All you need to know about Health Insurance before arriving in France

Registration for Social Security

European students

Before you leave, you should ask your national health organization for a European Health Insurance Card. With this card, you will be reimbursed for your health care costs, just like any French citizen.
 

Beware however, the Social Security system only reimburses about 65% of health care costs!

So you are strongly advised to take out additional health insurance if you wish to be reimbursed 100% of health care costs, which can be expensive.

Non-European students

Foreign students can:
  • be affiliated with a public or private foreign health insurance and present a certificate translated into French or English, which covers the duration of their stay at the UCA.
  • apply for an affiliation to the French social security (as soon as they are registered at the University) on the CPAM website: https://etudiant-etranger.ameli.fr
Once your postal address has been declared on the portal, your residence office will take care of managing your file and will assist you in the process. You will then be able to benefit from a local treatment (affiliation and registration) guaranteeing reduced processing times.

Concerning your support, you can use your local CPAM reception desk and call 3646 for remote management. For those who wish to speak English, a special number is available: +33 (0)9.74.75.36.46.

In case of difficulty using the site or adding an administrative document, do not hesitate to call 3646 and ask for an appointment at your local CPAM reception desk.

In addition, you can benefit from a certificate (as soon as your registration is validated on the site), a "carte vitale" and an "ameli" account (as soon as your registration is completed).
 

Beware however, the Social Security system only reimburses about 65% of health care costs!

So you are strongly advised to take out additional health insurance if you wish to be reimbursed 100% of health care costs, which can be expensive.

Students from Quebec

Thanks to an agreement between France and Quebec, you will be entitled to the same conditions as any French person.

Make sure you have filled in the form SE 401-Q-106 which will exempt you from the national student Social Security.
 

In all cases, you must have an attestation of public or private health insurance either in French or in English.