Written by Steffan Grund · Insurance specialist (Versicherungsfachmann BWV) · Updated Facts checked: Pick your permit, your nationality, whether you will work for a Montenegrin employer or your own registered business, and your age band. The tool shows the insurance rule for the permit, whether the FZO covers you, and the role and monthly price of Care Expat World.
Rules from the Ministry of Interior (rulebook amendment of 4 February 2025), the government digital nomad portal, the FZO list of insured persons, GOV.UK and NHSBSA, read October 2026. Prices from our Care Expat World registry, Zone 1, Basic with the highest deductible and Comfort with the middle deductible, before any surcharge from the health interview. The tool explains rules; the Ministry office and the FZO decide your case.
| Topic | 2026 fact |
|---|---|
| Temporary residence permit | Health insurance is a condition; proof = travel health insurance from an authorised insurance company, or cover under international agreements |
| Minimum sum for the permit policy | Not stated in the rulebook text we read |
| Temporary residence and work permit fees | €60 fee, €5 permit form, €2 request |
| Digital nomad permit | Health insurance required; up to two years, extendable by up to two more |
| Public insurer | Health Insurance Fund of Montenegro (FZO, Fond za zdravstveno osiguranje) |
| FZO for foreigners | Workers, self-employed and other listed categories with permanent or temporary residence; permanent residents not insured elsewhere |
| Health contribution for employees | Abolished from January 2022 (KPMG Montenegro); funded from the state budget |
| Britons | UK reciprocal agreement for visits; no S1 can be issued for Montenegro |
| Americans | Medicare generally does not pay in Montenegro |
| Emergency number | 112 |
| Care Expat World | Zone 1 country; the plan must begin by 1 December of your 64th-birthday year |
Sources: Ministry of Interior of Montenegro and the Official Gazette, government digital nomad portal, Government Point of Single Contact, Health Insurance Fund of Montenegro, GOV.UK and NHSBSA, European Commission, KPMG Montenegro. Every source is named in the list near the bottom.
Foreigners in Montenegro combine up to four kinds of cover: the insurance proof that the residence permit asks for, public insurance with the FZO if they work or hold permanent residence, a private or international policy for real long-term cover, and, for British visitors, the reciprocal healthcare agreement with the UK. Which of these you need depends on your permit far more than on your nationality. A remote worker or a retiree who bought a flat on the coast sits outside the public system for the first years; an employee of a Montenegrin company is inside it from the start.
| Option | Who uses it | Counts for the permit? | Main limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Travel health insurance from an authorised insurer | Every temporary residence applicant who is not covered under an international agreement | Yes, it is the wording of the rulebook | Built for trips; fixed end date; sum and length not set in the rule we read |
| FZO public insurance | Employees, self-employed people, permanent residents, some family members | Cover under the law; ask the Ministry whether it wants a certificate | Public network only; we found no co-payment list |
| Montenegrin private policy | Residents who want private clinics | Only if the Ministry accepts it as the required proof | We found no official prices or age rules |
| International long-term plan | Movers who want long-term cover across countries | No guarantee; the rule speaks of travel insurance | Starts on the 1st after you cross the border; premiums rise with age |
| UK reciprocal agreement | British visitors with a GHIC or UK passport | Not stated as permit proof | Immediate treatment; no repatriation; no routine monitoring of pre-existing conditions |
Think of the permit document and your actual health cover as two separate jobs. The permit document only has to satisfy the Ministry of Interior on the day you apply and on each renewal. Your actual cover has to pay for a broken hip in Budva or cancer treatment in Podgorica. A short travel policy can do the first job and fail at the second. For the general mechanics of long-term international plans, read our expat health insurance guide; here we stick to Montenegro.
A Montenegro temporary residence permit needs proof of health insurance, and since the 2025 rulebook amendment that proof is defined as travel health insurance from an authorised insurance company or health insurance under international agreements. The Ministry of Interior lists health insurance among the conditions for every temporary residence permit, together with means of subsistence, accommodation, a valid passport and a clean record. The detail sits in the rulebook on forms and conditions for temporary residence permits, whose article 11 was replaced by an amendment signed in Podgorica on 4 February 2025.
