Health insurance
Health insurance in Bermuda
Comprehensive medical cover for people who live or stay long-term in Bermuda, with proper inpatient/outpatient benefits, not just emergency travel cover.
Bermuda ran a popular one-year remote-work certificate, but it closed to new applicants on 28 February 2025, so the real route now is short visa-free stays or Permission to Reside on an Annual Basis. It is English-speaking and tax-free on personal income, with one modern hospital, yet it is a small mid-Atlantic island where serious cases are flown to the US east coast by air ambulance. That evacuation flight, and Bermuda's famously high prices, make medical and repatriation cover the single most important thing to get right.
What health insurance covers in Bermuda
Health insurance is built for long-term residents, slow travelers spending 6+ months in one place, expats. The lines below are the base. Exact terms are carrier-specific, so always check the policy document for the Bermuda situation you care about.
What you get
- Inpatient hospitalisation, surgery, and ICU
- Outpatient GP visits, specialists, scans, labs
- Prescription drugs
- Maternity and chronic-condition cover (on better plans)
- Mental-health and preventive care (plan-dependent)
What it won't do
- Routine cover in your home country (usually excluded if you're a tax resident)
- Cosmetic procedures
- Pre-existing conditions on day-one of most plans (medical underwriting)
Typical local costs in Bermuda
What insurance protects you from. Costs vary by region inside Bermudaand between public and private facilities; these are the numbers we've seen most often in 2026.
| Private GP or short consultation | commonly cited around US$150 to US$250 |
|---|---|
| One-bedroom apartment, monthly rent | roughly US$2,500 to US$3,700 depending on area |
| Meal at an inexpensive restaurant | about US$30 to US$55 |
| Air-ambulance evacuation to the US east coast | typically tens of thousands of US dollars if uninsured |
The currency is the Bermudian dollar (BMD), pegged one-to-one to the US dollar, and US dollars are accepted everywhere, so prices read like American prices only higher. Almost everything is imported, which is why Bermuda ranks among the most expensive places in the world to live. There is no official public price list for private care, so treat the medical figures as indicative; the consistent message is that treatment is costly, hospital charges can exceed US levels, and an off-island evacuation is the bill that makes proper insurance non-negotiable.
Healthcare in Bermuda: what you're dealing with
Bermuda has one full-service hospital, the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital (KEMH) near Hamilton, run by the Bermuda Hospitals Board. It carries the only 24-hour accident and emergency department on the island, around 300 beds, and the full range of inpatient, surgical and diagnostic care for a population of roughly 60,000 plus visitors. Less serious problems can go to the Lamb Foggo Urgent Care Centre in St George's, mental health is handled by the Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute, and there are government community health centres and private GP clinics for routine consultations. There is no free public system for visitors: nomads and longer-stay residents are expected to carry health insurance and pay private rates, and care is billed broadly along US lines.
English is the official language and doctors are typically US or UK trained, so navigating care is straightforward. The emergency number is 911 for ambulance, fire and police. Pharmacies are easy to find around Hamilton and the parishes, but they do not honour US or other foreign prescriptions, so anything you need must be re-prescribed by a Bermuda doctor; bring a good supply of essentials with a doctor's letter. The island reality is the part that matters most for insurance. KEMH handles the great majority of cases, but for complex trauma, specialist surgery or anything it cannot treat, patients are flown off-island, almost always to the US east coast, which is about two hours away by air. Air-ambulance evacuations are coordinated by KEMH's medical social workers, and that flight is where an uninsured bill turns life-changing.
Visa & residency requirements
For short stays, US, British, Canadian and Australian visitors enter visa-free, generally for up to 180 days, since Bermuda is a British Overseas Territory that waives visas for these nationalities. You should travel with a passport valid for your stay (the US advises at least 45 days beyond departure), proof of a return or onward ticket, and you must complete the free online Bermuda Arrival Card before landing. Travel insurance is not a legal entry requirement for tourists, but given that visitors pay full private rates and the nearest specialist hospital is a flight away, a policy with strong medical and evacuation cover is the sensible default.
The dedicated remote-work route, the Work from Bermuda one-year residential certificate, closed to new applicants on 28 February 2025 and is no longer available, so there is currently no live digital nomad visa. The realistic path for a longer stay is now Permission to Reside on an Annual Basis, which can be granted for up to five years and explicitly allows remote work for companies outside Bermuda while barring local employment. There is no published minimum income figure, though the Work Permit Policy points to household thresholds in the region of US$60,000 to US$125,000, and valid health insurance is a stated requirement, available through the government Health Insurance Department or private insurers. Full detail and the latest status are on the Bermuda remote work visa page.
What to watch out for in Bermuda
- The nomad visa is closed. The Work from Bermuda certificate ended on 28 February 2025, so do not plan around it; the current options are short visa-free stays or Permission to Reside on an Annual Basis.
- Off-island evacuation. Serious or specialist cases are flown to the US east coast by air ambulance, and that flight is the reason medical and repatriation cover matters more here than almost anywhere.
- Cost of everything. Bermuda is one of the most expensive places in the world, and private medical care is no exception, so budget for high bills and expect to pay as a private patient.
- Hurricane season. The Atlantic season runs June to November; direct hits are rare but strong storms do occur, so build in flexibility and follow local warnings.
- Scooters and the sea. Moped and scooter crashes are the leading cause of tourist injury, and Portuguese man o' war can wash up on south-shore beaches mainly between May and September, so ride carefully and check beach conditions.
FAQ
In most cases Bermuda expects long-stay residents and visa applicants to show proof of health coverage. The specific bar (carrier, sum insured, residency-vs-travel cover) depends on your visa class; see "Visa & residency" below for the country's current stance.
Premiums vary by age, plan and deductible far more than by country; the underwriting risk is priced, not the postal code. Use the "Typical local costs" table above to gauge what your insurance protects you from, then run a real quote to see your own number.
It depends on your situation: how long you're staying, your visa class, your age and health, and whether you want cashless treatment or are fine with reimbursement. Rather than push one plan, we match you against the options that actually fit a stay in Bermuda: answer a few honest questions and see only what's relevant.
Not any more. The Work from Bermuda one-year residential certificate, which was the digital nomad route, closed to new applicants on 28 February 2025. For a longer stay you would now look at Permission to Reside on an Annual Basis, which allows remote work for an overseas employer.
Yes. Applicants had to hold valid health insurance covering them in Bermuda, or buy local cover, for the term of the certificate. The replacement route, Permission to Reside on an Annual Basis, also requires valid health insurance.
Yes. US, British, Canadian and Australian visitors enter visa-free, generally for up to 180 days. You need a passport valid for your stay, proof of return or onward travel, and a completed online Bermuda Arrival Card before you land.
Because the island has one hospital, and anything it cannot treat means a flight to the US east coast, roughly two hours away, by air ambulance. Around 200 patients a year need overseas specialist care, and that flight can cost tens of thousands of dollars without insurance.
Yes for most things. Care at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital is delivered in English by US or UK trained staff, with a 24-hour emergency department. The trade-offs are high cost, payment as a private patient, and the need to leave the island for the most complex cases.
Other insurance for Bermuda
Different stages of nomad life need different cover. Here's the full set we've mapped for Bermuda.
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