Healthcare in Portugal for travellers (2026)EHIC, SNS 24, 112 and children's emergency departments by region

Checked on 10 October 2026. Portuguese hospitals reorganise paediatric emergency cover often, especially at weekends and in summer. Every hospital below is listed only because its own website or the health service says what we wrote. When it is not an emergency, call the health line first. This page is not medical advice.

The short answer: in an emergency, call 112 [3]. Otherwise call SNS 24 on 808 24 24 24 (press 9 for English) on the mainland, 800 24 24 20 on Madeira and 808 24 60 24 in the Azores [3]. With an EHIC or UK GHIC, public care is usually free; children under 18 never pay the emergency user fee [1]. For a child, the 24-hour public children’s emergency departments are at Dona Estefânia and Santa Maria in Lisbon, Cascais, São João in Porto, Nélio Mendonça in Funchal and the HDES modular hospital in Ponta Delgada. In the Algarve, call SNS 24 to learn whether Faro or Portimão is open.

The numbers to save

Number	What it is	Where
112	All emergencies, ask for an ambulance	Everywhere [3]
808 24 24 24	SNS 24: triage, advice and referral; press 9 for English	Mainland Portugal [3]
800 24 24 20	Health line	Madeira and Porto Santo [3]
808 24 60 24	Linha de Saúde Açores	Azores [3][20]
969 319 732	Linha Criança, children’s line, 24 hours	Madeira [18]

What the EHIC and the UK GHIC do in Portugal

• Public care is usually free. The European Commission says doctors in the public system are generally free, and you can go directly to health centres (centros de saúde), round-the-clock services and, in an emergency, hospitals [1]. The UK GHIC gives medically necessary state healthcare on the same basis as a resident [2][3].
• The emergency user fee. A standard fee (taxa moderadora) may be charged at a hospital emergency department if you were not referred by a health centre or SNS 24. It is waived if you were referred, or if you are admitted from the emergency department. Children under 18 and pregnant women are exempt [1][4].
• Medicines. The state pays part of the price of listed medicines and you pay the rest at the pharmacy, between 10% and 85% of the price [1]. UK prescriptions are not recognised in Portugal [3].
• Not covered: private hospitals and clinics; GOV.UK also says the GHIC does not cover treatment ruled non-urgent [3]. The GHIC is not a replacement for travel insurance [2].
• Card lost or forgotten? Ask your home health insurer or authority to email a Provisional Replacement Certificate [32].

Call SNS 24 before the children’s emergency department

Since 1 March 2025, parents in the Lisbon and Tagus Valley, Leiria, Santarém, Caldas da Rainha and Porto metropolitan areas are asked to call SNS 24 before going to a paediatric emergency department, unless it is a real emergency (then call 112) [5]. The rule (Portaria 23/2025/1) lists exceptions, among them babies under six months [33]. SNS 24 tells you whether to go, and where. Porto’s daytime paediatric clinic at the children’s hospital (CMIN) now takes only children referred by a doctor or health service [17], and Garcia de Orta in Almada sees children only with a referral [9]. The SNS also publishes which mainland emergency services are open, and their hours, for the next seven days on its website [31]. Calling first is also how you skip the user fee as an adult [4].

Pharmacies

Pharmacies are usually open Monday to Friday 9:00 to 13:00 and 15:00 to 19:00, and Saturday morning; every pharmacy posts the list of those open 24 hours (farmácias de serviço) [1]. GOV.UK points visitors to the Pharmacy Association’s finder [3][23].

Children’s emergency departments by region

Public hospitals first, then private ones a visitor might use. The national 2026 paediatric referral network requires every hospital at its levels to run a paediatric emergency service; Madeira and the Azores run their own [10].

