For tourists & expats

How to see an English-speaking doctor in Paris as a tourist or expat

Falling ill far from home is stressful — more so when you don't speak the language and don't understand the system. The good news: you can see an English-speaking doctor in Paris the same day, with no appointment and no French paperwork. Here's exactly how.

A plain-English guide · French Doctor

You don't need to be in the French system

The single biggest misconception travellers have is that you need to be "in the system" — a French address, a carte Vitale (the green French health-insurance card), or a social security number — before a doctor will see you. You don't.

France has a large private medical sector that runs alongside the public one. As a tourist, business traveller, student or new arrival, you are perfectly entitled to a private consultation: you see a French-licensed doctor, you pay directly, and you receive an invoice. No residency, no registration, no waiting list.

Your options when you're sick in Paris

1. Hospital emergencies (urgences)

For anything serious — chest pain, breathing difficulty, severe injury — go straight to the nearest hospital urgences or call 15 (SAMU, the French medical emergency line). This is the right channel for genuine emergencies, but expect long waits for non-urgent problems, and English is not guaranteed.

2. Walk-in clinics and SOS Médecins

Services like SOS Médecins can send a doctor to your hotel or apartment. They're useful, but they can be slow at peak times, the fee structure varies, and you may not get an English-speaking doctor.

3. Online consultation in English

For the very common problems travellers face — a urinary tract infection, a sinus or chest infection, a flare-up of a known condition, a lost or forgotten medication, contraception — an online consultation with an English-speaking GP is usually the fastest, calmest route. You describe your symptoms, a French-licensed doctor reviews your case personally, and if appropriate you receive a prescription you can take to any pharmacy.

How an online consultation works at French Doctor

The process is built around removing friction when you feel unwell:

• No appointment. You start when you need to, not days later.
• You send your symptoms in English (you can also write in French or Arabic). The doctor reads your case personally — there is no chatbot writing your prescription.
• A real French-licensed GP reviews and decides. If a prescription is appropriate, it's issued and signed. If your case needs an in-person exam or the emergency room, the doctor will tell you honestly.
• You receive a prescription PDF in about 30 minutes, valid at any French pharmacy, plus an invoice for your insurer.

For a simple need — a renewal, a straightforward infection — the Express consultation (from €39, text-based, ~15 min) is usually enough. For anything that benefits from seeing each other — fever, a more general illness, a travel-insurance medical certificate — the Standard consultation (€49, video, ~30 min) is the better fit.

What about my insurance?

Because this is a private consultation, you pay up front and we provide an itemised invoice. Most travellers then claim it back through their own cover — UK private insurance, a US PPO plan, international expat health insurance, or an employer scheme. We don't bill French social security, and we don't promise reimbursement: what we guarantee is a proper consultation and the paperwork to support your own claim.

Private consultation with a French-licensed GP. Invoice provided for private insurance reimbursement.