Moving to Italy from the UK: what to sort, in order

Before Brexit, a British citizen could move to Italy under freedom of movement and sort the details afterwards. That route is closed. A long-term move now runs through an Italian national visa applied for before you go, from the UK, with a document file that gets read strictly.

The practical consequence is one of sequence rather than difficulty: insurance stops being something you arrange after arriving and becomes part of the application itself. Get the order wrong and the move stalls at the paperwork rather than at the border.

For UK movers not on a work-sponsored route, the elective residence visa is the common path — designed for people supporting themselves on income or savings rather than employment.

On insurance, Italy is less tidy than its neighbours and it is worth being honest about that. The elective residence visa is widely handled to the €30,000 Schengen insurance standard, with hospitalisation and repatriation cover for the full visa year, though published consulate checklists vary: some ask for cover of 100% of medical expenses, and requirements differ by consulate.

Because of that variation, the safe submission is a health policy structured for residence, valid in Italy and the Schengen area for the full year. Applicants report refusals over travel-grade policies, so meeting the letter of the lowest published bar is a risk rather than a shortcut. See the elective residence route and what your Italian certificate must say.

One more wrinkle worth knowing before you buy. For the first year, consulates commonly expect zero deductible or co-pay and repatriation cover, though practice varies by consulate and no published checklist states a deductible rule outright.

That matters because a sensible UK-market policy is often built around an excess. The feature that keeps a domestic premium reasonable is the feature most likely to draw a question at an Italian consulate. Why Italian files get refused covers the pattern.

NHS access is based on residency, not citizenship. A long-term move abroad ends routine NHS access, so cover in Italy is not a top-up to something you keep at home — it is what you have.

Once you are resident there is a separate question about Italy's public system and how private cover sits alongside it, which we cover at Italy SSN vs private health insurance and health insurance in Italy for UK citizens.

Covered Abroad is an introducer, not the insurer. A partner insurer underwrites the policy, and our team calls you to talk through the quote with no obligation to buy. Cover can start the same day, with no medical exam and a 14-day cooling-off period, and children 0 to 17 are priced at a flat rate.

Stated plainly rather than at claim time: pre-existing conditions are excluded, including ones you did not know about, and cover is worldwide but excludes treatment in the United States. Requirements can change and the decision is always the consulate's or the permit office's. See real prices by age, compare levels at pricing, or run a policy you already hold through the free policy check.