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Insurance
Insurance affiliation can represent a significant part of the budget. Find out how they work in Switzerland and check that your coverage is adequate.
Health insurance (LAMal)
Health insurance is compulsory for anyone domiciled in Switzerland, even temporarily. Students must insure themselves against the risks of illness by their own means throughout their studies, as well as during internships, whether carried out in Switzerland or abroad.
For an internship or exchange abroad, make sure that your insurance cover also extends to the country of your stay. If this is not the case, you will need to take out additional insurance.
If you hold a B permit, you must declare your health insurance to the Cantonal Health Insurance Service (SAM - Service cantonal de l'assurance maladie).
You are a citizen from the European Union
Without employement in Switzerland
Without employement in Switzerland
Under bilateral agreements between Switzerland and the European Union (Bulgaria and Romania not included), you are exempt from compulsory Swiss insurance. Your European health insurance card must however be valid for the entire duration of your stay. Swiss law on health insurance is applicable. Entitlement to benefits, fees and cost sharing are in accordance with Swiss law.
In Geneva, a request for equivalence as well as a copy of the European health insurance card must be sent by post to the Cantonal Health Insurance Service (SAM - Service cantonal de l'assurance maladie) within 3 months of arrival.This service will issue the exemption from affiliation to an insurance in Switzerland:
Service cantonal de l’assurance-maladie (SAM)
Route de Frontenex 62 - 1207 Genève
sam@etat.ge.ch
To obtain reimbursement for health care services, you must send your invoices to the LAMal Joint Institution in Solothurn, which coordinates the payment of medical costs, giving your bank details in Switzerland (not abroad) :
Institution Commune LAMal
Gibelinstrasse 25 - 4503 Soleure
Tel. +41 32 625 30 30
Fax +41 (0)32 625 30 90
E-mail: info@kvg.org
http://www.kvg.org/fr/home.html
Please note: 92 CHF per invoice is payable by you for each month of treatment (deductible)
With employement in Switzerland:
If you are engaged in paid work in Switzerland, however minimal, you must register with a Swiss health insurance fund. In this case, the European card is not sufficient and exemptions will not be valid. Students who have private foreign insurance may be exempted, provided that their insurance coverage is equivalent and that a request for exemption has been submitted and accepted by the Cantonal Health Insurance Service (SAM - Service cantonal de l'assurance maladie)
You are a citizen from a state outside the EU/EFTA
You may be exempt from the obligation to take out basic insurance in Switzerland only if you hold private insurance in your country of origin with cover equivalent to that of Swiss health insurance.
In Geneva, a request for equivalence, accompanied by written evidence from the relevant foreign insurer giving all the necessary information, must be sent by post to the Cantonal Health Insurance Service (SAM - Service cantonal de l'assurance maladie) before arriving in Switzerland:
Service cantonal de l’assurance-maladie (SAM)
Route de Frontenex 62 - 1207 Genève
sam@etat.ge.ch
The exemption has a duration of three years, with the possibility of requesting an extension of up to three years. After this period, you will need to take out Swiss health insurance. This step causes considerable changes to costs. It is therefore important to plan modifications to your income accordingly.
You are required to take out insurance in Switzerland
If no exemption from compulsory insurance is possible (for ex. European students with employment or third-country nationals without equivalent private insurance coverage), you must take out health insurance approved in Switzerland within three months of taking up residence.
If no exemption from compulsory insurance is possible (for ex. European students with employment or third-country nationals without equivalent private insurance coverage), you must take out health insurance approved in Switzerland within three months of taking up residence.
However, your B or L study permit allows you to benefit from student health insurance provided at favorable rates, with the possibility to work alongside your studies if needed, which you may freely choose. Indeed, following your application for authorization to stay in the canton of Geneva, the Cantonal Health Insurance Service (SAM - Service cantonal de l'assurance maladie) will send you an information letter and ask you to provide the name of the LAMaL insurer you have chosen. Without a response from you, you will be automatically affiliated, without consideration for premiums and cost sharing.
Insurance solutions for foreign students:
- Simple and designed especially for international students living in Switzerland, ScoreStudies is an advantageous and comprehensive insurance solution. Registration is done online. In the event of membership, ScoreStudies takes care of the exemption procedure with the competent cantonal authorities.
- The Swiss Insurance Association for Foreign Students (SIAFS) also promotes basic accident and health insurance at good price in Switzerland for international students.