The new article 11 is short. In translation: proof of health insurance is travel health insurance provided by an authorised insurance company, or health insurance provided in accordance with international agreements. Three things are missing from it. It sets no minimum sum, no minimum length and no rule on deductibles. It does not say the insurer must be Montenegrin, only "authorised". And it does not name the FZO. So the rule neither requires a local insurer nor guarantees that a foreign one is accepted; the Ministry office applies the wording to the document you bring.
| Stage | What is asked | When | Who checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | Valid passport; the permit application can be filed within your permitted stay | On arrival | Border police |
| Temporary residence application | Means of subsistence, accommodation, health insurance proof, evidence of the purpose (for example the property certificate) | In person, at the Ministry office for your place of residence | Ministry of Interior |
| Decision | – | Within 40 days of a complete application (15 days listed for the residence and work permit) | Ministry of Interior |
| Renewal | Same conditions, including insurance for the new period | At least 30 days before the permit expires | Ministry of Interior |
Temporary residence is granted on a list of grounds: family reunification, schooling or study, youth exchange, training, scientific research, medical treatment, humanitarian reasons, owning real estate, religious service and work. Permits are generally valid for up to one year, so the insurance question comes back every year at renewal. If you hold a long-term private or international plan, ask the office in advance whether it accepts a confirmation from that insurer, or whether it wants a travel policy as well. We make no claim that any office accepts a particular plan. For how other countries word their visa insurance rules, see visa health insurance requirements by country.
Foreigners can join the Health Insurance Fund of Montenegro (FZO) when they hold permanent or temporary residence and fall into one of the Fund's insured categories, mainly employment or self-employment, and foreigners with permanent residence who are not insured on any other ground also acquire insured status. The FZO's own summary of the Law on Compulsory Health Insurance lists ten categories, from employees and entrepreneurs to pensioners under Montenegrin pension rules, registered unemployed people and farmers.
| Your situation | FZO status | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Employed by a Montenegrin employer, with a residence and work permit | Insured | Employment category |
| Running a registered business in Montenegro as your main occupation | Insured | Entrepreneur and self-employed category |
| Spouse or child with a family reunification permit, sponsor insured | Can acquire insured status through the family member | Family member rule, if not insured in another state under a social security agreement |
| Permanent residence, not insured on any other ground | Acquires insured status on request | Residual ground for permanent residents |
| Temporary residence as a property owner, not working | No category found | Private cover needed |
| Digital nomad paid from abroad | No category found | Private cover needed |
| Insured in another country | Cannot be an FZO insured person unless a social security agreement says otherwise | FZO rule on dual insurance |
Funding changed in 2022. A KPMG Montenegro tax alert reports that the health insurance contribution borne by employees and employers, 10.8% in total, was abolished from January 2022, and the state budget now funds health insurance. So an employee does not see a health deduction on the payslip, but the insured status still comes from the registered job. We found no voluntary scheme that lets a non-working temporary resident buy into the FZO, and no FZO co-payment list. The FZO page on the residual ground for permanent residents mentions no fee either; ask the Fund directly before you plan around it.
Insured people register with the Fund using its registration form (Prijava za zdravstveno osiguranje). The FZO notes that identity cards issued after 30 March 2020 can be verified to work as the health card. For how public systems compare across the countries we cover, see healthcare systems by country.
The property-owner route needs the same health insurance proof as every other temporary residence permit, plus the real estate certificate, and it gives no FZO cover because owning property is not an insured category. The Ministry of Interior lists "disposing of immovable property in Montenegro" as a ground for temporary residence, valid for one year at a time, with the cadastre certificate as evidence.
The rules around the property itself changed in 2026. A Montenegrin law firm reported in January 2026 that amendments to the Law on Foreigners, voted on the last day of 2025, entered into force on 17 January 2026. According to that report, applicants now show that the real estate is worth at least €150,000, based on the Tax Authority's transfer-tax decision; the rule does not apply to EU nationals and their family members, and permits issued before 17 January 2026 can be extended without proving the value. Real-estate websites reported other figures during the debate on the draft, so treat the amount as a law firm's reading and confirm it with the Ministry before you buy. The same report does not mention any change to the health insurance condition.
