The EHIC entitles travellers to free or reduced cost medical treatment whilst in the countries shown below. The EHIC has replaced the old E111.

COUNTRIES PROVIDING MEDICAL ASSISTANCE

Austria, Belgium, Cyprus (but not Northern Cyprus), Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, The Republic of Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

The EHIC is an important document as travel insurance alone may not be enough to cover medical care and some insurance policies are not valid without the EHIC. If you need to claim on your insurance, some insurance companies will waive the excess if an EHIC has been used. You will still need travel insurance as the EHIC does not cover some things such as repatriation to the UK.

With an EHIC travellers will get free or reduced cost, state-provided medical treatment if they fall ill or have an accident. It also covers treatment for chronic illnesses (like diabetes), maternity care, illnesses you had before you went away, kidney dialysis and oxygen therapy. To arrange kidney dialysis whilst away, travellers should contact their NHS renal unit in the UK before they travel. For limited information on oxygen supply services in the above countries, please call the Department of Health's Customer Service Centre on 020 7210 4850.

The EHIC is free to all UK residents.

Each traveller (including children) must hold an individual EHIC unlike the old E111 which covered an entire family.

Travellers will be able to apply for their EHIC online by visiting website www.dh.gov.uk/travellers, by calling 0845 606 2030 or by completing an application form from the Post Office and posting to:

EHIC Applications
PO Box 1115
Newscastle-upon-Tyne
NE99 1SW

The quickest way is to complete the application form online, which means that you should receive your EHIC within 5-7 days.

If you already have an EHIC please check that it is still in date before you travel. Three million EHICs are due to expire between September 2008 and March 2009. You can renew your EHIC at website www.dh.gov.uk/travellers or by calling 0845 606 2030. If you have any queries, please contact the EHIC enquiries line on 0845 605 0707.