Healthcare for visitors from other countries

The cost of this healthcare will depend on which country you come from. Sometimes, you may be able to receive healthcare at the same cost as those who have healthcare insurance in Sweden.

If you have planned in advance to come to Sweden to receive healthcare, this is known as planned healthcare. If this is the case, you need to speak with your doctor and a special certificate from your home country's equivalent of the Swedish Social Insurance Agency will be required.

You can call 1177 to obtain healthcare advice from a nurse. You can also find out where to go to receive healthcare.

You can normally go to a healthcare centre. There, a medical assessment will be carried out and you will be given an appointment time if necessary. At the healthcare centre, you may be referred onwards if you need specialist medical care.

If you are seriously ill, you should call the emergency number 112 and ask for an ambulance.

A patient should receive comprehensible information about their state of health, for example, and how the examination, healthcare or treatment required is progressing.

If you have difficulties understanding and speaking Swedish, you can ask for assistance with interpretation. This is free of charge, but the clinic you are visiting may need to know in advance so that an interpreter can be contacted.

Your address details and ID are all you need

If you are insured in a Nordic country – Denmark, Finland, Norway, the Faeroe Islands or Iceland – and need essential healthcare, all you need is to be able to show your ID. You should also provide your address in the country where you are insured.

If you are a cross-border worker – in other words, if you live in one Nordic country and work in another – and are insured in a Nordic country, you should be able to provide your address and show your ID.

Students who are insured in another Nordic country are also entitled to receive essential healthcare when providing their address and showing their ID.

Those who have planned to seek healthcare in Sweden on the same financial terms as those who are insured in Sweden need to show specific prior certification. This should be issued by the equivalent of the Swedish Social Insurance Agency, and should show that your home country will cover the healthcare costs. If you do not have such a certificate, you will have to pay the full cost yourself.

If you are from the EU, an EEA country or Switzerland, you are entitled to receive essential healthcare on the same terms as those who are insured in Sweden.

Individuals from the 26 EU member states, from the EEA countries of Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, and from Switzerland are entitled to receive essential healthcare in Sweden.

If you are visiting Sweden temporarily

If you are covered by the social insurance system in any of the EU member states or any of the EEA countries and are visiting Sweden temporarily, you are entitled to receive essential medical care on the same terms as those who are insured in Sweden. This also applies if you are insured in Switzerland.

In order to receive essential healthcare, you need to have a European healthcare insurance card – known as an EU card – with you. This is called a European Health Insurance Card in English, and can be requested from the equivalent of the Swedish Social Insurance Agency in your home country. Children who require essential healthcare must also have such a card.

If you are from the EU, an EEA country or Switzerland and you want to receive planned healthcare in Sweden, the county council and the regions require you to show specific prior certification if you wish to receive healthcare on the same financial terms as those who are insured in Sweden. This certificate shows that your home country will cover the healthcare costs. If you do not have such a certificate, you will have to pay the full cost yourself.

Sweden also has specific medical care agreements with some EU countries. This means that the right to healthcare may differ slightly to what is described above. You can find out more by contacting the Swedish Social Insurance Agency.

The United Kingdom

UK is no longer a member of the EU, but the same rules as before apply until December 31, 2020. 

Cross-border workers

Cross-border workers – i.e. people who work in Sweden but are insured in another EU country, an EEA country or Switzerland – are entitled to receive both essential and planned healthcare in the same way as those who are insured in Sweden. However, proof of employment or a specific certificate issued by the Swedish Social Insurance Agency is required.

Temporary work

If you yourself apply for and obtain temporary work in Sweden lasting for less than twelve months, you must register with the Swedish Social Insurance Agency in order to receive healthcare at normal patient fees.
If you are working for longer than 12 months, you must be registered as a resident in Sweden in order to receive healthcare on the same terms as those who are insured via the Swedish Social Insurance Agency.

If you are working in Sweden on a posting, for example from a company, and are a member of the medical care insurance system in an EU country, an EEA country or Switzerland, you are entitled to receive essential healthcare on production of your EU card. Family members must also be able to show certification to prove that they are covered by a social insurance agency in their home country.

A person on a posting who registers as a resident in Sweden is entitled to all types of healthcare in Sweden in the same way as if they were insured in Sweden. The only difference is that proof of employment or a certificate from the Swedish Social Insurance Agency must be shown.

Students

Students from an EU country, an EEA country or Switzerland who are spending less than twelve months in Sweden are entitled to receive essential medical care on the same terms as those who are insured in Sweden. However, an EU card must be shown.

Students from an EU country, an EEA country or Switzerland may have to pay the entire cost of planned medical care themselves. However, those who are registered as a resident in Sweden are entitled to receive healthcare in the same way as others who are resident in Sweden.