For a retiree, the practical result is a gap in public cover. Each yearly renewal needs fresh insurance proof, and until you qualify for permanent residence the FZO has no category for you. That is the years in which a private or international policy does the real work, while the document for the Ministry may be a separate travel policy if the office asks for one.
The Montenegro digital nomad permit needs proof of health insurance, which the government digital nomad portal lists with proof of financial means, accommodation and remote work for a foreign employer or your own company not registered in Montenegro. The permit is a form of temporary residence, so the rulebook definition of insurance proof applies as for other temporary residence permits.
| Point | Official rule |
|---|---|
| Insurance | "Has health insurance"; proof as defined in the rulebook |
| Money | Proof of financial means of support; no fixed amount on the official page |
| Work | Employment contract or other proof of remote work for a foreign company or your own unregistered company |
| Length | Up to two years; extension by up to two more years; a new permit six months after expiry |
| Timing | Apply in person before your 90-day stay ends; decision within 40 days; you may stay while it is pending |
| Family | Spouse and children up to 18 can join |
| FZO | No insured category for remote work paid from abroad |
The portal page was last updated in August 2023 and the 2026 amendments, as reported, did not change the nomad route. Income figures that circulate online have no official source we could find, so ask the Ministry office. A nomad who later takes a job with a Montenegrin employer needs a residence and work permit, which brings FZO insurance with it. Our digital nomad health insurance guide covers the travel-versus-long-term question, health insurance for freelancers abroad covers self-employed movers, and digital nomad visas by country compares Montenegro with other routes.
The UK–Montenegro agreement is written for visits: GOV.UK lists emergency hospital treatment and other treatment on the same basis as a local resident for UK nationals with a GHIC or passport, and it does not say the agreement covers people who live in Montenegro or replaces the permit insurance. GOV.UK's guidance on reciprocal agreements with non-EU countries, updated on 2 October 2026, adds that you pay for prescribed medicines and that the agreements do not cover repatriation or routine monitoring of pre-existing conditions.
| Question | Answer from GOV.UK and NHSBSA |
|---|---|
| What is covered | Emergency hospital treatment; some dental and other treatment on the same basis as a local resident |
| Documents | Valid GHIC or EHIC; UK nationals may show a UK passport |
| How to use it | Show your passport and GHIC to the Montenegrin Health Insurance Fund to get a certificate of entitlement |
| Without the certificate | You pay and cannot claim the costs back |
| Not covered | Prescribed medicines (you pay), repatriation, routine monitoring of pre-existing conditions |
| S1 for UK State Pensioners | Cannot be issued for Montenegro |
| Residents | Same benefits as insured Montenegrins if registered as resident, employed and paying social security contributions |
The S1 point matters for retirees. In EU countries a UK State Pensioner can often register an S1 and get public care funded by the UK; NHS Business Services Authority states plainly that an S1 cannot be issued for Montenegro. The State Pension itself is paid in Montenegro and, according to GOV.UK, rises each year because Montenegro is one of the agreement countries. A British retiree therefore keeps an indexed pension but has to arrange health cover privately unless they work locally or later hold permanent residence. Our health insurance for UK expats guide covers the NHS side, and the S1 form guide lists where an S1 works.
The difference is small in Montenegro: neither Americans nor Britons can bring public cover from home for living there, so both rely on FZO through local work, permanent residence, or private insurance, and Britons only gain extra cover on visits. Medicare generally does not pay for care outside the United States, and the UK agreement is a visitor arrangement.
| American | Briton under State Pension age | Briton drawing the UK State Pension | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Permit insurance | Proof per the rulebook | Proof per the rulebook | Proof per the rulebook |
| Public cover from home | None; Medicare does not pay in Montenegro except in narrow cases | UK agreement on visits only | UK agreement on visits; no S1 |
| FZO | Through local work or permanent residence | Same | Same (a UK pension is not a Montenegrin pension) |
| Pension | Not covered on this page; ask the Social Security Administration | – | Paid and uprated each year |
| Care Expat World during trips home | No cover while in the USA | No cover while in the UK | No cover while in the UK |
Americans should settle Medicare Part B before leaving, since giving it up may mean penalties for late enrolment on a later return; see health insurance for Americans living abroad. Britons should note that GOV.UK calls the GHIC “not an alternative to travel insurance”, and that the agreement is framed for visits, not for living in Montenegro.