Algarve (Faro, Portimão)

	Public	Private (not EHIC)
Faro and the east	Hospital de Faro (ULS Algarve) [12]	Hospital CUF Faro (Gambelas): children’s urgent care every day 09:00 to 21:00; adults 24 hours [13]
Portimão, Lagos and the west	Hospital de Portimão (ULS Algarve) [12]. Lagos has a basic emergency service (SUB) at Hospital Terras do Infante [12]	Hospital CUF Alvor lists adult urgent care only [30]

ULS Algarve is one unit in the national paediatric network and is required to run a paediatric emergency service [10], but its website does not publish which of the two hospitals covers children on a given night or weekend. Its own advice is to contact SNS 24 when in doubt [11]. Do that before you drive, or check the SNS list of open emergency services [31].

Lisbon, Cascais and the coast

	Public	Private (not EHIC)
Lisbon	Hospital de Dona Estefânia (ULS São José): paediatric emergency 24 hours, every day, children up to 17; information 21 312 66 80 [6]. Hospital de Santa Maria (ULS Santa Maria): paediatric emergency department, under 18 [7]	CUF Descobertas (Parque das Nações): paediatrics 24 hours [14]. Hospital da Luz Lisboa: paediatric urgent care 24 hours [15]. Hospital Lusíadas Lisboa: paediatric urgent care 24 hours [16]. CUF Tejo: paediatrics daily 08:00 to 21:30 [28]
Cascais, Estoril, Carcavelos	Hospital de Cascais: paediatric emergency 24 hours, 365 days, children up to 18; 214 653 000 [8]	CUF Cascais: adults and children daily 08:00 to 22:00 [27]
Costa da Caparica, Almada	Hospital Garcia de Orta: children only with a referral from a doctor, health centre or SNS 24; the hospital’s page, last updated in November 2023, says the night service (20:00 to 08:30) has been closed since 1 November 2023 [9]
Ericeira	Not researched yet: call SNS 24

Porto and the north

	Public	Private (not EHIC)
Porto	Hospital de São João: Porto’s integrated paediatric emergency department, 24 hours, staffed by teams from several hospitals [17]	CUF Porto: paediatrics daily 08:00 to 22:00 [25]. Hospital Lusíadas Porto: paediatric urgent care daily 08:00 to 22:00 [26]

Madeira (Funchal)

	Public	Private (not EHIC)
Funchal	Hospital Dr. Nélio Mendonça (SESARAM), Avenida Luís de Camões 57: emergency service open 24 hours; the paediatrics department lists a paediatric emergency unit. Children’s line 969 319 732, every day, 24 hours [18][19]	Hospital CUF Madeira: urgent care 24 hours, listed for adults only [21]
Rest of the island	Several health centres run urgent services (SESARAM lists hours by centre, including Calheta, Machico and Porto Moniz) [18]

Azores (São Miguel)

	Public	Private (not EHIC)
Ponta Delgada	Hospital do Divino Espírito Santo (HDES): since the fire of 4 May 2024, the emergency service for adults, children and pregnant women runs from the modular hospital on the HDES campus. Non-urgent cases in children over 18 months may be sent to the island’s health-centre urgent service (open 08:30 to 20:30) [20]	Hospital CUF Açores, Lagoa (Alameda do Conhecimento 3), about 10 minutes away: children’s urgent care weekdays only, 10:00 to 17:00; adults daily 08:00 to 22:00 [22]

Private hospitals: CUF, Lusíadas, Luz

Portugal’s three large private groups run hospitals in Lisbon and Porto, and CUF also in Faro, Alvor, Funchal and Lagoa. Their urgent-care hours for children differ by hospital (tables above), and several are open 24 hours. The EHIC and the GHIC are not accepted [3]. Hospital da Luz says it plainly: without a health plan or insurance it has an agreement with, the patient pays the whole bill [15]. Prices are not on the urgent-care pages; CUF Tejo’s price list of 1 February 2026 shows €135 for an adult or a children’s urgent-care visit, with every test, procedure and medicine billed separately, and €100 to €290 for time in observation [29]. If you have travel insurance, call its assistance line first to ask which hospital it works with.

