DKV vs Sanitas: Spanish Visa Health Insurance 2026

DKV vs Sanitas: at a glance

Price: DKV is cheaper — but what does that buy you?

DKV Visado is priced from approximately €57/month versus Sanitas Residents Visa from €67.76/month. The difference is around €10–11/month at entry level, or roughly €130/year. On the surface that is a meaningful saving. But as with most price comparisons in this market, the gap is considerably smaller once you look at what each policy actually includes.

Sanitas includes dental cover as standard — 45+ free dental services with no waiting periods, plus 20%+ discounts on all other treatments, from day one. DKV Visado does not include dental. For most applicants, dental cover is a practical necessity within the first year. The cost of adding dental separately to a DKV policy will erode most or all of the headline price advantage.

Sanitas also includes the BLUA app — a full 24/7 English-language digital health platform with GP video consultations, prescription requests, physio, mental health, and nutrition services. DKV has a MyDKV app, but it operates primarily in Spanish. For new arrivals who need to manage health appointments and queries in English, this is a significant day-to-day difference that the headline prices do not reflect.

Repatriation: a critical gap to verify with DKV

One of the most important — and often overlooked — elements of a Spanish visa health insurance policy is repatriation cover. Many Spanish consulates assess whether repatriation is included as part of their evaluation of whether a policy meets minimum requirements. Repatriation on the DKV Visado policy is not clearly confirmed in DKV's publicly available product information.

Sanitas explicitly includes repatriation on both the Residents Visa and Platinum Visa plans. If repatriation is a requirement at your specific consulate — and it is assessed by many — Sanitas removes any ambiguity on this point.

Dental: Sanitas includes it, DKV does not

Sanitas Residents Visa and Platinum Visa both include dental cover from day one — with no waiting periods. The standard dental benefit covers more than 45 free dental services, including consultations, X-rays, hygiene appointments, and extractions. Discounts of over 20% apply to all other dental treatments. Platinum Visa includes a more comprehensive dental package. Sanitas operates 216+ owned dental clinics across Spain as part of the same integrated network.

DKV Visado does not include dental cover. This is an important practical gap — routine dental appointments and hygiene are costs most people incur within the first year. Without dental included, DKV's lower headline price becomes less advantageous once those costs are factored in.

Network: 23 DKV health centres vs Sanitas's owned hospitals

DKV claims a strong contracted network of over 51,000 professionals and more than 1,000 centres across Spain. It also operates 23 own DKV health centres — which distinguishes it from Adeslas, which owns nothing. These DKV-owned centres provide a consistent baseline for certain types of consultations and services.

However, DKV's 23 own health centres are primary and outpatient facilities — they are not major hospitals. For complex inpatient care, surgical procedures, or specialist treatments requiring hospital admission, DKV policyholders rely on contracted hospital partners.

Sanitas owns and operates five hospitals — including Hospital Universitario Sanitas La Zarzuela and Hospital Universitario Sanitas CIMA in Barcelona — alongside a national chain of Sanitas Milenium clinics and 216+ owned dental centres. This level of owned infrastructure means Sanitas can manage complex care pathways entirely within its own facilities. For inpatient and surgical care in particular, the difference between 23 outpatient health centres and five owned hospitals is significant.

Certificate & process: automatic vs 48–72 hours

Sanitas sends the visa certificate automatically once the policy is activated and payment received — no manual step and no waiting on an agent. DKV normally issues the certificate within 48–72 hours via your agent after acceptance and payment are confirmed.

For applicants with comfortable lead time before their consulate appointment, the 48–72 hour DKV window is usually fine. For anyone with a tight appointment — especially if payment and policy activation happen within 48 hours of the consulate visit — Sanitas's automatic issuance is considerably safer.

Advance contracting: 6 months vs ~90 days

Sanitas allows contracting up to 6 months before the policy start date — useful for applicants planning their move well in advance, or for those who want to confirm their health insurance documentation months before their visa application is submitted. DKV can normally be contracted approximately 90 days before the required start date.

Both policies are 12-month contracts, so on contract flexibility after year one, DKV and Sanitas are equivalent. The difference is entirely in how far in advance you can lock in your cover before the policy begins.

English support: BLUA vs MyDKV

Sanitas's BLUA app is a fully English-language digital health platform available 24/7 — GP video consultations, prescription requests, appointment booking, specialist referrals, physio, mental health support, and nutrition coaching, all in English. Customer service is available in English, and the Mi Sanitas app allows you to filter doctors by language spoken.

DKV's MyDKV app provides appointment management and access to the provider network, but it operates primarily in Spanish. English-language customer service through DKV is limited. In expat areas, individual DKV-affiliated providers may speak English, but administrative matters — authorisations, policy queries, billing — are handled through a Spanish-language operation.

For applicants who are not yet fluent in Spanish, or who want the security of managing their healthcare entirely in English, Sanitas provides a meaningfully better experience.

Sanitas optional add-ons — not available through DKV

Sanitas policyholders can build out their cover with ten optional add-on modules. None of these exist on DKV Visado:

Who should choose Sanitas?

Who should choose DKV?

Our verdict

DKV Visado and Sanitas are both 12-month contracts with a maximum joining age of 75 — on those two specific points they are equal. But the comparison stops there. Sanitas includes dental from day one (45+ free services, no waiting periods), has the BLUA 24/7 English-language digital health app with no DKV equivalent, provides automatic certificate delivery on payment, owns and operates five major hospitals, and offers six-month advance contracting plus a 50/50 split payment option. DKV includes none of these.

The repatriation gap is the most pressing practical concern. Repatriation is a criterion assessed by many Spanish consulates, and it is not clearly confirmed on the DKV Visado policy in publicly available documentation. This is not a minor administrative detail — it is a potential reason for a visa application to be rejected. If you choose DKV, confirm repatriation in writing before you pay. If there is any doubt, choose Sanitas, which includes repatriation clearly on both its visa plans.

Once dental is factored in separately (which most DKV policyholders will need), the ~€10/month headline price advantage shrinks considerably. For applicants who will actually use their health insurance as healthcare — not just as a visa document — Sanitas provides the stronger, more complete product.

Frequently asked questions

Pricing shown is sourced from each insurer's own published pages and is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. Premiums are individually underwritten and confirmed at quote stage. Always verify current terms directly with the insurer or your specialist before purchasing.