User fees at hospitals and outpatient clinics

If you need help immediately, call the Emergency Medical Services Centre on 113.

The regional health authority (RHF) is responsible for the provision of hospital services to inhabitants of the region. On the websites of the individual health authorities, you will find more information about the health authority you belong to and the health services that it provides.

It is free to be admitted to hospital in Norway.

You must pay user fees at outpatient clinics

If you are treated at an outpatient clinic (without being admitted), you will normally have to pay a user fee. In addition to the user fee for the consultation, you will normally have to pay a user fee for X-ray and ultrasound examinations and nuclear medicine image examinations when you have not been admitted to a hospital.

Approved user fees are included in the basis for exemption card for health services. If you have an exemption card, you will not normally have to pay a user fee.

Some patient groups are exempt from paying the user fee. Among other things, this concerns:

• investigations and treatment in conjunction with pregnancy and childbirth
• the examination and treatment of children under the age of 16 (for psychiatric treatment of children and adolescents, everyone under the age of 18 is exempt from paying)
• approved occupational injuries
• persons with a communicable disease which may endanger public health and persons who suspect they may have such a disease – this applies for example to coronavirus, chlamydia and gonorrhea

You will not have to pay the user fee if your outpatient treatment is delayed by more than one hour after the agreed time and you were not notified of the delay.

If you are receiving treatment at a public hospital/outpatient clinic or a follow-up due to the long-term effects after COVID-19, you will be charged a user fee. This user fee counts towards your exemption card for health services (frikort). On the other hand, you are not required to pay a user fee if you are being tested or treated in the initial stage of illness due to COVID-19, since COVID-19 is a so-called generally infectious disease (allmennfarlig, smittsom sykdom).

Patient fees

In some cases, you will have to pay for bandages and consumables or other services in addition to the user fee. We call this is a patient fee and it is not included in the basis for the exemption card.

You must pay the patient fee yourself. It does not matter whether or not you have an exemption card or are exempt from having to pay user fees.

Full or partial patient fee

Full or partial patient fees have been introduced for some treatments. This concerns:

• Fertility treatment – up to three attempts
• Sterilisation of men
• Sterilisation of women without medical indication
• Surgical insertion of implants in connection with marginal periodontitis
• Ritual circumcision of boys

Right to choose a place of treatment

In the case of planned treatment, you can choose which hospital to be treated at. Read more about your rights to healthcare from the specialist health services.

Treatment at private hospitals

The state will not normally cover expenses for treatment at private treatment centres.

However, you can claim coverage for your expenses at all private treatment centres which have an agreement with a regional health authority. In this case, the same rules apply for expense coverage as for public treatment centres. At many private habilitation and rehabilitation institutions, you have to pay a user fee.

At Select treatment centre (only in Norwegian), you will find an overview of all the treatment centres you can choose between.

User fees and user fee rates

Exemption card for health services cover approved user fees for treatment by a doctor, psychologist and outpatient clinic, for radiological investigations and treatment, laboratory tests and medicines and equipment on a blue prescription, as well as for patient travel.

You will find your exemption card and decision notification when you log in to the "Exemption cards and user fees” service.

You will receive a text message or e-mail when the decision concerning your exemption card has been made, depending on the options you selected at Helsenorge.

If you have overpaid, you will automatically be refunded the amount you are entitled to.

Patient fees at hospitals and outpatient clinics

Patient fees must be covered in full by the patient and are not included in the basis for exemption cards for health services.

NB: Due to the coronavirus situation, no outpatient clinic or hospital were permitted to charge a fee for non-attendance between the 7th of December 2020 and the 30th of June 2021. This means that you may have to pay a fee if you fail to attend an appointment at the agreed time without giving at least 24 hours notice.

Patient fees at hospitals and outpatient clinics for sterilisation or ritual circumcision of boys

Helfo does not cover expenses for the sterilisation of men. As regards the sterilisation of women, a patient fee will be payable when the treatment is carried out without medical indication. Patient fees must be covered in full by the patient and are not included in the basis for exemption card for health services.

Patient fees at hospitals and outpatient clinics in the case of marginal periodontitis (gum disease)

Patient fees must be covered in full by the patient and are not included in the basis for exemption card for health services.