Expat insurance and health insurance in Bangladesh

The Bangladeshi health system falls under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, whose Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) oversees policy implementation and management of public facilities. The public network, dominated by Dhaka's major teaching hospitals, suffers from chronic underfunding: current health expenditure was only 2.17% of GDP in 2023 (World Bank), one of the lowest rates in the world, with household out-of-pocket spending among the highest (79.31% of current health expenditure). The Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH), founded in 1946 and affiliated with the University of Dhaka, is its leading public facility, with an announced capacity of around 2,600 beds and more than 500 admissions per day; it remains primarily sized for the local population, with no identified provision for foreigners.

The private sector, concentrated in Dhaka, is the reference for international patients and expats. France Diplomatie recommends three facilities: the Evercare Hospital Dhaka (formerly Apollo Hospital Dhaka, taken over by the Evercare group in 2020), the country's first hospital accredited by JCI (Joint Commission International) as early as 2008 and re-accredited several times since; the United Hospital, in the Gulshan district; and the ICDDR,B (International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh), specialising in digestive disorders common among travellers. The Square Hospital, another upmarket private facility in Dhaka (founded in 2006, around 500 beds), is also cited by several specialised sources as a reference for expats. France Diplomatie nonetheless considers the country's medical infrastructure insufficient overall: serious cases most often require evacuation to Bangkok or Singapore, with areas outside Dhaka having even more limited medical resources.

• Visa mandatory for every French national, regardless of the purpose of the stay: preferably requested before departure from the Bangladeshi embassy in Paris (109 avenue Henri Martin, 75016 Paris), or failing that in the form of a Visa on Arrival, whose online registration must be completed at least 72 hours before the flight on the official portal of the Bangladeshi Ministry of Interior.
• The Visa on Arrival costs around 60 euros (an amount noted by France Diplomatie as subject to change), to be paid in cash in foreign currency on arrival; the traveller must also prove a return ticket and the equivalent of at least 500 USD in cash or by credit card. It is valid for 30 days single entry and is not renewable, except in exceptional circumstances.
• Since August 2026, an optional and free electronic arrival and departure card (E-Arrival / E-Departure Card) can be completed online before the flight, on a portal separate from the visa one, to speed up arrival processing.
• Entry by sea is impossible (ports have no immigration services); entry by land with a vehicle (car, van, motorbike) is now banned according to France Diplomatie.
• Travel to the Chittagong Hill Tracts (Rangamati, Khagrachari, Bandarban districts) subject to prior authorisation from the Bangladeshi Ministry of Interior; the border zone with Myanmar and Saint Martin's Island are subject to heightened vigilance from France Diplomatie (trafficking, piracy in the Bay of Bengal).
• Health/repatriation insurance strongly recommended: France Diplomatie describes it as essential, the local medical infrastructure being considered insufficient and costs unable to be covered by the French embassy.
• Seconded employee : in the absence of an agreement, staying on the French scheme falls solely under French law (unilateral secondment), for a period of 3 years renewable once, without exemption from any contributions due in Bangladesh.

France Diplomatie advises against any travel to Bangladesh except for essential reasons, due to the terrorist risk, and reports frequent political or social demonstrations, sometimes sudden and liable to escalate. The general emergency number (police, rescue, ambulance) is 999.

France and Bangladesh are not bound by any bilateral social security agreement: Bangladesh does not appear on the list of agreement countries published by CLEISS, which lists only a limited number of Asian countries and territories bound to France by such an agreement (including China, South Korea, India, Israel, Japan, the Philippines and Taiwan). There is therefore neither an applicable European health insurance card, nor an A1 or S1 form enforceable against Bangladeshi authorities, nor any direct reimbursement mechanism between the two systems.

• Temporary stay: no European or bilateral coordination applies; only health/travel insurance taken out before departure covers costs on site, with France Diplomatie deeming it essential given the local medical infrastructure.
• Secondment from France: in the absence of an agreement, French law provides for unilateral secondment of 3 years, renewable once. The employee stays affiliated with the French scheme, with contributions paid in France, but without exemption from any contributions due in Bangladesh. Care received on site is reimbursed retroactively by the French fund, within the limits of French rates, upon presentation of receipts and form S3125.
• Long-term move: no local social security scheme accessible to foreigners has been identified for everyday healthcare; a voluntary affiliation with the CFE remains the recommended path for staying covered under a scheme recognised in France, in addition to private international insurance covering medical evacuation.

1. Before departure: notify French agencies of your departure (CPAM, CAF, France Travail, pension funds).
2. Before applying for the visa: take out health/travel insurance covering medical costs and repatriation/medical evacuation, described as essential by France Diplomatie given the local medical infrastructure.
3. Apply for the visa from the Bangladeshi embassy in Paris before departure, or register a Visa on Arrival application online at least 72 hours before the flight, planning for a return ticket and cash in foreign currency.
4. Optional: complete the electronic arrival card (E-Arrival Card) online before the flight to speed up arrival processing.
5. Seconded employee: arrange unilateral secondment with the employer through your French fund before departure (maximum duration 3 years renewable once).
6. Update your vaccinations (hepatitis A, typhoid, meningitis ACWY, rabies, tuberculosis for children, depending on the length and conditions of the stay) and find out about protective measures against dengue and malaria.
7. For any travel to the Chittagong Hill Tracts: obtain prior authorisation from the Bangladeshi Ministry of Interior.
8. Keep proof of care and form S3125 for any request for retroactive reimbursement from the French fund (secondment cases).
9. Register with the roll of French nationals living abroad (French embassy in Dhaka).