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HEALTH CARD

TSE card: How to get a Spanish European Health Insurance card

Those residents in Spain who are entitled to Spanish healthcare should apply for a European Health Card which ensures they can recieve medical treatement when travelling across the European Union.

Published: 7 December 2020 15:56 CET
Updated: 3 February 2021 15:40 CET
TSE card: How to get a Spanish European Health Insurance card
Gerd Altmann/Pixabay

It also allows those Brits who are resident in Spain to receive emergency healthcare when visiting Britain. Besides having to exchange your driving license and applying for TIE card, Brits resident in Spain will also have to apply for a new European health card. 

The Spanish version is called a TSE (Tarjeta Sanitaria Europea). 

British Pensioners in Spain who are S1 holders and UK students studying in Spain will however need to apply for a new version of the EHIC issued by Britain. (Click here for more information)

But here’s some information for all other residents in Spain who, if they haven’t already, will need to get a TSE card.

What is it?

The Spanish version of the European Health Card or EHIC is called the Tarjeta Sanitaria Europea or TSE and entitles residents of Spain to health care in other European countries. 

Who is it for and who is eligible?

The card is for those residents in Spain who have the right to health care within Spain, and their beneficiaries. You need to have a social security number and actively be paying into the social security system in order to be eligible.

When is it to be used and why do I need one?

The TSE is to be used in emergencies when you are visiting or on holiday in Europe. It is not valid when moving to another country or if the trip is for the purpose of receiving medical treatment.

Your Spanish Tarjeta Sanitaria Individual (TSI) is only valid in Spain, so if you need to be treated when you are abroad, you’ll need a TSE instead. 

For those Britons resident in Spain before the end of the Brexit transition period and registered in the Spanish health system, they can use the TSE card for health emergencies when visiting the UK in future.

How to get one?

You need to apply for card online. There are several different ways to do this which we will explain below:

1) You can apply by clicking on the following link. Here you can apply for your TSE card, renew it or check on status once you’ve applied. Click on ‘Request/Renew European Health’ ‘Solicitar/Renovar Tarjeta Sanitaria’ and then you’ll be directed to a page to fill out your details. As well as your basic personal information, you’ll need your NIE/TIE number as well as your social security number to hand.

2) If you have a Cl@ve and digital certificate you can also log-in to the system you’ll be directed to your social security page. Here you’ll click on the ‘Healthcare’ or ‘Sanidad’ section, click on ‘Request a European health insurance card’ and indicate the address you want the card sent to.

3) A third way to apply is via SMS. In order to confirm your identity, you’ll be sent a code via SMS to the phone that is registered to your social security number. Once you’ve been identified, you’ll be able to request the card.

Where is it valid?

The TSE card is valid in Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Romania, Sweden and Switzerland. And in the UK for those Brits covered by the Withdrawal Agreement.

How long is it valid for?

Your TSE, for both the person applying and their beneficiaries will be valid for a total period of two years. After this time you must renew it. Your card will have an expiration date on it so you will know when it runs out.  

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BRITONS IN SPAIN

FACT CHECK: Spain’s ‘£97 daily rule’ isn’t new nor a worry for British tourists

The British tabloids are at it again causing alarm over the so-called '£97 daily rule’ which Spain is apparently imposing on UK tourists, who in turn are threatening to ‘boycott’ the country. 

Published: 15 April 2024 14:28 CEST
Updated: 20 April 2024 07:22 CEST
FACT CHECK: Spain's '£97 daily rule' isn't new nor a worry for British tourists

American playwright Eugene O’Neill once said: “There is no present or future – only the past, happening over and over again – now”.

In 2022, The Local Spain wrote a fact-checking article titled ‘Are UK tourists in Spain really being asked to prove €100 a day?‘, in which we dispelled the claims made in the British press about Spain’s alleged new rules for UK holidaymakers.

Two years on in 2024, the same eye-catching headlines are resurfacing in Blighty: “’Anti-British? Holiday elsewhere!’ Britons fume as tourists in Spain warned they may be subject to additional rules” in GB News, or “’They would be begging us to come back’: Brits vow to ‘boycott Spain’ over new £97 daily rule” in LBC.

The return of this rabble-rousing ‘news’ in the UK has coincided with calls within Spain to change the existing mass tourism model that’s now more than ever having an impact on the country’s housing crisis.

Even though Spaniards behind the protests have not singled out any foreign nationals as potential culprits, the UK tabloids have unsurprisingly capitalised on this and run headlines such as “Costa del Sol turns on British tourists”.

READ MORE: Why does hatred of tourists in Spain appear to be on the rise?

What is the so-called ‘£97 daily rule’?

Yes, there is theoretically a ‘£97 a day rule’, but it is not a new rule, nor one that applies only to UK nationals specifically, and not even one that Spain alone has imposed (all Schengen countries set their financial means threshold).

As non-EU nationals who are not from a Schengen Area country either (the United Kingdom never was in Schengen), British tourists entering Spain could have certain requirements with which to comply if asked by Spanish border officials.

Such requirements include a valid passport, proof of a return ticket, documents proving their purpose of entry into Spain, limits on the amount of time they can spend in Spain (the 90 out of 180 days Schengen rule), proof of accommodation, a letter of invitation if staying with friends or family (another controversial subject in the British press when it emerged) and yes, proof of sufficient financial means for the trip.

Third-country nationals who want to enter Spain in 2024 may need to prove they have at least €113,40 per day (around £97), with a minimum of €972 (around £830) per person regardless of the intended duration of the stay. It is unclear whether this could also possibly apply to minors.

The amount of financial means to prove has increased slightly in 2024 as it is linked to Spain’s minimum wage, which has also risen. 

Financial means can be accredited by presenting cash, traveller’s checks, credit cards accompanied by a bank account statement, an up-to-date bank book or any other means that proves the amount available as credit on a card or bank account.

Have Britons been prevented from entering Spain for not having enough money?

There is no evidence that UK holidaymakers have been prevented from entering Spain after not being able to show they have £97 a day to cover their stay, nor any reports that they have been asked to show the financial means to cover their stay either. 

17.3 million UK tourists visited Spain in 2023; equal to roughly 47,400 a day. 

Even though British tourists have to stand in the non-EU queue at Spanish passport control, they do not require a visa to enter Spain and the sheer number of UK holidaymakers means that they’re usually streamlined through the process, having to only quickly show their passports.

The only occasional hiccups that have arisen post-Brexit have been at the land border between Gibraltar and Spain (issued that are likely to be resolved soon), and these weren’t related to demonstrating financial means. 

Therefore, the British press are regurgitating alarmist headlines that don’t reflect any truth, but rather pander to the ‘they need us more than we need them’ mantra that gets readers clicking. 

To sum up, there is a £97 a day rule, but it is not new, it has not affected any British tourists to date, and it is not specific to Spain alone to potentially require proof of economic means. 

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