5 Best Travel Insurance Options (For Expats and Travelers)
Reading Time: 5 minutes How do I choose good travel insurance? This is a question we get asked all the time. Which provider is best? How can I get coverage as an expat? In this post, you’ll learn about the best travel insurance for travelers and expats traveling abroad.
When we moved to Ecuador we lost eligibility to buy travel insurance from Canada.
The providers we contacted all stipulated that we must be Canadian residents. In researching other providers, this seems to be pretty common. Like all expats, we lost residency in our home country when we settled in our new one.
In this post, we share providers that will insure expats living abroad.
Some insurance providers have an age restriction (there are maximum ages depending on the country of residence). This is an issue for many travelers and expats. So for the past two days, I’ve been researching travel insurance for expats.
Here’s what I discovered.
3 Best Options for Expat Travel Insurance
If you want to save the time of reading the full post, you can check out these top three providers:
- Atlas Travel Insurance
- World Nomads
- SafetyWing Valid for travelers from 15 days old to 69 years old. This insurer is different than the others – you don’t have to pre-purchase the full policy before traveling. Just set up the subscription – renewable in 4-week increments. This is popular with digital nomads who travel to multiple countries.
1. Atlas Travel Insurance
Open to residents of over 180 countries. This is a great provider for expats.
Requirements: you must be at least 14 days old and traveling outside of your home country.
What is your country of residence? If you are a US citizen, your home country is always the United States (regardless of residency issues). For all non-US citizens, your home country is where you principally reside and receive regular mail.
6 Benefits of Insuring with Atlas Travel
- Adventure Sports: Most travel insurance policies exclude adventure and sport activities from coverage. Things like zip-lining and scuba diving aren’t covered with most policies. With Atlas Travel you are covered for a wide variety adventure sports. Find the list of excluded sports here.
- Global Coverage: Receive medical care in a foreign country. This can reduce/eliminate paying out-of-pocket while abroad.
- Emergency Medical Evacuation / Emergency Reunion: For return to your home country in the case of potential loss of life or limb. Emergency Reunion will bring an immediate family member to you – to either stay with you or help you return home.
- Return of Minors: In case of your hospitalization, your children are covered to return back to your home country.
- Common features such as: Accidental death and dismemberment, repatriation of remains, natural disaster, and terrorism coverage.
- Online Account Management: Gone are the days of paper policies. Purchase your policy, manage your account and submit claims online.
Learn more about Atlas Travel insurance
2. World Nomads
Things You Should Know About World Nomads
- World Nomads travel insurance has been designed by travelers for travelers. If you leave home without travel insurance or your policy runs out, you can buy or extend while on the road.
- Considering travel insurance for your trip? World Nomads offers coverage for more than 150 adventure activities as well as emergency medical, lost luggage, trip cancellation and more.
3. SafetyWing
SafetyWing is different than traditional travel insurance. It is an insurer created by digital nomads – for, you guessed it, other digital nomads.
Once you purchase your policy, you can auto-renew in 4-week increments while you travel.
Of course, you can also purchase for a specific number of days.
There is good coverage for medical and travel – including lost luggage, trip interruption and delay, emergency medical evacuation. Medical coverage includes hospital, ICU, ambulance, emergency dental, and more. See details below.
- Medical Coverage includes hospital, intensive care, ambulance, urgent care (with $50 co-payment), physical therapy and chiropractic care, and emergency dental. Other eligible medical expenses are covered to the overall maximum limit. With SafetyWing, you pay just $250 deductible with a $250,000 maximum limit. Of course, any of these details are subject to change. Please check directly with SafetyWing to confirm their current coverage and limitations.
- Travel Coverage includes trip interruption, trip delay, lost checked luggage, emergency medical evacuation (up to $100,000 lifetime), political evacuation, natural disaster coverage, and more. Please check directly with SafetyWing to confirm their current coverage and limitations.
As with most travel insurance, they exclude high-risk sports, pre-existing disease and injury, and cancer treatment.
