment
- Acceptance letter of Program Marco Polo/Turandot
Option 2: Purchase a private Health Insurance from abroad or in Italy.
Please note that private insurances mainly cover expenses only if you are hospitalized by ambulance or through the Emergency Room: if you choose this option, make sure to check all the contract conditions.