Healthcare: 1177, vårdcentral and costs

How it is organised

Public healthcare in Sweden is run by the regions. They set most of the patient fees (patientavgifter) and organise care locally. So the figures and local rules here are examples: always check your own region.

Two numbers and one website will help you all the way.

• 1177: a phone number for medical advice, open 24 hours a day. The website 1177.se lets you find information, book appointments and choose a health centre.
• 112: the emergency number, for life-threatening situations.

The vårdcentral: your first contact

A vårdcentral (primary health centre, similar to a family clinic) is where you go for most everyday problems. You normally register with one (in Swedish listning, meaning you choose which is yours). You can do this through 1177.se or on a paper form. The exact rules, for example how often you can switch, are set by the region.

The hospital's akutmottagning (emergency department) is for urgent cases. In between there are närakut clinics, urgent care close to home for things that cannot wait but are not life-threatening.

Who pays a fee and who pays everything

• If you are folkbokförd, you are entitled to subsidised care and pay your region's patient fee. What counts is registration, not the permit.
• EU/EEA/Swiss citizens with a European health insurance card (EU-kort / EHIC) pay the normal patient fee for urgent and necessary care. Without a card or certificate you pay in full.
• Non-EU citizens who are not registered pay the full cost, except for some countries with agreements.

If you are not registered yet, the route is folkbokföring. If you stay only briefly and cannot register, see also samordningsnummer: note that on its own it does not entitle you to subsidised care.

Example: Region Stockholm fees

Care	Fee (Stockholm)
Outpatient visit (vårdcentral and specialists)	275 kr
Hospital emergency department	400 kr
Närakut	375 kr
Appointment cancelled less than 24 hours before	400 kr
Children and young people aged 0–17, and people aged 85 and over	free

Source: Region Stockholm and 1177 Stockholm. In other regions both the amounts and the free-care ages may differ.

The visit cap: högkostnadsskydd and frikort

The högkostnadsskydd (high-cost protection) puts a ceiling on what you spend on visits: at most 1 450 kr in 12 months. Once you reach it you get a frikort (a free-care card that exempts you from fees for the rest of the period). A region may set the ceiling lower. Ask your region how you get the frikort.

Medicines

Prescription medicines also have a ceiling. For 2026 it is 3 800 kr in 12 months, in steps: you pay the full price up to 2 000 kr, and the discounts grow after that. Once you reach the ceiling, you pay nothing more for covered medicines for the rest of the period.

This is separate from the visit cap: two different counters.

Dental care

Dental care has its own rules, with state support administered by Försäkringskassan (see the guide on Försäkringskassan).

• Annual grant (allmänt tandvårdsbidrag): 600 kr a year at ages 20–23, 300 kr at 24–65, and 600 kr from age 67.
• High-cost protection: you pay the first 3 000 kr in a year yourself; after that the state covers 50 % up to 15 000 kr and 85 % above that.
• Children and young people: dental care is free up to an age that depends on the region.

Ask for an estimate before expensive treatment.

Common mistakes

• Assuming a residence permit is enough for subsidised care: registration is what counts.
• Forgetting the European card (EHIC) if you are from the EU/EEA and not yet registered.
• Going to the emergency department for non-urgent things, instead of calling 1177.
• Cancelling too late: an appointment cancelled less than 24 hours before costs money (400 kr in Stockholm).
• Assuming Stockholm's fees apply everywhere.
• Not asking for the frikort once you have reached the cap.