Before you start

Employment contract, for employer-arranged cover
CERPAC or residence evidence
Passport photographs and details for HMO enrolment
Vaccination records including yellow fever

Step-by-step

1
Get the schedule of benefits, not the brochure
HMO plans differ sharply in hospital panel, inpatient limits, maternity, chronic conditions and pre-existing exclusions. Ask for the schedule in writing and read the panel against where you live and work.
Via employerWho: YouWeek 1
2
Register at your primary provider before you need it
Nigerian HMO plans route you through a designated primary provider who refers onward. Register in person, get the card or code, and ask what happens out of hours and in an emergency.
In personWho: YouWeek 2
3
Establish whether you have evacuation cover and what triggers it
Many Abuja employers of foreign staff — particularly missions and international organisations — carry medical evacuation cover. It is a separate product from the HMO, with a different number and different triggers. Find out which you hold.
Via employerWho: You
4
Take malaria advice from a local clinician
Malaria transmission in the FCT is seasonal rather than year-round, peaking with and after the rains, which changes the prophylaxis calculation compared with coastal Lagos. Get advice locally and keep rapid tests at home either way.
In personWho: You
5
Complete the wider vaccination set
Yellow fever is the entry requirement. Meningitis is worth particular attention in the northern half of Nigeria, alongside typhoid, hepatitis A and B and rabies. An Abuja travel clinic can complete these.
In personWho: You
6
Write down your emergency plan
Which hospital, which route, which number, who at work has a copy. 112 reaches the national emergency communication centres and 122 reaches the FRSC for road crashes. Private ambulance services also operate in Abuja and response times vary — have a direct number too.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

HMO card or enrolment code
Schedule of benefits
Evacuation policy details and its emergency number
Yellow fever certificate
List of current medications by generic name

Things most newcomers don’t know

Meningitis vaccination matters more in northern Nigeria than most travel advice conveys.

Abuja sits at the southern edge of the African meningitis belt, and seasonal outbreaks occur in the dry season across the north. Standard travel-vaccination lists written for coastal West Africa underweight it. A conjugate vaccine covering the relevant serogroups is a normal recommendation for residents here and is worth raising specifically with a clinician rather than accepting a generic list.

Source: community-reported; travel health guidance

Malaria in the FCT is seasonal, which changes the prophylaxis decision.

Transmission on the coast is continuous year-round; on the central plateau it rises sharply with the rains from around June and falls in the dry season. That makes seasonal prophylaxis a more sensible option here than in Lagos, and it also means a fever in February is less likely to be malaria than the same fever in September. Get the advice locally, and keep rapid diagnostic tests at home regardless.

Source: community-reported

An HMO plan and an evacuation policy are different products, and Abuja has more people holding the second than most Nigerian cities.

An HMO plan pays for treatment at Nigerian hospitals on its panel; an evacuation policy flies you out when the care needed is not available locally. Abuja's diplomatic and development-sector employers frequently provide the second, sometimes instead of a comprehensive local plan. Knowing which you actually hold, and which number to ring, is a five-minute check that people only make once it is too late to make it calmly.

Source: community-reported

Health insurance became a legal obligation in 2022 and many employers still present it as a benefit.

The National Health Insurance Authority Act 2022 replaced Nigeria's voluntary scheme with a mandatory one covering all Nigerians and legal residents, and requires employers with five or more employees to enrol them. An offer letter silent on health cover is a question to ask rather than a gap to accept — uneven enforcement does not change the obligation.

Source: National Health Insurance Authority Act 2022

Common mistakes to avoid

Accepting a plan whose hospital panel sits nowhere near your district.
Assuming an HMO plan includes international evacuation.
Skipping meningitis vaccination on a travel-clinic list written for coastal Africa.
Waiting days on a rainy-season fever before testing for malaria.
Losing cover between jobs because it is tied to the employer.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.