What it costs without cover

Portugal’s official SNS price table (Portaria 274/2026/1) prices an emergency episode at the largest, polyvalent hospital emergency departments at €115, with tests and procedures billed on top [24]. It is the price billed to whoever is responsible for payment; smaller emergency departments have lower prices, which we did not confirm in the official text. A private urgent-care visit at CUF Tejo was listed at €135 before any tests [29]. With an EHIC or GHIC you pay at most the user fee, and nothing for a child [1][4]. As of 10 October 2026, check current.

Before you go

1. Get an EHIC or GHIC for every traveller, children included [1][2].
2. Save 112 and the right health line: 808 24 24 24, 800 24 24 20 (Madeira) or 808 24 60 24 (Azores) [3].
3. Find your nearest children’s emergency department in the tables above. In the Algarve and Almada, plan to call SNS 24 first.
4. If you have travel insurance, save the assistance phone number and ask which private hospitals it pays directly.
5. Take each person’s card and passport to the hospital, and a list of any medicines your child takes.
6. Staying longer or applying for a visa? See health insurance for digital nomads in Portugal.

Sources

1. European Commission: Portugal, European Health Insurance Card, accessed 10 October 2026.
2. NHS: Applying for healthcare cover abroad (GHIC and EHIC), accessed 10 October 2026.
3. GOV.UK: Portugal travel advice, health, accessed 10 October 2026.
4. ERS: Taxas moderadoras do SNS, accessed 10 October 2026.
5. ULS São José: new rules for paediatric emergency access (7 March 2025), accessed 10 October 2026.
6. ULS São José: Urgência Pediátrica, Hospital de Dona Estefânia, accessed 10 October 2026.
7. ULS Santa Maria: Pediatria, accessed 10 October 2026.
8. Hospital de Cascais: Urgência Pediátrica, accessed 10 October 2026.
9. ULS Almada-Seixal: Urgência Pediátrica, accessed 10 October 2026.
10. SNS: paediatric and neonatal hospital referral network 2026 (PDF), accessed 10 October 2026.
11. ULS Algarve: Pediatria, accessed 10 October 2026.
12. ULS Algarve: Contactos, accessed 10 October 2026.
13. CUF Faro: Atendimento Permanente, accessed 10 October 2026.
14. CUF Descobertas: Atendimento Permanente, accessed 10 October 2026.
15. Hospital da Luz Lisboa: Atendimento Urgente 24 h, accessed 10 October 2026.
16. Hospital Lusíadas Lisboa: Atendimento Urgente, accessed 10 October 2026.
17. ULS Santo António: Urgência e Atendimento Pediátrico Referenciado, accessed 10 October 2026.
18. SESARAM: Horário dos serviços de urgência, accessed 10 October 2026.
19. SESARAM: Pediatria, accessed 10 October 2026.
20. HDES: Hospital Modular, accessed 10 October 2026.
21. CUF Madeira: Atendimento Permanente, accessed 10 October 2026.
22. CUF Açores: Atendimento Permanente, accessed 10 October 2026.
23. Farmácias Portuguesas: pharmacy finder, accessed 10 October 2026.
24. Diário da República: Portaria n.º 274/2026/1, accessed 10 October 2026.
25. CUF Porto: Atendimento Permanente, accessed 10 October 2026.
26. Hospital Lusíadas Porto: Atendimento Urgente, accessed 10 October 2026.
27. CUF Cascais: Atendimento Permanente, accessed 10 October 2026.
28. CUF Tejo: Atendimento Permanente, accessed 10 October 2026.
29. CUF Tejo: price list, 1 February 2026 (PDF), accessed 10 October 2026.
30. CUF Alvor: Atendimento Permanente, accessed 10 October 2026.
31. Portuguese Government: hospital emergency services on an interactive map (25 June 2024), accessed 10 October 2026.
32. European Commission: FAQ, European Health Insurance Card, accessed 10 October 2026.
33. Diário da República: Portaria n.º 23/2025/1, accessed 10 October 2026.