I haven’t traveled with them yet, but I’m planning to give them a try on my next trip. I like the subscription model. And it looks less expensive than other companies I’ve gotten quotes from.
So there you have it. Some travel insurance options. When you are traveling abroad there is an increased risk of a fall or another easy injury. Without insurance, you could be looking at a very large bill.
Please note: This post is not an offer to sell insurance but a listing of the possible options. Please confirm all details with the insurance company before making any purchase or travel decisions. Details and specifics can (and do) change quickly and without notice. If you notice an error in this post, please comment below and I’ll update it.
Your Turn
What insurance provider have you used? What company/policy do you recommend?
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Thanks for the information about travel insurance. Does it cover routine doctor visits and medications that would relate to what would be called a pre existing condition? ie high blood pressure, diabetes for example?
Thank you
Thanks for this detailed write up! I just purchased a policy from Atlas Travel using your referral link. All the best, Goats. Oh, and I really like your YouTube videos! 🙂
Help! I am not the dumbest pooch in the pound, but the req for health insurance for tourists of less than 90 days (3 Weeks) has me confused. Some posts say ‘all’, others say after 90 days. I am 74 and some companies won’t insure. Do you know if VA and Med part B are good enough.? If not, which can you recommend. See that some have age cutoff. Thanks. Bob
Hi Bryan, Off the topic a bit, but how do Expats get their social security payments transferred to hem as Ecuadorian Banks are not on the ACH network?
As i understand it, and I could be wrong, credit cards are not as generally accepted as in N.America, with there being a preference for cash as a mechanism for purchasing goods.
An easy solution is to have SS transferred to a US bank, then access it via a credit card &ATM. Works for me!
JL in Ecuador
For Americans at least, another alternative is squaremouth. They are an online travel insurance brokers selling annual and single trip coverage from a variety of carriers including some listed here and others that are not listed here.
Is there a health coverage amount limit or requirement for temporary/visitors insurance in Ecuador?
I currently have Anthem health insurance. When traveling to Ecuador, do I need additional insurance? Thank you, Tom
Does medicare with medicare supplement qualify?
medicare and supplemental medicare policies cover only within the US.
When a friend wants to visit Ecuador for a week, does he need this health insurance?
It is an entry requirement, so regardless of how long someone will be visiting, they’ll need health insurance to enter the country. Many policies now allow for very short-term trips.
We are in a bind. Arrived on tourist visas BEFORE proof of health insurance was required. Now, to get Visa extensions (which we need before we can apply for residency) we need proof of healthcare. BUT, when we go to sites to get cheap healthcare, they require we are IN our home countries and purchase BEFORE we leave.
I’m an American and Brazilian citizen.
My boyfriend is Australian.
Any ideas? Am sure others got caught in this same situation…
Changing rules create some interesting situations… Have you checked World Nomads? I just tried the quote app and it looks you can purchase from anywhere.
We have traveled with this insurance many times and it is super flexible. I know that you can extend while traveling. Let me know how it works out for you.
Thank you.
World Nomads did let us sign up, easily when already in Ecuador 😊
We live here full time, but are US citizens. So with Wnomads do i say Im travelling to Ecuador but am resident of US?
or ?
Did you move back to Ecuador??? The last time we talked you had moved back to Nova Scotia for Health Reasons??? If you are back in Ecuador Fantastico Mis Amigos Hasta Luego
Bryan, Do you know if Medicare satisfies Ecuador’s insurance requirement until you get your permanent residency? Will it suffice to get your residency?
Can I ask why you chose World Nomads over Atlas Travel when Atlas seems to cover more things (like extraction, and returning minors home)?
Nothing huge – I just found World Nomads easier to sort out and liked their offering.
If someone already has medical insurance that covers international medical care, but must be paid out of pocket first and then is reimbursed at home in the U.S., is this insurance still necessary? What sort of documentation do you need to show and to whom?