We found no official price list for private clinics in Podgorica, Budva or Kotor, and the only figure we could trace is a crowd-sourced estimate of about €29 for a 15-minute private doctor visit in Podgorica. That figure comes from Expatistan (October 2026), is based on 8 price points and is described there as a guess, so use it only as a rough guide. For public hospitals, GOV.UK says uninsured patients pay the same fees as Montenegrins without insurance, should get a receipt, and may have to pay in cash at some facilities.
| Town | Private facilities on the FCDO list (June 2025) | Prices |
|---|---|---|
| Podgorica | Codra Hospital, Hospital Dr Medtim, Polyclinic and Hospital Konzilijum, Polyclinic Hipokrat, Special Hospital Ars Medica, Kardio Lab, Moj Lab, International Medical Center and others | No official list; about €29 for a short private doctor visit (Expatistan, crowd-sourced) |
| Budva | Polyclinic Moj Lab, PZU Consilium, Otorina Prima (ear, nose and throat) and others | Not found |
| Tivat | Polyclinic Mansa Medica | Not found |
| Herceg Novi and Igalo | Institute Dr Simo Milošević, Delic Polymedic | Not found |
| Bar | Poliklinika Dr Zejnilovic | Not found |
| Kotor | None listed | Not found |
The FCDO list is not a recommendation: it says none of the providers are endorsed and that the list is not complete. If you plan to live in Kotor, check the travel time to Tivat, Budva or Podgorica for specialist care and imaging. Before any non-urgent private treatment, ask for the price in writing and whether the clinic issues itemised invoices in English; an international plan that reimburses you needs those papers.
Private health insurance in Montenegro is sold by local insurers and by international companies, and each sets its own prices, ages and exclusions; GOV.UK says people who are not entitled to public care should hold appropriate insurance from Montenegrin or international providers. No official tariff or legal age rule for private health policies turned up in our research.
Before you buy a policy, local or international, check five points in writing. Territorial scope: Montenegro only, the region, or worldwide? Ages: is there an entry age, and does cover stop at a certain age? Renewal: is it a one-year contract the insurer can refuse to renew? Pre-existing conditions: excluded, surcharged or covered after a waiting period? Payment: does the insurer pay the clinic, or do you pay and claim? A cheap travel policy bought for the permit can fall short on several of these, so check it before you treat it as your only cover for a multi-year stay. Readers aged 50 to 64 will find the pros and cons weighed in expat health insurance for retirees.
Care Expat World is a long-term international plan that pays private treatment in Montenegro and throughout Zone 1 (all countries apart from the USA, China and Singapore), and it fits as your real cover, not as the permit document. The Ministry rule speaks of travel health insurance, the plan starts on the 1st of a month after you cross the border, and the insurer's terms say it cannot guarantee that the contract meets a local compulsory insurance rule. We make no claim that a Ministry office accepts it.
| Feature | Travel policy for the permit | FZO (if you qualify) | Care Expat World (Zone 1) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main job | Permit proof | Public care in Montenegro | Private care in Montenegro and abroad |
| Cost | Set by the insurer | No employee health contribution since 2022 | From €2,400 a year at 55–59 |
| Length | Fixed end date | While you are in an insured category | 12-month minimum, then no end date |
| Where it pays | Per policy | Montenegrin public network | All of Zone 1; in the USA, China and Singapore only emergencies during trips lasting at most 42 days, and never in your own home country (for Americans that rules out the USA) |
| Private clinics | Per policy | No | Yes, free choice of doctor, no network |
| Age rules | Per insurer | None in the FZO summary | Latest start: 1 December of the year you turn 64 |
| Health questions | Per insurer | None | Health interview by video call; it can lead to a surcharge, an exclusion or a refusal |
| Visits to your home country | – | – | Paid only when home is an EU or Schengen state; Americans in the USA and Britons in the UK get nothing there |
Three plan rules shape a move to Montenegro. Cover always begins on the first day of a month, can be booked no more than four months in advance and cannot begin until you have entered the country of stay, so an arrival on the 10th leaves a short gap to fill. You also need earlier health insurance that lapsed at most 12 months before the start date; any gap triggers a 31-day waiting period. Does Medicare, the NHS or a travel policy count as that earlier insurance? The documents don’t confirm this; ask Care Concept in writing. Finally, nothing in the papers we read says the insurer settles invoices with Montenegrin clinics: expect to pay first and send in the receipts. Read the complete conditions on the plan details page.
