GHIC applications drop by a fifth. Thousands missing out on free healthcare abroad

New NHS data has revealed 4.6 million GHICs were issued in 2024, down from 6.1 million in 2023.

According to official data from the Office of National Statistics, between April and June alone in 2024, residents of Great Britain made an estimated 25.3 million visits outside of the UK. This indicates that there could be thousands or even millions of Brits travelling outside the UK without important protection.

GHICs provide British citizens access to free or discounted state healthcare when travelling to countries within the EEA. Without one, holiday-goers may need to front the full cost of medical treatments if something goes wrong on their travels.

Kara Gammell
Personal finance expert at MoneySuperMarket

Why have GHIC renewals dropped?

There are a number of reasons why GHIC renewals could have dropped – one possibility being that the last of the old EHIC holders have finally switched over to the new GHIC.

We are nearly five years past the deadline to apply for an EHIC and EHICs only lasted for five years, so the very last few people that had a valid EHIC are reaching or have reached their expiry date.

If you're one of those people that held onto their EHIC for as long as possible and haven't applied for a GHIC yet, now is the time to do it! It's free, and applying now will ensure you have your protection at the ready for your next trip abroad.

Do I need a GHIC if I have travel insurance?

There are benefits to both a GHIC and a travel insurance policy that don't make them interchangeable. GHICs offer protection that travel insurance can't and vice versa, so having one doesn't mean that you have no need for the other. Ideally, if you are travelling to Europe, you get the most by having both.

One of the reasons why you should bring a GHIC with you on holiday as well as travel insurance is the medical cover. Travel insurance typically includes medical cover but most policies will exclude cover for certain conditions or treatments. If your medical needs aren't considered an 'emergency' by your travel insurance provider, for example, your policy won't cover you.

The medical cover provided by travel insurance is designed to care for you in the event of an emergency, so if you have any foreseen medical needs a GHIC will ensure you have access to free or cheap healthcare while you're abroad.

For example, travel insurance won't usually cover treatments for the following, meaning you would have to pay out of pocket to get them while you're abroad:

• Excluded pre-existing conditions

• Chronic conditions

• Routine pregnancy care and childbirth

If you're not sure how a GHIC works or why it's different to the EHIC you can check out our guide to GHICs with more information. You can apply for a GHIC through the NHS websitefor free, with applications taking around 15 days to be processed.

Beware of GHIC scams when applying online. Fake websites that advertise themselves as offering GHICs will sometimes charge a fee of as much as £40 to "process" an application, but don't be fooled. GHICs are completely free to apply for through the NHS website, so don't fall for scammer fees.