{"type":"document","data":{"id":"13534728-f85c-4b55-945d-17505051176f","localeString":"en-GB","publishDate":"2026-04-17T16:14:12.956+02:00","contentType":"onecms:productPage","hasMacro":false,"flexPageMetadata":{"afmBanner":false,"robotInstruction":{"noIndex":false,"noFollow":false},"description":"No, travel insurance is not mandatory. However, travel insurance can save you a lot of money should things go wrong on vacation. Read more here."},"mainHeaderZone":{"componentType":"productHeader","coreHeader":{"body":"No, travel insurance is not mandatory. However, travel insurance can save you a lot of money if something goes wrong during your holiday. For example, the basic coverage of the ING Continuous Travel Insurance covers 24/7 assistance from the Emergency Centre and repatriation (returning home on medical advice) within Europe. You can extend your Continuous Travel Insurance yourself with the additional modules Baggage, Medical expenses and accidents, Cancellation, Winter sports and special sports, or Roadside assistance. Carefully consider which modules you need for your trip to avoid unexpectedly high costs","headerImage":{"transformBaseUrl":"https://assets.ing.com/transform/5af2be62-770e-4511-9b54-fdb0ee9c5f62/COUPLE-SITTING-ON-BOAT-AT-SEA-SHORE","type":"image","width":6720,"altTextNL":"\"\"","original":"https://assets.ing.com/m/384207dd40c0016b/original/COUPLE-SITTING-ON-BOAT-AT-SEA-SHORE.jpg","extension":"jpg"},"title":"Is travel insurance mandatory?"},"backLink":{"textLink":{"url":"/en/personal/insurances","text":"Insurance"}}},"flexZone":{"flexComponents":[{"componentType":"paragraph","title":"Do you need to take out travel insurance?","richBody":{"value":"<p>It turns out that there is still a lot of uncertainty regarding a <span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>travel insurance</span></span>.</span></span></span></span></span></span></p><p>As mentioned, you are not obliged to take out travel insurance. So it is not mandatory, but we do recommend it.</p>"}},{"componentType":"paragraph","title":"What about travel within and outside Europe?","richBody":{"value":"<p>With the basic insurance, you are insured within Europe, and within the Azores, Madeira, the Canary Islands, Turkey, and Greenland. The following non-European countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea are also covered by the basic insurance: Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia. If you travel further afield, you can extend your insurance with worldwide coverage. This ensures you are insured worldwide. Therefore, with basic insurance, you are not automatically insured for the entire world.</p>"},"textLinks":[{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/travel-insurance/worldwide-coverage","text":"More about travel insurance outside Europe"}]},{"componentType":"paragraph","title":"Travel insurance: short-term or continuous?","richBody":{"value":"<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>If you choose to take out travel insurance, you have the choice of a </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>short-term travel insurance</span></span><a href=\"https://www.ing.nl/particulier/verzekeren/kortlopende-reisverzekering\"><span><span> </span></span></a></span></span></span></span></span></span>and a <span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>continuous travel insurance</span></span>.</span></span></span></span></span></span></p><p>We regularly receive questions about the best option. Often, continuous travel insurance is more cost-effective than taking out new insurance for every trip, especially if you travel frequently. Using various situations as examples, we will explain the benefits of the different options.</p><p> </p><p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><strong>Please note</strong> : ING does not provide advice. You decide for yourself whether a short-term or continuous policy suits you better.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>"},"textLinks":[{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/travel-insurance/short-term-or-annual-travel-insurance","text":"More information about continuous and short-term travel insurance"}]},{"componentType":"linkList","iconTitle":{"title":"More about"},"textLinks":[{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/annual-travel-insurance","text":"Annual Travel Insurance"},{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/short-travel-insurance","text":"Travel Short Insurance"}]},{"componentType":"linkList","iconTitle":{"title":"To the travel blogs"},"textLinks":[{"url":"/particulier/verzekeren/reisverzekering/reisblogs","text":"To the travel blogs"}]},{"componentType":"linkList","iconTitle":{"title":"Insurance"},"textLinks":[{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/annual-travel-insurance","text":"Travel insurance"},{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/car-insurance","text":"Car insurance"},{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/home-insurance","text":"Home insurance"},{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/liability-insurance","text":"Liability insurance"},{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/legal-expenses-insurance","text":"Legal expenses insurance"},{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/student-insurance","text":"Student insurance"},{"url":"/en/personal/insurances/czdirect-health-insurance","text":"Health insurance"},{"url":"/en/personal/insurances","text":"All insurance"}]}]}}}