Which visas actually require health insurance

Thailand · checked 10 September 2026

• The policy must cover all medical benefits, not only inpatient treatment.
• It must come from a Thai insurer on the official TGIA long-stay list, or from a foreign insurer able to issue the Foreign Insurance Certificate in the format Thai Immigration accepts.
• A general international policy that merely has a high limit will not clear the desk without that certificate.

Thailand · checked 10 September 2026

• Health insurance of at least USD 50,000 in coverage.
• A deposit of USD 100,000 may be used in place of insurance.

Malaysia · checked 10 September 2026

• The policy must explicitly cover Malaysia by name — wording such as 'worldwide' or 'Asia' is not accepted on its own.
• Cover can be arranged after approval but must be in place before the pass is issued.

Malaysia · checked 11 September 2026

• Health insurance is listed among the documents required to renew the MM2H pass; MOTAC publishes a List of Insurance Company on the official references page.
• No minimum coverage amount is published on the official MOTAC guidelines or category pages.
• A medical check-up at a clinic or hospital on MOTAC's appointed panel is compulsory for the principal and every dependant after approval.

Malaysia · checked 11 September 2026

• Medical insurance must be a Malaysian-valid policy — the checklist asks for a 'Certified copy of Local Medical Insurance Purchase'
• The main-applicant checklist qualifies the insurance requirement as applying to applicants below 60 years old
• Dependants' checklists (spouse, parents, children) list the insurance document with no age qualifier
• MTCP publishes no minimum coverage amount, so any figure quoted by an agent is that agent's own standard
• Separate from insurance: the RB II medical report must be done at a registered Sarawak facility and endorsed by a Sarawak government doctor; an overseas medical must be redone in Sarawak before the pass is issued

Japan · checked 11 September 2026

• Private medical or overseas travel insurance covering death, injury and illness, valid for the whole planned stay in Japan
• Treatment-cost cover for injury and illness of at least 10,000,000 yen; the ISA's own form asks you to tick either a figure or "Unlimited"
• Must also include repatriation of remains or a death benefit, with no minimum amount specified for that element
• Cover is mandatory precisely because holders are not "mid-to-long-term residents" and therefore cannot join Japan's public health insurance
• Accompanying spouse and children must each satisfy the insurance requirement too

South Korea · checked 11 September 2026

• Policy must cover hospital treatment in Korea AND evacuation/repatriation to the home country (본국후송) - a policy that says only 'medical evacuation' is a documented rejection trigger
• Certificate of insurance subscription is a listed required document at the visa-application stage, not something you can add after arrival
• Each family member on a dependent application has to be named on the policy with the full coverage amount in their own right