Note

• Residents of Denmark, Iceland, Norway or Sweden need only to show a valid national ID card and provide their permanent address in the other Nordic country to obtain public healthcare in Finland on the same terms as the local residents.

Emergency

• Call 112
• Contact a local health centre or hospital in the region where you are staying.

Finland has two official languages: Finnish and Swedish. Most people, including medical professionals, also speak English.

Treatment, coverage & costs

Doctors

• The European Health Insurance Card entitles you to medically necessary treatment at any public healthcare facility. You can contact a local health centre, where healthcare professionals will determine what type of care you need.
• You must present a valid European Health Insurance Card and a passport or other identification to receive treatment at the same price as a resident.
• The health centre will charge you a client fee according to a fixed scale of charges.
• If you are under 18, treatment is mostly free of charge.
• You can also visit private doctors or medical clinics, in which case you must pay the full fee. However, you can claim reimbursement of medically necessary care later from the social insurance institution Kela or your own health insurance institution.

Dentists

• The European Health Insurance Card entitles you to medically necessary treatment at any public healthcare facility. Contact the local health centre if you need dental treatment.
• You must present a valid European Health Insurance Card and a passport or other identification to receive treatment at the same price as a resident.
• The health centre will charge you a client fee based on a fixed scale of charges. There are also charges for different treatments, which can vary depending on the procedure (approximately €9,5 - €250).
• If you are under 18, dental treatment is generally free of charge.
• You can also visit private dentists or dental clinics, in which case you must pay the full fee. However, you can claim reimbursement of medically necessary care later from the social insurance institution Kela or your own health insurance institution.

Hospital treatment

• To be admitted to a hospital, you will need a referral from a doctor. In an emergency, you can go directly to the emergency unit of a public hospital.
• You must present a valid European Health Insurance Card and a passport or other identification.
• There is a daily client fee for hospital in-patient treatment.
• If you are under 18, you do not need to pay the daily fee for more than seven days during the same calendar year.
• There are client fees for hospital out-patient treatment.
• If you use a private hospital, you will have to pay all costs. However, you can claim reimbursement of medically necessary care later from the social insurance institution Kela or your own health insurance institution.

Prescriptions

• In Finland, you can purchase medication with a paper prescription issued in another EU or EEA country or Switzerland if the medication in question is licensed for sale in Finland. You can also use an electronic prescription prescribed in Estonia, Croatia, Portugal, Poland or Spain.
• At the pharmacy, you must pay the full cost of the medicine.
• The pharmacy should give you a receipt for all prescription charges, which you can then use to claim reimbursement of medically necessary care from Kela.

Ambulance

• The European Health Insurance Card entitles you to emergency treatment in an ambulance. You must present a valid European Health Insurance Card to the ambulance personnel.
• The ambulance will charge you a client fee.

Air ambulance

• The European Health Insurance Card entitles you to emergency treatment in an air ambulance. You must present a valid European Health Insurance Card to the air ambulance personnel.
• The need for air transport is decided when the emergency number 112 is called.
• There is a client fee for the air ambulance service.

Reimbursement

• The national health insurance system partly reimburses the cost of:
  • some private healthcare services, according to a schedule of fixed charges,
  • travel related to treatment and examinations,
  • medicines prescribed by a doctor.
• There is no reimbursement for the standard client fees charged by public health centres or hospitals.
• Reimbursement can be claimed from the social insurance institution Kela by submitting form SV 127(e), usually available in private medical clinics. You can also find the form on Kela's website.
• Complete and sign the form. The information required includes your permanent address, the date and your bank details (bank name & account number, including International Bank Account Number IBAN and Bank Identifier Code BIC).
• Include copies of relevant documents when you submit the form to Kela. These include documentation about the doctor's fee and the examination and treatment prescribed by the doctor, your European Health Insurance Card and passport or other identification.
• Kela will pay the reimbursement directly into your bank account.
• Submit your claims for reimbursement within six months of the original expenditure.
• See details of reimbursement on Kela's website.

Service number for reimbursement of medical expenses
Tel: +358 20 634 0200 (in Finnish)
Tel: +358 20 634 0300 (in Swedish)
Tel: +358 20 634 0200 (in English)

If you have to pay for medical care and were unable to submit a claim for reimbursement during your stay in Finland, contact your national health insurance provider once you return home.

Patient contribution

• In Finland the public health services are:
  • free of charge, or
  • the client fee is the same for everyone, or
  • the client fee is determined according to income and family relations.
• The maximum fees charged for public health services are stipulated in the legislation. Wellbeing services counties may opt to use lower rates or to provide the relevant service free of charge. Wellbeing services counties cannot collect fees for services that exceed the actual cost of services.
• Fees for public services have an upper limit per calendar year, beyond which clients do not have to continue paying. This does not apply to so-called upkeep fee for short-term institutional care. For more information, see the web pages of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.
• Fees and charges for private practice: Kela pays reimbursements for part of the private doctor's fee and for some examinations and treatments according to a schedule of fixed charges. The schedule of fixed charges can be found only in Finnish on Kela’s webpage. The maximum reimbursable fee or charge specified in the schedule is usually smaller than the sum actually charged.
• No reimbursement is available for medical services obtained from public sector providers nor periods in which a person is treated in a public hospital or institution (such as a home for the elderly).
• Reimbursements from Kela are also available for prescription medicines.

Dialysis, oxygen & chemotherapy

If you need such treatment, contact the healthcare unit (such as a hospital) in advance, where you wish to receive treatment.

How do I apply for an EHIC?

• The EHIC is available to everyone covered under the Finnish health insurance system and to persons whose health care costs Finland is responsible for.
• The card can be ordered
  • by phone
  • by filling in the application form (SV 193e). This form can be printed from Kela's website or picked up at Kela´s office.
  • via Kela's online customer service. Please note that the online customer service is only available in Finnish and Swedish.

Doctors & hospitals accepting the EHIC

• A list is unfortunately not available but all public health care providers in Finland accept the European Health Insurance Card. Contact information can be found on the website of the Finnish contact point for cross-border health care. Email: yhteyspiste@kela.fi.
• If you visit a private doctor or medical clinic, you must pay the full fee but you can claim reimbursement of medically necessary care later from Kela or your own health insurance institution.

Loss of card

Contacts for holders of EHICs issued in Finland

Contact Kela’s Centre for International Affairs
Tel: +358 20 634 0200
Fax: +358 20 634 1599
Email: inter.helsinki@kela.fi