If you are researching Sanitas Residents Visado health insurance for a Non-Lucrative Visa, you are looking at one of the most comprehensive — and most premium-priced — products available in the Spanish private health insurance market. Sanitas is a household name in Spain, part of the Bupa group, and their Residents Visado product sits firmly at the top of the market in both breadth of cover and cost.
This page explains what the product includes, where it stands out, and the questions worth asking before you commit. We are independent brokers with over 35 years of experience in the Spanish insurance market. We work with Sanitas alongside other providers and will tell you honestly whether it suits your situation — or whether a different insurer would give you better value for money.
Contents
- Is Sanitas Residents Health Insurance accepted for the Non-Lucrative Visa?
- What does the policy cover?
- Waiting periods
- Pre-existing conditions
- The medical network
- Using the policy day to day — the Adeslas mobile phone app
- Renewal and cancellation
- Is Sanitas Residents Health Insurance the right choice for you?
Is Sanitas Residents accepted for the Non-Lucrative Visa?
Yes. Sanitas designed the Residents Visado product specifically to meet Spanish consulate requirements for the Non-Lucrative Visa. The policy documentation confirms it provides comprehensive coverage throughout Spain, with no waiting periods, access to the medical network for medical, surgical and hospital care, and a minimum duration of one year. You can pay the first year’s premium by bank transfer, debit card, or credit card, which suits applicants who have not yet relocated to Spain.
One practical advantage that Sanitas offers over most of its competitors is timing. Sanitas allows you to agree the policy and pay for it up to six months before the cover start date. Most other insurers limit this to three months or less. This can make a real difference if your Spanish consulate takes time to process the visa application, or if your move to Spain requires careful planning and a flexible start date. You can secure the documentation you need well in advance without the policy clock starting until you are ready.
A very small number of consulates also require repatriation cover. Sanitas builds repatriation into the Residents Visado product as standard. If the insured passes away in Spain, Sanitas organises and covers the transfer of remains to the country of origin, including an escort for a direct family member. You do not need to arrange this separately. In our experience, neither UK nor US consulates currently require it, but it is there if yours does. If you are applying through a different consulate, check whether your consulate requires it and let us know when you get in touch.
For a full overview of NLV health insurance requirements, see our Non-Lucrative Visa health insurance guide.
What does the policy cover?
Sanitas Residents is a genuinely comprehensive product. Cover includes general medicine and paediatrics, a full range of specialist consultations across 35 medical and surgical disciplines, clinical analysis, diagnostic imaging, 24-hour emergency care, hospitalisation, surgery, physiotherapy, rehabilitation, psychology, speech therapy, podiatry, nutrition, ambulance transfers, and home respiratory therapy. Preventive medicine programmes covering cardiovascular health, gynaecology, urology, gastrointestinal screening, paediatric checks, and pneumology are also included.
The policy includes overseas emergency healthcare cover for trips of up to 90 consecutive days, with a limit of €12,000 per person per year. This covers emergency medical expenses, hospital fees, ambulance costs, emergency dental treatment up to €300, and practical support including transfer of the insured if required, family member travel to accompany a hospitalised insured, and return of remains in the event of death abroad.
A second medical opinion service is also included — useful if you receive a serious diagnosis and want another expert opinion.
The policy does not cover prescription medicines purchased at the pharmacy, or cosmetic treatments. Pre-existing conditions are excluded as with all Spanish private health insurers — we cover this in detail below.
Road traffic accidents — an important point
Many standard Spanish private health insurance policies do not automatically cover injuries arising from road traffic accidents. These are typically dealt with through compulsory motor insurance, which can leave a gap in your private healthcare cover that many people do not anticipate. Road traffic accident cover is available as an optional extra on the Sanitas Residents product. The additional cost is modest, but the peace of mind is significant. We always include it for our clients as a matter of course. If you take out this policy through any route, check that road traffic accident cover appears explicitly on your policy documentation. Without it, a comprehensive product has an unexpected gap.
Waiting periods
The Sanitas Residents Visado policy has no waiting periods. All cover is active from the policy start date. This is confirmed explicitly in the policy documentation and is a core requirement of the visa-specific product design.
For background on why this matters for your application, see our waiting periods guide.
