Healthcare in Morocco: the treaty route through the CAK
Morocco is on the official list of treaty countries. Pensioners with a Dutch statutory pension register with the CAK and get access to the Moroccan system through a treaty form, for a treaty contribution — so no lifelong private policy. What exactly that entitlement covers, and why where you live decides what it's worth to you.
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Written and checked by Auke on , against the sources at the bottom. Is something no longer right? Report it below and I'll fix it.
Yes, with a Dutch statutory pension or benefit you receive care in Morocco from the Moroccan system, at the expense of the Netherlands. You pay a treaty contribution for it. That is because Morocco is a treaty country: the Netherlands has made arrangements with it on medical care.
Of all the questions asked about emigrating to Morocco, the one about your healthcare is the most expensive one to answer wrongly. And the answer is more favourable than most people think.
Is Morocco a treaty country?
The Netherlands has made arrangements on medical care with a limited number of countries. Morocco is on that list, together with among others Turkey, Tunisia, Cape Verde and the EU countries.
What that means: if you have a Dutch statutory pension or benefit, you register with the CAK, the Dutch agency that arranges healthcare for Dutch people abroad. You receive a treaty form, register with it at the Moroccan healthcare institution, and from that moment you receive care from the Moroccan system at the expense of the Netherlands.
For that you no longer pay a Dutch healthcare premium but a treaty contribution. In most cases it is withheld automatically from your pension or benefit; the amount depends on your income and on your country of residence.
That is a fundamentally different story from Thailand or Indonesia, where you depend on a private policy that gets more expensive with the years and at some point can no longer be had.
Where does the treaty say that?
The engine under this route is in article 13 of the social security treaty between the Netherlands and Morocco: whoever receives a pension and lives in the other country gets the sickness benefits through the institution of the country of residence, at the expense of the competent country, the country that pays your pension. The duration of those benefits follows the legislation of the competent country.
Morocco provides the care, the Netherlands pays for it, you pay the contribution.
In which order do you arrange it?
Apply for the form well before your departure; the CAK takes four weeks at most. Only cancel your Dutch policy once it's settled. Preferably tell your health insurer your moving date two months in advance.
A gap between two systems is the most expensive thing that can happen to you on this journey. You are then no longer insured in the Netherlands and not yet in Morocco. One hospital admission in that period you pay yourself, at rates no insurer looks over.
After arrival there's another step people skip: you have to actually register with the form at the Moroccan healthcare institution. Only then are you known in the public system. The form in your drawer is no insurance.
| Step | What the CAK and NederlandWereldwijd say about it |
|---|---|
| Register with the CAK | processing time 4 weeks at most |
| Tell your health insurer your moving date | preferably 2 months before departure |
| The form | form 121, to hand in at an office of the CNSS |
| What you get | the basic package AMO: GP, hospital and medication |
| Family without own income | co-insured, after approval by the CNSS |
| Care in the Netherlands or another country | not covered; take out travel or supplementary insurance |
| The treaty contribution | deducted monthly from your pension or benefit |
What does your treaty entitlement cover and not cover?
Here lies the nuance that rarely appears on forums. Your treaty entitlement gives you access to the public system: the same care as for Moroccan insured people, with the same waiting times and the same hospitals.
Many Dutch people in Morocco end up in practice in private clinics, and those don't fall under it. Whoever wants that route pays themselves or takes out an additional private policy alongside.
That makes your place of residence a healthcare decision. Tangier, Rabat, Casablanca, Marrakesh and Agadir have the public hospitals where your treaty entitlement is really worth something. In the Rif or the Middle Atlas the distance to such a hospital is a factor you don't notice on holiday and do as a resident.
Find a GP in your first weeks, before you need one.
Does anything change for early retirement?
Not for Morocco. As expected, from 1 November 2026 the CAK will no longer admit new customers who only have an early-retirement pension or a bridging benefit. That applies only to the EU, the EEA and Switzerland.
Morocco does not fall under it. According to the CAK, with an early-retirement pension in Morocco you keep the right to health insurance through the CAK, also after that date. So you don't need a private policy before your AOW (the Dutch state pension) starts. More on the change in Europe is in the article on early retirement and the CAK.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 1 of 5 of the journey, step 1.2: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Morocco or go straight to step 1.2 in the open plan.
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- NederlandWereldwijd — the scheme for living abroad and the treaty countries — nederlandwereldwijd.nl
- NederlandWereldwijd — how do I arrange my health insurance through the CAK — nederlandwereldwijd.nl
- General Convention on social security between the Netherlands and Morocco — wetten.overheid.nl
- CAK — health insurance in Morocco: form 121, the CNSS, the basic package and co-insurance of the family — hetcak.nl
- CAK — questions about early retirement: whoever moves to Morocco keeps the right to the CAK health insurance with an early-retirement pension — hetcak.nl
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