Student health insurance is one of the obligatory requirements for obtaining a residence permit for studies in Finland. Your health insurance must be valid upon entry to Finland. In addition to the health insurance, the students who are studying full degree programs must pay a national healthcare fee to use the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS, Finnish abbreviation YTHS).
Swisscare: Get a quote
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Swisscare insurance
Swisscare offers various solution to in the area of international student health and travel insurance.
Swisscare Student Insurance plans come in three levels, providing you with the choices and coverage you need.
Standard (max. annual benefits: 50 000 €)
- Medical protection
- In patient treatments
- Outpatient treatments
- Dental up to 300 €
- Luggage up to 2000 €
- Third-party liability
- Repatriation to home country
- Repatriation mortal remains
- Assistance 24/7
Comfort (max. annual benefits: 150 000 €)
- Medical protection
- In patient treatments
- Outpatient treatments
- Dental up to 500 €
- Luggage up to 2500 €
- Third party liability
- Repatriation to home country
- Repatriation mortal remains
- Assistance 24/7
Premium (max. annual benefits: 500 000 €)
- Medical protection
- In patient treatments
- Outpatient treatments
- Dental up to 1000 €
- Luggage up to 3500 e
- Third party liability
- Repatriation to home country
- Repatriation mortal remains
- Assistance 24/7
Unique benefits
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- Recommended by The Finnish Immigration Services
- Instant certificate delivery by email
- Acute medical treatments in Finland
- Sickness and accident
- Third party liability
- Worldwide cover
- Travel benefits
- 3 insurance sums 50K, 150K and 500K
- Assistance 24/7
Payment
You only pay for the total of insured days. In other words, no hidden costs.
Rates Daily Monthly Standard 0.58 € 17.28 € Comfort 0.64 € 19.20 € Premium 0.91 € 27.36 € Apply online
If you are looking for an insurance, or wish to change your existing policy, e.g. to extend your cover, go to Swisscare’s website.
For any additional questions, please visit the Contact us section on the Swisscare’s Student Insurance website.
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What kind of insurance will I need?
If you are a citizen of a non-EU/EEA country and arrive in Finland for the purpose of studying, you must have a valid health insurance if your studies last for more than three months.
- If you are studying in Finland less than two years, you must have a private health insurance that covers the cost of medical expenses up to 120 000 EUR.
- If you are studying in Finland for two years and more, you must have a private health insurance that covers the cost of pharmaceutical expenses up to 40 000 EUR.
- The insurance excess or deductible must not exceed 300 EUR. This means that the amount of money you pay for covered health care services before your insurance plan starts to pay cannot be more than 300 EUR.
When you are applying for a residence permit, the health insurance needs to be valid for one year. The insurance must be valid on the day that you plan to travel to Finland, e.g. 15 days before the start of the study program. Be sure to renew your insurance policy prior to expiry, because you will need the insurance for your the entire stay in Finland.
The inpatient and outpatient coverage must be the same amount. Make sure that there are no restrictions to the number of days within the period of validity.
In the residence permit application, attach a certificate of health insurance that indicates the following information:
- Your personal details
- Period of validity of insurance
- Geographical area in which your insurance is valid
- Insurance coverage
- Insured amounts
- Amount of excess (the deductible), or a mention that there is no excess
More information about what kind of an insurance you need is available on the Finnish Immigration Service’s (Migri) website.
Migri recommends a number of private insurance solutions. One of these trusted insurance companies are Swisscare and Aon.
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Why do I need an insurance?
While Finland is an extremely safe country, accidents do happen. You may unexpectedly injure yourself while participating in sports, for instance, and dealing with the aftermath can be very costly. It is very important to have a valid health insurance policy.
It is recommended that you buy an insurance that not only covers your stay in Finland but also during trips to and from the country. If you plan on traveling, it is advisable that you make sure you are covered by your insurance during your trips, too.
In case of any urgent medical attention, you are guaranteed access to medical treatment under the Finnish legislation, regardless of your nationality. However, if Finland does not have a social security agreement with your home country, the health care provider has the right to charge you the full cost of the treatment.
Normally, only permanent Finnish residents are covered under the National Health Insurance scheme by the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela). International students with a temporary student residence permit are not. Unless you are covered by a corresponding scheme from your own home country or have a European Health Service Card, you are strongly advised to obtain a medical insurance from a private insurance company before your arrival to Finland.
Please refer to the Social Insurance Institution of Finland for detailed information about coverage under the Finnish social security system.
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Student health service & fee
Student health services are offered by the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS), and are available for all students studying on a bachelor’s or master’s level at universities. To get access to the Finnish Student Health Service, students must pay a healthcare fee to Kela.
Those studying for a licentiate of medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine degree are also entitled to use the FSHS’s services. The health services are not available for doctoral students, so if you are admitted to doctoral-level studies, please contact your university for advice and options on local health care.
The student healthcare fee in higher education costs 35.80 EUR per semester. It is paid to Kela once per term (spring and autumn), i.e., twice a year. Students are not billed for the fee but are expected to pay it unprompted.
Please note that even when your student status makes you eligible to access the student health care services, this does not replace the need for valid health insurance.
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Vaccination
Finland is among the best in the world in terms of health and hygiene, thus no vaccination is required prior to arrival. However, some vaccinations are part of the national vaccination program. All adults should ensure that they have received at least a basic series of three vaccination doses each for tetanus, diphtheria, and polio.
Vaccine
For whom and when?
Diphtheria and tetanus vaccine, dT People who have received the basic series are given a booster every 10 years Polio vaccine, IPV The basic series generally requires no boosters in adult age.
A booster is recommended for people arriving from or departing for at-risk areas and for their families.Measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, MMR In order to ensure coverage, every adult must be protected against measles, mumps, and rubella, either by having had the diseases or by having had two doses of MMR vaccine. If an adult has insufficient MMR vaccination coverage, it will be augmented More information about vaccinations can be found at the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare website.