Pre-existing conditions
Every Spanish private health insurer excludes pre-existing conditions, and Sanitas applies this strictly. Before the policy is issued, you complete a health questionnaire. Any condition you declare — or that existed before your policy start date — will be excluded from cover. You sign an agreement acknowledging those exclusions. This is the standard approach across the market.
Sanitas assesses the information you provide and may accept the application with specific exclusions, or decline it. In our experience, their underwriting approach is thorough and systematic — broadly similar to DKV. If you have a complex medical history that has led to a refusal elsewhere, Sanitas is unlikely to be the answer. For those situations, we would typically look at Salus or Union Madrileña as examples, or approach another more suitable insurer on your behalf.
One practical point that applies to all Spanish health insurance: if you take regular medication for a pre-existing condition, the policy covers you to consult an associated doctor and obtain a repeat prescription. The policy does not cover further investigation or treatment of the underlying condition. You pay for any prescription medicines at the pharmacy directly. Every Spanish private health insurer handles this the same way.
If you have any health history you are concerned about, speak to us before applying anywhere. We will give you an honest view of which insurers are most likely to be receptive.
Read our full pre-existing conditions guide
The medical network
Sanitas operates one of the largest private medical networks in Spain. As a Bupa-affiliated insurer, they have invested heavily in their own clinics, hospitals, and specialist centres alongside contracted professionals. You choose from the professionals listed in the Mi Sanitas directory, book directly, and attend with your Sanitas card — there is nothing to pay at the point of use for covered treatments.
For surgical procedures of significant complexity — neurosurgery, cardiac surgery, and spinal surgery — Sanitas designates both the centre and the surgeon rather than leaving the choice to the patient. This reflects the high level of clinical oversight built into the product but does mean you may not have complete freedom of choice for the most complex procedures. It is worth understanding this in advance.
We check network availability in the area where you plan to live before recommending any product. This is especially relevant for specialist access outside major cities.
Using the policy day to day
Sanitas provides the Mi Sanitas app and online portal for managing your policy. Through it you can find doctors and specialists, manage appointments, access your policy documents, and use video consultation services. Sanitas also offers a 24-hour phone medical advice line — Sanitas 24 Hours — which gives access to a medical team for questions about treatments, test results, and medication at any time of day. See our guide to using Mi Sanitas.
Some services require a written prescription from a Sanitas network doctor before you access them. Surgical procedures, inpatient treatment, and certain diagnostic tests require prior written authorisation from Sanitas before the appointment takes place. Your treating doctor initiates the authorisation request. In larger hospitals and clinics, the medical team often contacts Sanitas directly. In many other cases, your doctor hands you the paperwork. You then submit it to Sanitas yourself so they can confirm the treatment in writing before your appointment.
For routine consultations with general practitioners, paediatricians, and most specialists, you attend directly without needing prior authorisation — the process is straightforward for day-to-day healthcare.
The app handles most routine tasks without you needing to contact anyone. During office hours, we are also available if you need help navigating an authorisation or a more complex situation.
Renewal and cancellation
Your policy renews automatically each year. Sanitas will notify you of your renewal premium at least two months before the renewal date, which gives you time to consider your options. If you wish to cancel rather than renew, Spanish insurance law requires written notice received by Sanitas at least one month before the renewal date.
A lapse in cover can affect your visa renewal, so this is not something to leave to the last minute. We can help you obtain the appropriate health insurance documentation for visa renewal purposes. If your circumstances have changed and you want to compare alternatives, we can assess those too.
Read our renewal guide | Read our cancellation guide
Is Sanitas Residents Visado the right choice for you?
Sanitas Residents Visado is the most feature-rich product we work with for NLV applicants. The breadth of cover, the size and quality of the medical network, the overseas emergency cover, the built-in repatriation, the second opinion service, and the flexibility to secure the policy up to six months ahead of your start date make it a genuinely premium product. The price reflects that.
It suits applicants who want the most comprehensive cover available, who prioritise access to a large and well-resourced medical network, and who are in good health with a straightforward medical history. It is not the right fit for everyone — particularly those with a complex health history or those looking for more competitive pricing. For those clients, DKV, Unión Madrileña, Aegon or Salus may serve better.
Whether Sanitas is the right answer depends on your health, your budget, where in Spain you plan to live, and which consulate you are applying through. We are happy to talk it through without any obligation.
For a full overview of NLV health insurance requirements, timing, and documentation, visit our comprehensive NLV health insurance guide.