Health Insurance For Expats In Lithuania

The Best Health Insurance For Expatriates Living In Lithuania

Posted by Greg Jones on January 24, 2020

If you've searched the web for private medical insurance that covers expats in Lithuania then you are most likely for looking for established UK based health insurance providers that will cover your medical expenses in Lithuania.

Living as an expat in Lithuania you want to avoid any nasty unexpected health care costs. In some countries these can run into hundreds of thousands of pounds for serious medical conditions.

Our advice when shopping around for private medical insurance that covers expatriates living in Lithuania is to speak to a health insurance broker. Health insurance is incredibly complicated and if you want absolute certainty that Lithuania is covered you should talk with a medical insurance broker who can explain which policy providers will cover medical expenses for expatriates in Lithuania and which will exclude it.

There are many advantages to using a insurance broker but the largest by far is that you're using their insurance training at no cost. They are paid by the insurer (Aviva or Bupa etc) rather than by you so it costs you no extra to use their services.

  • Do you live in many different areas? Some will give you a lower policy premium than offers. A insurance broker will be able to advise whats best.
  • Do you have a hobby that may invalidate your insurance policy? A broker will know this vital information.
  • If you are a couple and one of you has claimed on your policy this year would it be cheaper to separate you both onto two different policies?
  • You've developed a certain medical condition and want to know which policy provider offers the largest amount of cover for it. A broker will know this instantly saving you so much time and effort.

You can call around every health insurance provider you can find and ask if they provider cover for expats in Lithuania, however this will be a very time consuming process. Each insurer will ask for your medical history because its not normally a simple yes or not if a medical condition is covered or not.

Its much quicker to speak to one health insurance broker which will know which providers on the market offer cover for expats in Lithuania and under what terms they do or don't cover it.

Lithuania Information

Lithuania attracts many visitors from neighbouring countries and all over the world. In 2018, 1,7 million foreign visitors arrived to Lithuania for business, family and leisure. Historical legacy of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, rich history, architecture, pristine nature, seaside and SPA resorts are the main attraction points of Lithuania. Domestic tourism is also highly popular - in 2018 it grew by 12% percent. Lithuanians also prefer to spend their vacations in Lithuania - 70 percent.

Lithuania experiences a constant increase of foreign visitors. In 2017, the accommodation establishments of Lithuania received 3.25 million tourists, which is by 6.2 per cent more than in 2016. Lithuania attracts foreign visitors mostly from Germany, Poland, Russia, Latvia, Belarus, the United Kingdom, Estonia and Finland.

In 2017 hotels received 2.2 million tourists, or by 7 per cent more than in 2016. Number of Lithuanian tourists grew by 12.8 per cent, foreigners – by 3.3 per cent. The hotel room occupancy rate stood at 54.3 per cent (in 2016, 51.7 per cent), the hotel bed occupancy rate – at 41.4 per cent (in 2016, 39.7 per cent).

Agrotourism has also gained extreme popularity in the country among the locals as well as foreigners. Ecotourism is actively promoted by the government and national parks – Lithuania has built a successful ecotourism industry, and is also been acknowledged as one of the world's most ethical destinations. Hot air ballooning is very popular in Lithuania, especially in Vilnius and Trakai. Theme routes through historical and nature sites are popular among domestic and international tourists. Nemunas Delta Regional Park and Žuvintas biosphere reserve are known for birdwatching.

If the nature of the tour is that the guide is "interpreting the cultural and natural heritage of an area", Lithuania requires the guide have a guiding license. This definition follows the European standard for tour guiding (CEN). Licensed Tourist Guides are the only professionals permitted to conduct tours in all sites and museums within a city. Licensed guides are required in those areas where the local authorities state that one of them is mandatory. There is a Guides Database to find a guide in your language as well.

In 2019 Cultural Route of Lithuanian composer Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis was opened which leads through the places in Varėna, Druskininkai, Kaunas, Vilnius, Plungė, Rietavas, Palanga where composer has lived.

Cognitive or sightseeing routes (Pažintinis takas) are highly popular among domestic tourists. Usually they lead through unique places in nature, where the visitor can enjoy the nature and local history while walking some predefined path.

The country has some military sites left and may be very interesting place as a place of militarism heritage tourism. It might be interesting for anyone who is interested in history of the warfare or the Cold War.

Bicycle tourism is growing, especially in Lithuanian Seaside Cycle Route. EuroVelo routes EV10, EV11, EV13 go through Lithuania. Total length of bicycle tracks amounts to 3769 km (of which 1988 km is asphalt pavement). Most known bicycle routes are: Nemunas River Cycle Route, Suvalkija Cycle Circuit, Lithuanian Seaside Cycle Route. Most of the Tourism information centres and national parks have their local thematic bicycle route plans.