Travel Insurance with COVID-19 Cover: Is It Still Worth It in 2026?

Yes, travel insurance with COVID-19 cover is still worth buying in 2026, because the virus is still circulating and a positive test abroad still means a doctor's bill, a hotel extension or a missed flight. The global emergency ended in May 2023, but the cost of falling ill in a foreign hospital did not. Travl's AXA-issued travel medical insurance includes COVID-19 cover alongside emergency treatment, hospitalisation and repatriation.

At a glance

Is COVID-19 still a risk for travellers in 2026?

COVID-19 is still a real medical risk on a trip, even though it no longer dominates the news. The WHO fact sheet describes it as a significant public health concern, with the virus circulating globally and hospitalisations and deaths continuing to occur.

Older adults, people with underlying health conditions and unvaccinated travellers face a higher risk of severe illness, according to the same WHO guidance. If you are travelling with parents over 60 or with a family member who has diabetes or a heart condition, that risk lands squarely on your holiday.

What changed is the paperwork, not the illness. In its May 2023 statement, WHO declared COVID-19 an established and ongoing health issue rather than an emergency, and told countries to keep lifting travel-related health measures and not to require proof of vaccination for international travel.

Do you still need COVID-19 cover for a Schengen visa?

You need travel medical insurance for a Schengen visa in 2026, and a policy that excludes COVID-19 treatment leaves a gap the embassy rule does not allow. The European Commission lists medical insurance covering emergency medical care, hospitalisation and repatriation, including in the event of death, among the documents every applicant submits.

A COVID-19 infection that puts you in a hospital in Paris or Milan is emergency medical care like any other, so the policy has to respond to it. Travl's Schengen visa insurance carries the EUR 30,000 medical limit embassies ask for, is issued by AXA, and is accepted by VFS Global and BLS International.

The rest of the application has not become cheaper either. The same Commission page puts the adult visa fee at EUR 90 and normal processing at 15 days, extendable to 45, so a refused file over a weak insurance certificate costs you real money and weeks of waiting.

What should COVID-19 cover actually include?

Good COVID-19 cover pays for the same things any serious illness abroad costs you: treatment, a hospital bed, and getting home. The UK government's travel insurance guidance lists treatment in state or private hospitals, emergency transport such as an ambulance, repatriation costs and getting home after medical treatment when you cannot use your original ticket.

Check that the policy does not carve out pandemics or "known events" in the exclusions. Read the wording for quarantine and extended-stay costs too, since a positive test the day before your flight home is the most common way COVID-19 still hits a traveller's wallet. Our guide to travel insurance exclusions walks through what to look for.

A free public health card is not a replacement. The same UK guidance states that the EHIC and GHIC are not alternatives to travel insurance because they cover no private medical costs, no repatriation and none of the extras such as mountain rescue.

Which Travl plan should UAE residents pick?

Pick the plan by trip length and destination, because COVID-19 cover comes with the medical benefit rather than as a separate add-on. For a single Schengen trip, the EUR 30,000 Schengen plan from AED 30 satisfies the embassy and covers you while you are there.

For the USA, Canada, Australia or a longer itinerary, the international plan from AED 70 lifts medical cover to EUR 80,000 or more and adds trip cancellation, baggage loss and flight delay benefits. If you fly more than twice a year, the annual multi-trip policy from AED 245 covers unlimited trips for 12 months.

Every option sits on one page, so you can compare travel insurance plans for UAE residents side by side and buy in a few minutes. If you do fall ill abroad, the Travl claims team submits your file to AXA and handles the follow-up for you.

Sources

• World Health Organization: Statement on the fifteenth meeting of the IHR Emergency Committee on COVID-19, 5 May 2023
• World Health Organization: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) fact sheet
• European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs: Applying for a Schengen visa
• UK Government (GOV.UK): Foreign travel insurance guidance