Montenegro is not in the EU or the Schengen area, so the plan's home-country benefit does not help a Montenegrin who lives abroad and visits home. It does help a German, Dutch or other EU citizen who lives in Montenegro: their visits home of up to 180 days per calendar year are covered. The rule is explained in international health insurance with home-country cover, and the wider EU angle in health insurance for EU citizens abroad.
FZO cover through a job has had no separate employee health contribution since 2022, no official tariff exists for travel or local private policies, and the lowest Care Expat World premium in Zone 1 is €120 a month at 45–49 and €325 at 60–64. Below are the figures we were able to check; every plan premium is taken from our price registry.
| Option | Price | Your own share | Where the number comes from |
|---|---|---|---|
| FZO through employment | No employee health contribution since January 2022 | Any charges at public facilities (no list found) | KPMG Montenegro |
| Residence and work permit | €60 + €5 + €2 | – | Point of Single Contact |
| Short private doctor visit, Podgorica | About €29 | – | Expatistan, crowd-sourced |
| Travel or local private policy | Set by each insurer | Depends on the contract | – |
| Care Expat World Basic, €3,600 deductible, 45–49 | €120 a month | The first €3,600 of covered bills each calendar year | Registry, Zone 1 |
| Care Expat World Basic, €3,600 deductible, 55–59 | €200 a month | As above | Registry, Zone 1 |
| Care Expat World Basic, €3,600 deductible, 60–64 | €325 a month | As above | Registry, Zone 1 |
| Care Expat World Comfort, €1,200 deductible, 45–49 | €305 a month | The first €1,200 of covered bills each calendar year; dental and check-ups are part of the level | Registry, Zone 1 |
| Care Expat World Comfort, €1,200 deductible, 55–59 | €505 a month | As above | Registry, Zone 1 |
| Care Expat World Comfort, €1,200 deductible, 60–64 | €655 a month | As above | Registry, Zone 1 |
| Care Expat World Premium, no deductible, 60–64 | €800 a month | Nothing before the plan pays | Registry, Zone 1 |
Twelve months at 60–64 add up to €3,900 in premiums on Basic (€3,600 deductible) and €7,860 on Comfort (€1,200 deductible). In a year with heavy claims you add the deductible, so the worst case is €7,500 on Basic and €9,060 on Comfort, before any surcharge. For the premium at other ages, see what international health insurance costs.
Linda, 57, from Arizona, buys a flat above the bay near Kotor and applies for temporary residence as a property owner. She asks the Ministry office in Kotor which insurance proof it wants and buys the travel policy it names for the first permit year. She lands on 12 May; her Care Expat World cover (Comfort, €1,200 deductible) begins on 1 June at €505 a month, or €6,060 for the 12-month minimum term. The FZO has no category for her, so the plan is her real cover for private clinics in Tivat and Podgorica; she pays the bills and claims them back. Visits to Arizona fall outside the plan: the USA is the home country she declares. Once the calendar year of her 60th birthday begins, the 60–64 premium applies: €655 a month.
Mark, 61, from Leeds, still consults for UK clients and moves to Budva on a digital nomad permit. He shows the insurance proof the office asks for and adds Care Expat World Basic with the €3,600 deductible: €325 a month, €3,900 a year, and at most €7,500 in a heavy year. He has no S1 to look forward to, because none can be issued for Montenegro; once he draws his UK State Pension, it will still rise each year there. On visits to Leeds the plan does not cover him; the NHS rules for visitors who have moved abroad apply instead.
At 65 or older the Montenegrin rules we read do not change, because neither the permit insurance rule nor the FZO categories set an age limit, but the private choice narrows. Care Expat World has to start on 1 December of your 64th-birthday year at the latest, and we found no age rules for Montenegrin private insurers, so ask each one. Close to that limit, the calendar year of your application matters most; read expat health insurance over 65 and age limits on international health insurance.
