Reminder for higher education students to pay the student healthcare fee to Kela
Higher education students must pay a healthcare fee to Kela for each spring and autumn term. The fee must be paid by students who have registered as attending and who are completing a higher education degree. You can use the services available from the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS).
The healthcare fee must be paid on your own initiative
In 2023, the student healthcare fee in higher education is 36.80 euros per term. The fee is paid to Kela once per term, i.e. twice a year. You are not billed for the fee but are expected to pay it on your own initiative.
The due date for paying the student healthcare fee is determined based on the date on which you register as attending:
- The due date for the autumn term is 30 September 2021, assuming that you register as attending by that date. If you register as attending for the autumn term on or after 1 October, the due date is 31 December.
- For the spring term, the due date is 31 January provided that you have registered as attending by then. If you register as attending for the spring term on or after 1 February, the due date is 31 July.
You can pay the fee in OmaKela.
Note that you cannot pay the fees for autumn term 2023 and spring term 2024 at the same time, because the 2024 rate has not yet been confirmed.
Read more about the student health care fee (Kela's website).
What to do if you are a foreign student in Finland
If you are enrolled in a degree programme at a Finnish higher education institution and have registered as attending, you must pay the healthcare fee. You must pay the fee even if you are studying remotely and are not based in Finland. However, you do not have to pay the fee if you have social security coverage in another EU/EEA country, in Switzerland or in Great Britain and Northern Ireland, but you must still contact Kela. Despite not paying the fee, you can use the FSHS’s services.
See how to proceed if you have social security coverage in another EU/EEA country, in Switzerland or in Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
If you are a foreign exchange student, you are not completing a degree in a Finnish higher education institution. You do not have to pay the fee, and cannot use the FSHS’s services.
What to do if you are going on a study exchange from Finland
If you are completing a degree at a Finnish institution of higher education, have registered as attending, and go on a study exchange abroad, you must pay the healthcare fee for the duration of the study abroad. If you visit Finland during the study abroad, you can use FSHS services.
Learn more
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