Before you start

Medical aid membership or private insurance
Passport and permit
A radiological certificate is separately required for your permit application

Step-by-step

1
Join a medical aid society
CIMAS is the largest and publishes tiered packages — from a basic primary-care tier up to premium — with contributions and benefits stated in US dollars. Corporate rates through an employer are usually materially better than individual ones, so ask what the company scheme covers.
Via employerWho: You and your employer
2
Check the annual limit and the hospital network
Medical aid packages differ mainly in the annual limit and which facilities they admit you to. Confirm which private hospital your tier covers before you need one, not while you are in a waiting room.
OnlineWho: You
3
Confirm regional evacuation cover
Serious or specialist cases are commonly referred to South Africa. Check whether your package or a separate policy covers evacuation and treatment across the border, because that is the gap most likely to matter and the most expensive to fill late.
OnlineWho: You
4
Know which public hospital serves you
The Ministry of Health lists Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals and Sally Mugabe Central Hospital as Harare's central hospitals, with Chitungwiza Central Hospital serving the south of the metropolitan province. These are where an emergency ambulance will take you.
In personWho: You
5
Get the radiological certificate done properly
A radiological certificate is on the document list for every permit category. It is a health requirement that is really an immigration requirement, so use a provider whose certificate the Department accepts.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Medical aid card or insurance certificate
Passport and permit
Vaccination records
Radiological certificate for the permit file

Things most newcomers don’t know

There is no state scheme to join, and that surprises people.

Newcomers arrive expecting a national health insurance registration step like Kenya's or South Africa's. There is not one. Medical aid is a private subscription and it is the single most important thing to have organised before you land.

Source: Ministry of Health and Child Care

Medical aid is priced in US dollars, like everything else that matters.

CIMAS's published packages are USD figures. Combined with USD rent and USD school fees, this is why the honest cost of living in Harare is a dollar number even though the country has a local currency — the big line items simply are not in ZiG.

Source: CIMAS published package structure

Ask about South Africa before you ask about anything else.

The referral path for serious cases runs south. A package that looks generous domestically and stops at the border is the expensive kind of gap, and it is not the first thing a broker will raise.

Source: community-reported, standard practice

The radiological certificate is an immigration document.

Every permit category on the Department's requirement lists includes it. Doing it early, at a provider used to producing them, removes one of the more avoidable delays from a permit file.

Source: Department of Immigration — permit requirement pages

Common mistakes to avoid

Arriving without cover and joining a scheme with a waiting period just as you need it.
Assuming a package covers treatment in South Africa because it mentions 'international'.
Comparing packages on price without comparing the annual limit.
Leaving the radiological certificate until the permit file is otherwise complete.

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