Doctors, insurance and emergencies in Bologna

Registering with AUSL Bologna

You register at a Sportello Unico di Accesso or CUP counter of the AUSL di Bologna district where you live, and the anagrafe sanitaria line that handles registrations is 051 4206221, answered Monday to Friday 7:30 to 17:30 and Saturday 7:30 to 12:30. Those entitled are Italian residents, EU citizens registered in the anagrafe, non-EU nationals holding a valid residence permit, stateless persons, adopted minors and newborns, and you cannot register at all without a codice fiscale. For non-EU nationals the tessera sanitaria is issued for the same period as the residence permit, so it has to be renewed in step with the permesso.

• The tessera sanitaria is posted to your home address by the Agenzia delle Entrate. It carries your personal data and codice fiscale but does not name the doctor you chose.
• Check the card's status at agenziaentrate.gov.it, or call the Sistema Tessera Sanitaria contact centre on 800 030 070, Monday to Saturday 08:00 to 20:00.
• EU arrivals are covered in the interim by the EHIC for medically necessary care at public and contracted facilities, subject to the usual ticket. It is a bridge, not a substitute: transferring your residence to Italy ends the cover your home state issued.

If you have to pay in

Voluntary registration for foreigners staying more than three months has cost a minimum of €2,000 a year since 1 January 2024, up from €387. Holders of a study permit with no income other than Italian public scholarships pay a flat €700 a year, and au pairs pay €1,200. Payment is made on form F24 under tribute code 8846, with region code 06 for Emilia-Romagna. Paying does not activate anything on its own: you then present the receipt at an AUSL counter with your passport, codice fiscale and proof of enrolment or status, and choose a medico di base.

Living in Bologna, resident somewhere else

If you are officially resident in another comune but living in Bologna for work, study, health, family, unemployment or judicial reasons, and the stay runs beyond three months, AUSL Bologna can give you iscrizione temporanea. It assigns a GP or paediatrician for a minimum of three months and a maximum of a year, renewable. That is the route for a fixed-term posting, and for anyone whose residenza file is still working its way through the anagrafe.

Emergencies, and care without papers

112 is the single emergency number throughout Italy, and hospital pronto soccorso departments treat anyone regardless of registration status. Foreigners present without regular entry or stay documents are issued an STP card, valid six months and renewable, covering urgent and essential care, pregnancy and child health, vaccinations and infectious disease treatment; Italian law bars healthcare staff from reporting them to the authorities. Emilia-Romagna runs a free health information line on 800 033 033, Monday to Friday 8:30 to 18:00 and Saturday 8:30 to 13:00, for questions about registering and getting access to services. It is an information line and not an out-of-hours doctor, so ask your AUSL district for the continuità assistenziale number covering your address.