I’m planning on traveling to Ecuador next September, for a month, to see if I’d like to move there. I checked my Medicare Supplement policy, and I have 60 days of covered travel outside the US, with a $250 deductible and then it pays 80% of anything up to $50,000, for any medical need that occurs during that span of time. Do you think that will satisfy Ecuador’s requirement until I actually move there?
If and when I do move there, I’ll need to consider the cost of purchasing health insurance from one of the providers and dropping Medicare Part B and the supplement, which I think cost about $250/ month right now. I think it will be close to an even swap. I’ll keep Part A, and if I ever return to the US, I can ad Part B back in.
I’d really like to hear from others living there about how they have handled it.
I have used World Nomads for the last year and a half. I always bought the 6 month policy, and it cost $335. Now to renew it is $536 for a 6 month policy. That is a 62% increase.
I did use the coverage over a year ago, and I have NO complaints. This rate increase is tough to swallow though.
Hi Bryan
I REALLY need to find a Reputable person or company to help facilitate my relocation to Cuenca. Does anyone have someone that they’ve personally dealt with and were 100% (or close to it) happy? PLEASE let me know soon. Thanks a bunch.
Alice
I can recommend Isaac May, who is a realtor here but Ive seen him take care of everything, for many of his clients and refer you to the best people if he cannot ie visas. etc . write me here and ill send his email.
Lulie
Lulie, I would also like the info for Isaac May. but I don’t see a way to write you here.
Point of Information
Allianz is Now available in Canada ….I was in Ecuador in April and Purchased Allianz in Canada.
Thanks Joseph!
Can I ask what health insurance you use while you are in Ecuador? You noted that you use WorldNomads when you left Ecuador, as you would be considered a traveler during those time spans.
I just became a permanent Ecuador resident (received VISA) and I consider it my home, but I haven’t gotten my cedula yet. I was informed that my new permanent resident status has voided my travel’s insurance even though I already paid for it through a future date.
Do you have any suggestions for coverage until I get my cedula? I don’t think traveler’s insurance would work as I am no longer a traveler.
Thanks for your recommendations. Will definitely look into Atlas, which seems to offer a wide cover, particularly as it covers people of age too.
Okay, batting 0. I followed your new link to the AIBB FRONTIER INSURANCE……..their site is down. 🙁
I see that as well. It looks temporary – sometimes sites will be down for a few hours due to maintenance or another issue. (We’ve had the same problems, once in a while).
Your AAIB/Frontier link is invalid. Perhaps they changed their site? Their main url is now:
http://www.frontier-insurance.com/
Unfortunately their “get a quote” link does not work on their site, though the other links do?
Thanks Burt – I’ll check this and update it the first of the week.
Hi Bryan,
Sadly, Atlas Insurance won’t allow you to buy their insurance if you live in Canada, Australia or some parts of the USA. Don’t know why this is. I called them to find out if there was any other option but got the robot, then put on hold and eventually i hung up. My next option was World Nomads from your site but the age restriction means i’m out of luck on that one. Back to the drawing board.
The rules can certainly be confusing. I don’t know why they have exclusions for specific areas.
Have you tried Travelex? I’ve heard good things about them, and they insure residents of almost every country.
World Nomads recently changes their policy for US residents – now insuring everyone under the age of 70.
Thanks for the reply Bryan. I was able to get a good rate from Presidents Choice…a reputable name here. 🙂
Nice – glad to hear it.
Thanks for the information. Any knowledge on insuring 2 adults & a minor for 6-12 months.
I’ve never bot travelers insurance unless I was forced to by a British Travel Agency (out of the USA by internet). They all seem to require it but were only interested in “extraction” insurance and medical evacuation kinds of stuff. Not insuring the airline ticket, travel agent, etc.
My personal philosophy is to insure against disasters, which is relative, I know. But losing the price of 2x airline tickets doesn’t qualify for me. But the Brits wanted travel insurance and 5 or 6 times, I’ve had to get it and here’s where I get it from: Squaremouth is a meta-site that has many, many insurance companies. You start by filling in your rough data – like age, where/when you’re going, etc. They you get a page of side by side comparisons of insurance companies that you’ve likely never heard of before. There is also a ranking of their security of the company and user ratings.
