Under European (EEA) regulations, people who are normally resident in the UK and are entitled to use the UK National Health Service are also entitled to free emergency medical and dental treatment when on a temporary visit to Austria. To obtain treatment, you must produce your British passport and European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). Full details on the EHIC, including how to apply for it quickly and easily online, are available in the Health Advice for Travellers section of the Department for Health website.

If you are staying in Austria for a longer period, you are considered resident in Austria and will have to pay contributions for medical care to a local social insurance organisation (Sozialversicherungsträger). The health service providers are usually called ‘Gebietskrankenkasse'. If you are working in regular employment, your employer will normaly deduct contributions to the health insurance system from your salary and make the payments on your behalf. Please ask your employer for details, or contact your local branch of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for advice before leaving the UK. When in Austria, you can also enquire at your local health insurance organisation (Gebietskrankenkasse).

Please note that the Embassy is not able to give medical advice, nor can we advise on the quality of doctors. In order to find an English-speaking doctor, please call you regional medical association for advice. The Vienna medical association (Ärztekammer für Wien), for example, runs a Foreign Patients Service. This can provide information on medical services in Vienna, including details of English-speaking doctors in the region. For further information, visit their website or call the Foreign Patients Service hotline, on Vienna 5139595.

The Vienna City Council website also includes a search facility for doctors and pharmacies in Vienna, under the heading ‘Gesundheit’ / ‘Ärzteinnen und Ärzte’/ ‘Wiener Ärzte/innen’. This search facility is also available in English.

Important telephone numbers to remember are 144 (ambulance) and 141 (Ärztefunkdienst: i.e. General Practitioners who are on duty during the night and at weekends).