Only about one in five students have paid the healthcare fee – more than 200,000 have yet to pay
Higher education students who study for a degree and who have registered as attending must pay the student healthcare fee on their own initiative using the OmaKela e-service. The due date for the spring term is 31 January 2023.
So far, about 56,000 students have paid the healthcare fee for spring term 2023. Some 215,000 students have yet to pay it.
During the week ending 9 January, Kela sent a letter to students who according to the information available to Kela had registered as attending for the spring term 2023 but had not yet paid the healthcare fee. The letter reminds the student of the obligation to pay the fee and provides instructions for how to pay it. The letter can also be read in the OmaKela e-service. In the OmaKela e-service, students can also choose to henceforth receive the letter only via OmaKela.
The letter will not be sent to students who have paid the fee or who have not registered as attending.
The 2023 rate of the student healthcare fee is EUR 36.80 per term
In 2023, the student healthcare fee in higher education is EUR 36.80 per term. Students can also pay the fee for both the spring and autumn term 2023 at the same time (EUR 73.60).
Students are not billed for the fee but are expected to pay it unprompted. Students who do not pay the fee by 31 January 2023 will get a letter from Kela reminding them of it. They will also be charged a EUR 5 late fee.
The healthcare fee is used to finance healthcare services for higher education students. The State finances 77% of the costs for healthcare services for higher education students and the rest, 23%, are financed through the healthcare fee. Students who have registered as attending are entitled to use the services of the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS).
You do not have to pay the healthcare fee if you have social security coverage from another EU/EEA country or from Switzerland or the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland
Students who have social security coverage from another EU or EEA country, from Switzerland or from Great Britain and Northern Ireland are exempt from paying the student healthcare fee for higher education students.
However, the student must submit a copy of a valid EHIC card (European Health Insurance Card) to Kela. If the student has social security coverage in Great Britain or Northern Ireland, the student can send a copy of either a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) or Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC). For more detailed instructions, see Kela’s website.