I only buy the minimum but you can sign up for any options you like. It’s an easy one-stop shopping site. Works for me.
Thanks for sharing your experience.
Thanks for posting this. We are current WorldNomads customers who formerly used FrontierMedex, and have been extremely satisfied with both providers. I filed extensive claims with Frontier, including a stint in a Bangkok hospital for a double hit of malaria I picked up in India, and they were nothing short of fantastic. Contacted and kept in touch with the hospital, pre-authorized the claim, etc. Couldn’t have been better. We’re new to WorldNomads (less than a year) but so far we’re also impressed with their ease of access and responsiveness to claims and questions (though there have happily been few.) A word of caution to steer clear of the Philippines-based IBERO Filipinas, which is a nightmare of a provider who exploits short-term travelers and often sells through travel agents. They are incompetent, obstructionist and extremely difficult to deal with. I am in a pitched battle with them for a year-old claim they have approved but still not resolving, as they continue to lose documents I send them and bounce me around from department to department. Best to go with one of your winners. Thanks for posting.
Thanks for sharing your experience. So glad to hear about your success with these two providers.
Hi Dena and Bryan,
Thanks a lot for bringing up the topic about insurance, it is a very important one indeed. I am French and I am pretty sure rules must be totally different from Canada ones therefore I will get in touch with my insurance provider and ask them for advice. I will post the response on your blog so as other people will be able to get the information.
I would have a question on a different topic: does someone know about the translation market in Ecuador?
Have a great weekend !
Kindest regards from Daniela
When I decided to stay and officially make Ecuador my place of residence, I shopped around for health insurance. Key was that I was not yet 65 years old. I eventually selected BMI, an Ecuador company affiliated as most with other international companies. When I travel, it pays directly to the medical facility for up to one month and then after I have to pay and claim.
There is now a remote possibility that I might move to Europe within the next year and stay their for five years before returning to Ecuador. If I drop the Ecuador BMI insurance when gone, at my age I would not easily get it back. The only answer would be to get insurance in Europe for the time there. In my case I would expect to have a company pay for the European insurance. This, however, raises an important matter for travel and place of resident health insurance – Be aware that where you think you will be one day may not be where you will actually end up. Be very cautious.
Although this post is about travel insurance – which is temporary in nature – you make a good point. Health insurance is often based on country of residence and if that changes then you may not qualify anymore. We’ll be covering health insurance in an upcoming post.
I”m confused by the “home country” and “residence” issues. According to this info, if I’m a citizen of the U.S. but reside in Ecuador and am over 66, I can’t use any of the above?? I’ve always used World Nomads but didn’t know they had an age limit! (I’ll be turning 66 before my next trip back to the States) Thanks for all this info!
The main issue seems to be country of residence. When you go to any of these sites to get a quote, it will ask for country of residence. They generally are looking for where you are actually living – regardless of your legal status in that country. When I say “home country” I am referring to where you are from. Frequently expats cannot get insurance from their home country because of being a resident of another one.
One must be very careful. As a Canadian expat, Revenue Canada, the tax collectors, have me officially identified as a “non-resident” and I pay a lower tax rate on my Canadian income. Revenue Canada has very strict rules that they enforce because they want to get all the money from you that they can. You must be completely (almost) removed from Canada with no intention of returning. People have lost their non-resident tax status for not cancelling their Provincial driver’s license of having too many bank accounts in Canada. If one lives in Ecuador and, for insurance purposes, declares Canada , they may be at risk if the tax man finds out.
You’re right that you need to be careful. There is a form that you can submit and get an actual ruling. We did that and now we can confidently submit tax returns, etc.
The laws are quite straight forward. If you are a resident of Ecuador you won’t consider you a resident of Canada. We talk more about it in this post.
For insurance purposes, it seems that the companies are asking where you reside – not where you are a citizen.
Ohhh, I have to start shopping around, so THANK YOU for doing the legwork for me!
Absolutely!