Students from the EU/EEA or Switzerland studying in Norway

If you are from Switzerland or from a non-Nordic EU/EEA country and are coming to Norway to study, you should check if you are entitled to a European health insurance card before traveling from your home country.

Man sitting at table writing in a book

You will not, in principle, be considered a resident in Norway. ​You should check with the national insurance authorities in your country of residence whether your entitlement to subsidised health care applies abroad.

If you are entitled to a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) from your country of residence, you should make sure you bring it with you. This card documents your entitlement to necessary health care at treatment centres that are part of the public health care service.

You should also consider taking out private health insurance. This might be used, for example, to meet the costs of medical transport back to your home country if you fall ill.

Find out more about your health care entitlements in Norway if you have a European Health Insurance Card, and what to do if you fall ill.

If you are not entitled to a European Health Insurance Card, you should take out private health insurance.

If you are considered to be a resident in Norway, you are entitled to get expenses for health care in Norway covered under the same conditions as Norwegian citizens. In that case, you do not need to show your European Health Insurance Card. You are also, among other things, entitled to a regular General Practitioner (GP).

If you take a job while you are studying in Norway, you must check with Nav about how this affects your rights.

Example: Carlos from Spain is going to study in Norway for one term. He takes his European Health Insurance Card with him to Norway, and he has also chosen to take out a private insurance. Skiing in Hemsedal Carlos is knocked over on the ski slope. He falls badly and is sent to hospital. He shows his European Health Insurance Card and receives treatment at the hospital free of charge. It turns out that Carlos has broken his leg, so he wants to return to Spain as quickly as possible. Fortunately, he has taken out private health insurance which will cover the cost.

Content provided by Helfo

Helfo. Students from the EU/EEA or Switzerland studying in Norway. [Internet]. Oslo: The Norwegian Directorate of Health; updated Thursday, March 10, 2022 [retrieved Friday, April 19, 2024]. Available from: https://www.helsenorge.no/en/foreigners-in-norway/students-from-the-eu-eea-or-switzerland/

Last updated Thursday, March 10, 2022