- Anxiety and depression are pre-existing medical conditions for insurance purposes, so they are usually declarable even when well managed. FCDO guidance states that failing to declare something may invalidate your travel insurance.
- Staysure, a trading name of TICORP Limited (FCA FRN 663617), states it covers more than 1,300 medical conditions and applies no upper age limit, with cancellation cover up to 15,000 pounds on its Signature policy.
- Avanti, also a trading name of TICORP Limited (FCA FRN 663617), states it covers 1,300-plus pre-existing conditions subject to screening, with cancellation cover up to 7,500 pounds.
- AllClear, arranged by IES Limited (FCA FRN 824283) and administered by AllClear Insurance Services Limited (FCA FRN 311244), states it has covered over 1,300 different conditions and offered cover in more than 99.5% of 2025 quotes.
- ABI members paid 472 million pounds across more than 500,000 travel claims in 2024, with an average medical claim of 1,528 pounds.
How mental health cover differs from other declarations
For travel insurance, a mental health condition such as anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder or an eating disorder is treated as a pre-existing medical condition in the same category as a physical illness. That status matters because it changes what you must tell the insurer and when. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office advises travellers to declare existing conditions or pending treatment or tests so that you are covered if there are related complications during your trip, and warns that failing to declare something may invalidate your travel insurance.
Mental health is sometimes assumed to fall outside the declaration rules because it is not a hospital diagnosis or because the condition feels stable. That assumption is the most common cause of avoidable disputes. A condition for which you have seen a GP, taken prescribed medication, had counselling or therapy, or been referred for assessment is generally declarable, regardless of how long ago that happened or how well it is now controlled. The test is not whether you feel unwell on the day you buy the policy. It is whether the condition exists, has been diagnosed, or is under investigation.
What the screening questions actually ask
Standard medical screening, which most insurers run as an online questionnaire during the quote, focuses on a recent window of medical activity. Staysure, for example, states that its screening asks about appointments, symptoms, tests, treatments, hospitalisations and medications from the previous two years. For mental health that translates into specific prompts: whether you have been prescribed medication such as an antidepressant, whether you have had a referral to a psychiatrist or psychologist, whether you have ever been admitted to hospital in connection with the condition, and whether you have experienced self-harm or suicidal thoughts.
These questions are blunt by design, and the honest answer is the one that protects the policy. Answering yes does not automatically mean cover is refused or that the premium rises sharply. It means the insurer prices the declared condition rather than leaving it unpriced and therefore potentially unpaid at claim stage. Where a question asks about a defined period, such as changes to medication in the last twelve months, the date of the change is the load-bearing detail, so it is worth checking records before completing the form.
Stability periods, medication changes and the timing trap
Many policies apply a stability requirement to declared conditions. In practice this asks whether the condition has been stable for a set period, often around the dosage and frequency of medication and the absence of new symptoms, hospital admissions or treatment changes. For mental health that has a particular edge: a recent dose adjustment to an antidepressant, a new prescription, or a fresh referral can all count as a change even when the underlying condition feels settled.
The timing trap is that a change made shortly before travel, or between buying the policy and departing, can affect cover if it is not disclosed. Insurers commonly ask to be told about changes in health between the date of purchase and the start date of the trip. A traveller who declares accurately at quote stage but then has a medication change before flying should check the policy wording on notifiable changes rather than assume the original declaration still stands. Reading the policy definition of a pre-existing condition, and any stability clause, before paying is the single most useful step.
Cover limits and exclusions to read closely
Declaring anxiety or depression and being accepted does not guarantee that every related cost is covered. The cover that matters most for medical travellers is emergency medical and repatriation, where bills abroad can be very large; the ABI reported one member paid over one million pounds for a single hospitalisation and repatriation in the United States. Cancellation cover is the other pressure point, because a claim to cancel a trip on mental health grounds is only likely to succeed where the condition was declared and the cancellation is supported by a medical professional.
Specific exclusions to look for include any general exclusion for psychological, psychiatric or stress-related conditions, which would override an otherwise medical policy, and any requirement that travel was not undertaken against medical advice. Some policies also exclude claims connected to alcohol or substance use, which can interact with mental health claims. The GHIC card is not a substitute here: the NHS confirms a free Global Health Insurance Card covers medically necessary state healthcare in the EEA and some countries but does not cover repatriation or private treatment, so it complements rather than replaces a declared travel policy.
Providers offering cover for declared conditions
Three FCA-regulated specialists publish that they accept a wide range of declarable conditions through medical screening rather than blanket exclusions. None is endorsed here; the figures are drawn from each provider's own current pages and should be confirmed at quote stage.
Staysure is a trading name of TICORP Limited, registered in Gibraltar (company 111526) and administered by Howserv Limited, operating in the UK under FCA FRN 663617. It states it covers more than 1,300 medical conditions, applies no upper age limit, and offers cancellation cover up to 15,000 pounds with unlimited emergency medical expenses on its Comprehensive and Signature policies. Its screening covers the previous two years of appointments, treatments and medications.
Avanti is also a trading name of TICORP Limited (FCA FRN 663617), administered by Howserv Limited (FCA FRN 599282). It states it covers 1,300-plus pre-existing conditions subject to screening, with cancellation cover up to 7,500 pounds per person and unlimited medical expenses on its Deluxe policy.
AllClear is arranged by IES Limited, registered in Gibraltar (company 117274) and operating under FCA FRN 824283, and is administered by AllClear Insurance Services Limited (registered in England 04255112, FCA FRN 311244). It states it has covered over 1,300 different medical conditions across all ages, that it offered cover in more than 99.5% of 2025 quotes while noting it cannot guarantee cover in every circumstance, and that unlimited medical and repatriation cover is available.
Common pitfalls
The recurring failures with mental health declarations cluster around a few points. The first is not declaring at all, on the basis that the condition is historic or mild; once diagnosed or treated, it is generally still declarable. The second is declaring the diagnosis but omitting a recent medication change or referral that falls inside the screening window. The third is assuming a GHIC removes the need for declared cover, which it does not. The fourth is overlooking a general psychological-condition exclusion buried in the wording, which can defeat an otherwise valid claim. Where a mainstream insurer declines or excludes the condition, a specialist medical insurer or the MoneyHelper directory below is the route to compare options rather than travelling uninsured.
If you find it difficult to get cover because of a pre-existing condition, the Money and Pensions Service operates a travel insurance directory of specialist providers via its MoneyHelper service. Visit the MoneyHelper travel insurance directory or call the Money Helper Customer Contact Centre on 0800 138 7777 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm).
