Sanitas Residents Visa: Is It Right for Your Application?
Sanitas Residents is health insurance for foreign nationals living in Spain, and its visa version waives waiting periods so it can be used for a residence visa application. It has no copayments, includes repatriation and comes with a visa certificate. It's one of the insurer's main plans for residence-visa applicants. Here's how to tell whether it's right for you.
1. Who it suits
- Nationals of countries outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland applying for a Spanish residence visa or permit. The visa version is only available to them.
- EU/EEA/Swiss nationals can only take out the standard version (with waiting periods, minimum 6 months a year in Spain), which is not the visa version.
- Applicants up to 75 (no upper age limit once insured)
- People who'll mainly receive care in Spain through the insurer's own medical network
- Couples and families who want matching cover and certificates
When another plan may fit better:
- You're under 65 and want treatment with any doctor, including worldwide reimbursement → Residents Platinum
- You're a student under 35 → International Students
2. Visa and residency situations it supports
Sanitas presents Residents as meeting the requirements for residence visa applications. We arrange it for:
- Non-lucrative visa → NLV insurance
- Digital nomad visa → DNV insurance
- Family reunification, self-employed and entrepreneur routes, and residence renewals
3. Copayments and waiting periods
- Copayments: none. You don't pay per visit.
- Waiting periods: waived in the visa version.
For reference, the standard (non-visa) version has waiting periods, such as 3 months for minor surgery, 8 months for childbirth and 10 months for hospitalisation and complex treatments. That's why the policy you take out needs to be the visa version. The waiver concerns waiting periods; declared medical history is assessed separately (see section 4).
4. Medical underwriting
Everyone completes a health questionnaire. If you declare a condition, Sanitas's medical team assesses it and may contact you. Our pre-existing conditions page explains the possible outcomes. If you're unsure about anything, talk to us privately before you apply.
5. Age eligibility
- Maximum age to take out: 75, until the month of your 76th birthday
- No maximum age to remain insured
- Babies and children aged 0–2 can only be insured alongside another insured person aged 2 or over
6. Geographic cover
- Healthcare across the Sanitas network in Spain
- Emergency cover on trips abroad of up to 90 days
- Repatriation to your country of origin, including a companion
- We can't currently arrange policies for people living in Cantabria (including Santander) or Navarra. This is a limit on our distribution area, not on the insurer's medical network.
7. The visa certificate
Sanitas issues a visa certificate for Residents policies. Before you submit it, we go through the names, passport numbers, start date, length of cover and wording to make sure they match your application. What the certificate must show →
8. Important exclusions and limits
Like any policy, Residents has exclusions and limits, and they're set out in the policy conditions. It's worth reading them before you apply, and we're happy to go through anything that isn't clear.
9. Price
Price depends on age, where you live and how many people are insured.
- Household size: Sanitas publishes separate Residents Visado tariff tables for one, two, three, and four or more insured people.
The dated April 2026 Residents Visado tariffs are set by age, area and number of insured people; they apply in the first year to new insured people whose cover starts from 1 April through 31 December 2026, before a 0.15% Consorcio surcharge.
With a Spanish or other European IBAN, the premium can be paid annually or half-yearly; card payment is for annual payment. Your quote shows the exact premium for the payment schedule offered for your application.
10. How to apply with us
- Send your visa route, dates and the ages of everyone applying.
- We assess whether Residents suits your visa route and circumstances, and explain why if it doesn't.
- You complete the application and health questionnaire, with our help.
- Sanitas approves, you pay, and we check your certificate.
- We help with your renewal when the time comes.
Frequently asked questions
Is Residents accepted by all Spanish consulates?
It's designed to meet residence visa requirements and comes with a certificate. Consulates make the final decision, and we check the certificate against your consulate's list.
Can I upgrade to Platinum later?
Ask us before your renewal and we'll explain your options. Renewals and switches are coordinated so your existing cover isn't cancelled before the replacement is accepted. Bear in mind that Platinum can only be taken out up to age 64 (until the month of your 65th birthday).