No: Montenegro has been an EU candidate since December 2010 and opened accession negotiations in June 2012, according to the European Commission, but until it joins, EU health coordination rules such as the S1 and the EHIC do not apply there. EU citizens should check whether their own country has a bilateral social security agreement with Montenegro. For neighbours already in the EU, the picture differs, as the table shows; all are in Zone 1 of Care Expat World.
| Country | EU member? | Insurance guide |
|---|---|---|
| Montenegro | No, candidate | This page |
| Croatia | Yes | Croatia: HZZO and private cover |
| Greece | Yes | Greece: public system and private plans |
| Italy | Yes | Italy: SSN and private cover |
| Cyprus | Yes | Cyprus: GESY and private plans |
| Turkey | No | Turkey: SGK and private cover |
In Montenegro (Zone 1), with a €1,200 yearly deductible, a 50–54-year-old pays from €220 a month and a 60–64-year-old from €390. The price depends only on age band, level, deductible and zone, not on the country inside the zone.
| Age band | Basic | Comfort | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50–54 | €220 | €335 | €400 |
| 55–59 | €265 | €505 | €545 |
| 60–64 | €390 | €655 | €700 |
| 65–69 * | €530 | €955 | €1,170 |
| 70+ * | €985 | €1,295 | €1,570 |
Monthly premiums, €1,200 deductible per calendar year, before any surcharge from the health interview; insurer's premium table, all prices in our price index. * New cover must start by 1 December of the year you turn 64; the 65–69 and 70+ bands apply to people who are already insured. A new age band applies from 1 January of the year you reach it.
The plan featured on this site. We earn a referral commission if you take it out, at no extra cost to you (how we are paid); this is information, not personal advice. Lowest prices (Basic, €3,600 deductible): €120 at 45–49, €325 at 60–64; €40 for ages 0–24.
Lowest price, for people who mainly want protection against large medical bills.
Per month, Zone 1. Lower price with a €3,600 deductible, higher with none.
Adds dental, check-ups, physiotherapy, psychotherapy and pregnancy cover to Basic.
Per month, Zone 1. Lower price with a €3,600 deductible, higher with none.
Highest refunds, including more psychotherapy and 80% for dentures.
Per month, Zone 1. Lower price with a €3,600 deductible, higher with none.
Montenegro is in Zone 1, the whole world apart from the USA, China and Singapore. In those three countries the plan pays emergencies only, on trips of up to 42 days, and never in your declared home country, so Americans have no cover in the USA. Visits home are covered only when home is an EU or Schengen country, which rules out the USA and the UK. We do not claim that a Montenegrin Ministry of Interior office accepts the plan as permit proof. Already 65 or older in the year cover would start? This plan is closed to you; we are preparing a comparison of plans without an entry-age limit. The Care Expat World overview lists the premium for each age band.
Yes. The Ministry of Interior lists health insurance among the conditions for every temporary residence permit, next to means of subsistence and accommodation. Workers employed in Montenegro are then insured with the Health Insurance Fund (FZO); other temporary residents rely on their own policy.
The Ministry of Interior rulebook, as amended in February 2025, says proof is travel health insurance provided by an authorised insurance company, or health insurance provided under international agreements. It names no minimum sum in the text we read, so ask the Ministry office where you apply.
The rulebook does not say so. It asks for travel health insurance from an authorised insurance company without stating where the company must be authorised, and it does not mention the FZO. Each Ministry office applies the rule, so confirm before you buy.
We make no claim that the Ministry accepts it. The rulebook speaks of travel health insurance, and the plan is long-term international cover that starts on the 1st of a month after you cross the border. Use the policy the Ministry asks for at the permit stage and treat the plan as your long-term private cover.
Yes, if they fit a category. The FZO lists foreigners with approved permanent or temporary residence who are, for example, employed or self-employed in Montenegro. Foreigners with permanent residence who are not insured on any other basis also get insured status on request.
Not through the property permit itself. The FZO categories cover work, self-employment, pensions under Montenegrin rules and similar grounds; owning a flat is not one of them, and we found no voluntary enrolment route for temporary residents. Plan private cover for the years before permanent residence.