- Since October 2023, Swisscare has been offering a new product specially designed for foreign students in Switzerland, which meets all the requirements of the LAMal and includes a telemedicine service. The insurer also manages the exemption process with the cantonal authorities.
Other Swiss insurers provide insurance to foreign students :
Swica Organisation de santé Genève
"Student Care"
Rue de Lausanne 80
1202 GENEVE
Tel. +41 (0)22 908 33 66
Groupe Mutuel
Mutuel Assurance Maladie SA
"Academic Care"
Rue des Cèdres 5
1920 MARTIGNY
Tel. 0848 803 111
Golden Care
Boulevard Helvétique 31
1207 GENEVE
Tel. +41 (0)22 786 12 00
In summary, this is what you need to know :
- Only basic insurance is compulsory
- The benefits are the same for each health insurance fund
- You are free to choose your health insurance provider.
Additional insurance is optional. This covers things that basic insurance does not: dental care, private hospitalisation, alternative medicine, some treatments that are not recognised, etc. Unlike basic insurance, additional insurance has the right to refuse clients or attach certain terms.
The Cantonal Health Insurance Service (SAM - Service cantonal de l'assurance maladie) in Geneva is responsible for ensuring the application of the federal law on health insurance. It can help you get :
- A subsidy in the event of a modest or difficult economic situation
- An exemption from the obligation to take out Swiss insurance if you already have equivalent cover in your country
- Information on the prices of the various health insurance providers.
For a better understanding of how health insurance works in Switzerland, you can also refer to the brochure “Help for adults - a practical guide for 18-25 year olds” (in French), published by the Hospice Général (Geneva institution for social action).
Your residence is in France:
If you are a member of an EU/EFTA state, you are not subject to the obligation to take out insurance in Switzerland, provided that you do not exercise a gainful activity in the territory. Healthcare in Switzerland is available to you on presentation of your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). On the other hand, if you carry out a gainful activity in Switzerland during your studies (even minimal), you are required to apply for cross-border worker status and to choose between the French CMU or the Swiss LAMal.
If you are a national of a third country, please contact the French authorities.
Accident insurance (AA)
Accident insurance is compulsory for everyone living in Switzerland, and supplements your health insurance. It covers the costs of treatment in the event of occupational and non-occupational accidents.
Students are responsible for insuring against the risk of accident throughout the duration of the training and the internship / practical training periods, whether this is carried out in Switzerland or abroad. During an internship / practical training period, it is up to the host company or institution to assume this responsibility, by taking out insurance which guarantees its civil liability or by committing to take responsibility for all damage caused to the student in the context of his internship / practical training. Each occupational accident that occurs during an internship / practical training period in a Swiss institution is in principle covered by the place of practical training, subject to specific rules applicable to international organizations.
If you are engaged in paid activity for at least eight hours per week, accident insurance is paid for by your employer. You can remove it from your health insurance by simple request and at any time. However, should you decide to leave your job, be sure to reinstate accident insurance in your basic insurance cover.
Liability insurance (Assurance RC)
Liability insurance is strongly recommended. It reimburses damage caused to another person, while protecting you against unjustified claims from third parties.
In Switzerland, if you live with your parents and are under 21, you are covered by your family's liability insurance. However, liability insurance is compulsory if you want to rent accommodation or ride a bicycle.
Finally, liability insurance is often offered with home insurance. This type of insurance covers water damage, broken glass and theft from your apartment or that of a neighbour. It is not compulsory but is almost always required by estate agents and university residences for anyone renting an apartment or house. If you live in a university residence, check your tenancy agreement or contract, because liability insurance is often already included.
To take out civil liability and/or home insurance, see offers for students on scorestudies.
During classes, events and camps, as well as as a member of student groups, provided they are organized under the direction and supervision of HES bodies, you are insured by the HES-SO Genève in terms of civil liability. As the excess amount is CHF 5,000, it is however recommended to take out liability insurance covering loss, theft and damage to equipment from others or borrowed from a HES school. The legal liability of students registered with the HEdS is insured for pecuniary damage as described in the insurance policy available to HES-SO Geneva. Professional civil liability is also insured for nursing students, midwives, physiotherapists, medical radiology technicians and dieticians for damage caused during their activities carried out as part of an internship. '' a maximum period of 12 months, in Switzerland or abroad, under the insurance cover taken out by the HES-SO Genève.
