Pregnancy in Italy for foreign nationals: healthcare, insurance and residence status

Arrange the first appointment before week 10 if possible. Before booking, establish whether care will be based on enrolment in the Italian public health service, an EHIC, an insurance policy or another basis linked to your stay. This allows the booking office to apply the correct payment route and schedule examinations for the appropriate weeks.

Where to go during pregnancy in Italy

You can begin care at a public family clinic, or consultorio familiare, a hospital outpatient clinic or a private practice; a referral from a family doctor is not normally required. A midwife may manage an uncomplicated pregnancy, with a gynaecologist becoming involved if a risk is identified. At the first appointment, the team calculates an estimated delivery date and issues referrals for examinations at the appropriate stages of pregnancy.

In many regions the local public health authority is called the ASL (Azienda Sanitaria Locale). It handles health-service enrolment and specialist bookings. In the province of Rimini, AUSL Romagna performs this role; its website lists the family clinic for your area and the local care pathway.

Pregnancy care for residents of Italy

If you are enrolled in the Italian National Health Service (SSN, Servizio Sanitario Nazionale), present your tessera sanitaria, or health card. After the first appointment, you receive referrals for tests and ultrasound scans. Check that each referral carries the appropriate pregnancy exemption code; examinations on the national list are then provided without a separate charge.

Until the pregnancy has been dated, the code M00 is used. Afterwards, the code combines M with the relevant week number; M50 is used for a high-risk pregnancy. The code identifies both the exempt service and the period in which it should be provided. Use the referral to book through the regional system, the family clinic or the named provider’s booking office.

If you move, your entitlement continues, but care transfers to the service for the new address. Before leaving, obtain a summary showing the estimated delivery date, tests, screening results and follow-up plan. Give it to the new clinic so that appointments continue at the correct stage, and later to the chosen maternity unit.

If you are already entitled to enrol in the public system but have not yet received a health card, contact the local health service with identification, your tax number, a residence permit or other basis for registration, and proof of address. It can issue temporary confirmation that allows you to book care while the plastic card is being prepared. Show this confirmation at the first medical appointment and ask the clinician to check that the referrals are issued specifically for pregnancy.

You may combine a private gynaecologist with the public pathway. Ask the doctor for a report stating the stage of pregnancy, estimated delivery date, diagnoses and recommendations, then take it to the public clinic that issues referrals. Return the results to the clinician managing the pregnancy and transfer the complete file to the maternity unit in the third trimester.

Pregnancy in Italy with a European Health Card

If you are insured in another EU country and temporarily in Italy, present your European Health Insurance Card — TEAM in Italian and EHIC in English. It covers care that becomes medically necessary during the stay, taking account of its duration and the pregnancy.

If the trip is specifically planned for childbirth, request Form S2 from the competent institution in your country and agree the arrangements with the Italian hospital before travelling. Without prior authorisation, a planned admission may be charged even if you hold an EHIC.

Pregnancy in Italy on a tourist visa

If you are lawfully visiting from outside the EU for up to 90 days, present your passport and insurance policy. A standard travel policy often covers sudden complications but excludes planned follow-up and childbirth. Ask the insurer to confirm cover for each service in writing. Anything outside the policy will be charged at the public hospital’s tariff or under a private clinic’s estimate.

Tell your insurer how far the pregnancy has progressed, the expected date of delivery, the hospital and the care you expect to receive. For direct settlement, request a guarantee letter stating the authorised amount, covered services, your contribution and the expiry date. The hospital will check it before a planned appointment and advise you of any advance payment; in an emergency, care begins before payment arrangements are completed.

For self-funded care, you may need a passport, an Italian tax number and a billing address. If you do not yet have a tax number, ask the booking office in advance which identifier it will use to create the medical record. Keep all invoices and clinical reports: you will need them if the policy provides reimbursement after payment.

For a planned birth, ask the hospital for two estimates: one for a vaginal birth and one for a caesarean section. Each should include hospitalisation, anaesthesia, the on-call team, the room, care for the newborn and the cost of an additional day. Send both estimates to the insurer so that the guarantee letter also covers a change in the mode of delivery after admission.

Medical care for pregnant women without valid documents

If you do not have a valid residence permit, ask for an STP temporary medical code (Straniero Temporaneamente Presente). A local health service, family clinic or hospital can issue it. The code is valid for six months and may be renewed; it is used for pregnancy care, childbirth and postnatal care.

If you cannot afford the charges, sign a declaration of financial need so that the institution can apply the relevant exemption. Seeking medical care is not reported to the police solely because a person lacks a residence permit. Exceptions are limited to circumstances in which the law expressly requires a healthcare professional to report information, and those rules apply to patients generally.

The code consists of letters and numbers and is used in place of a standard health card. Present the same code at follow-up appointments, laboratories and the hospital so that staff can trace examinations already carried out. If it expires before the birth or postnatal review, ask the issuing service to renew it.

What you should receive after the first appointment

After the first appointment, you should have an estimated delivery date, referrals for the next examinations and instructions for booking the following visit. Book time-sensitive screening promptly and tell the operator the current week of pregnancy. Take the report to the clinician who will decide whether further tests are needed.

Keep the referrals, test results, ultrasound reports and records of previous operations together from this point onwards. These documents travel with you between the family clinic and specialists and, towards the end of pregnancy, to the maternity unit. This is especially important if you combine private appointments with public investigations or move to another region.

Residence permit for pregnancy in Italy

During pregnancy and for six months after the birth of the child in your care, protection from expulsion applies and you may request a residence permit for medical treatment (permesso di soggiorno per cure mediche). The STP medical code and the immigration permit are separate documents.

The application is submitted to the Questura. Prepare identification, a medical certificate confirming the pregnancy and estimated delivery date, photographs and any other documents requested by the local office. If you intend to remain in Italy longer, apply on another available basis before the six-month period after birth expires.

Moving during pregnancy and high-risk monitoring

Before moving, ask your current clinic for a summary covering the pregnancy history, current stage, estimated delivery date, tests, screening results, complications and follow-up plan. Give it to the new clinic so that care can continue without repeating completed investigations. In the third trimester, the chosen maternity unit will need the same file when arranging an appointment and further checks.

For a high-risk pregnancy, referrals carry the M50 code and follow-up continues in a specialist outpatient clinic or hospital. The appropriate unit depends on the reason for the risk and the care the baby may need immediately after birth. Take the specialists’ reports to the maternity unit so that it can set the monitoring schedule and delivery plan.

How to book pregnancy examinations

A public referral identifies the service, stage of pregnancy, priority and exemption code. Book through the CUP (Centro Unico di Prenotazione), a participating pharmacy or the region’s online service; the available methods are printed on the referral. Take both the referral and health card to the appointment.

For combined screening or the anomaly scan, tell the booking operator your current stage of pregnancy and the latest permissible date. If there is no appointment nearby, ask them to check public and accredited centres across the region. The clinician will need the reports at later appointments, and they will form part of the file you give to the maternity unit.

If you cannot secure an appointment

Ask for the precise reason: the referral may be missing, the pregnancy code may be wrong, the chosen provider may not offer the service, or a different payment route may be required. The clinician who issued the referral must correct any error on it; the booking office or patient-services department deals with registration and payment.

If you do not have a valid residence permit, ask about an STP temporary medical code. If you are in Italy lawfully as a visitor, ask about paid admission or an insurer’s guarantee letter. In the event of bleeding, severe pain, ruptured membranes or another urgent pregnancy concern, contact the obstetric emergency department; if life is in danger, call 112.

Frequently asked questions about pregnancy care in Italy