There is no separate health contribution for employees any more. A KPMG Montenegro tax alert reports that the health insurance contribution paid by employees and employers, 10.8% in total, was abolished from January 2022, with health care funded from the state budget.
The FZO says foreigners with approved permanent residence who are not insured on any other basis acquire insured status; the Fund decides on a request and an identity document. The FZO page we read does not mention a fee for this ground, so ask the Fund before you count on it.
Possibly. The FZO says family members of an insured person who hold a temporary residence permit for family reunification or schooling can acquire insured status, as long as they are not insured in another state under a social security agreement.
Yes. The government digital nomad portal lists health insurance among the documents, with proof of financial means, accommodation and remote work for a foreign company. The permit runs up to two years and can be extended once by up to two more years.
The official portal asks for proof of financial means of support but states no fixed amount on the page we read. Figures quoted on private websites have no official source we could find, so ask the Ministry of Interior office before you apply.
A law firm report of January 2026 says amendments in force since 17 January 2026 require proof that the property is worth at least €150,000, except for EU nationals and their families, and that earlier permits can be extended without it. Other reports gave different figures for the draft, so confirm with the Ministry.
GOV.UK frames it for visits: emergency hospital treatment and other treatment on the same basis as a local resident, with a GHIC or UK passport, and you pay for prescribed medicines. It does not say it replaces the insurance a residence permit asks for, and it excludes routine monitoring of pre-existing conditions.
No. NHS Business Services Authority states that an S1 cannot be issued for Montenegro. The UK State Pension is still paid there and, according to GOV.UK, it is increased each year because Montenegro is an agreement country.
Americans need the insurance proof for the residence permit and, for real cover, either a job that brings FZO insurance or a private policy. Medicare pays outside the US only in narrow cases, so it is not cover in Montenegro.
GOV.UK travel advice says to dial 112 for an ambulance. If you are referred to a medical facility, contact your insurer or assistance company quickly.
GOV.UK says you pay the same fees as Montenegrins who are not insured, should get a receipt, and may have to pay in cash at some facilities. We found no official price list for uninsured patients, so ask for the price before non-urgent treatment.
The only figure we found is crowd-sourced: Expatistan put a 15-minute private doctor visit in Podgorica at about €29 in October 2026, based on 8 price points, and calls it a guess. Ask the clinic for its price list before you book.
The FCDO list of private medical facilities (June 2025) names clinics in Budva, Tivat, Herceg Novi and Bar as well as Podgorica; it does not list one in Kotor and says no provider is endorsed. Check the clinic yourself before you rely on it.
In the 60–64 band, Care Expat World starts at €325 a month for Basic with the €3,600 deductible; Comfort with the €1,200 deductible is €655 a month. These are Zone 1 prices before any surcharge from the video health interview.
Only if your home country is in the EU or the Schengen area, for stays of up to 180 days per calendar year. Americans in the USA and Britons in the UK are not covered there, and Montenegrins abroad are not covered in Montenegro because it is not an EU or Schengen state.
No. Montenegro has been an EU candidate since December 2010, according to the European Commission, but it is not a member, so EU health coordination rules such as the S1 do not apply. Check whether your own country has a bilateral agreement with Montenegro.
Yes, prior health insurance that ended no more than 12 months before the start is a condition, and a gap brings a 31-day waiting period. Whether Medicare, the NHS or a travel policy counts as that prior insurance: the documents don’t confirm this; ask Care Concept in writing.
Care Expat World is closed if you turn 65 or older in the year cover would start. The residence rules we read set no age limit for the insurance proof itself, and FZO cover through work or permanent residence has no age rule in the FZO summary. We are preparing a comparison of plans without an entry-age limit.
We found no official minimum sum for the permit policy, no FZO co-payment list, no voluntary FZO route for non-working temporary residents, no official income figure for digital nomads and no official clinic prices. The property value rule comes from a law firm's report, and other sources gave different figures during the debate. Check with the Ministry of Interior and the FZO before you rely on a figure.
Long-term international cover with no end date once you are in, private clinics in Montenegro and trips across Zone 1. Start cover by 1 December of the year you turn 64.
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