Expat insurance and health insurance in Norway

Norway is not a member of the European Union, but it belongs to the European Economic Area (EEA) alongside Iceland and Liechtenstein. Since 2012, this agreement has required it to apply the same European social security coordination regulations (883/2004 and 987/2009) as EU member states: the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) and the A1 and S1 forms therefore have exactly the same effect there as in Sweden or Denmark. The healthcare system itself relies on the national insurance scheme (Folketrygden), funded through taxation and social contributions (trygdeavgift), and organised on three levels: the State, via four regional health authorities, owns the hospitals and is responsible for specialist care; the municipalities freely organise primary care; the counties are limited to the dental care provided for by law.

Every resident is registered with a family doctor (fastlege) of their choosing, which can be changed up to twice a year: access to a specialist or a hospital outpatient clinic generally requires a referral from that doctor, except in an emergency. Each consultation remains subject to a flat co-payment (egenandel), capped for the calendar year (egenandelstak 1, 3,278 NOK in 2026): once that amount is reached, an exemption card (frikort) is issued within three weeks and waives all payment for the rest of the year. Prescription drugs on the positive list are partly covered by the Norwegian Health Economics Administration (Helfo); adult dental care and optical care remain largely outside the tax-funded care basket.

• EU/EEA citizen: no visa required, free movement within the Schengen area, of which Norway is a member; a valid passport or ID card is still required — the Norwegian authorities do not recognise the extended validity of French ID cards issued between 2004 and 2013 beyond their printed expiry date.
• Registration with the folkeregisteret (national population register): mandatory with the Skatteetaten (tax administration, which also serves as the population register) once the stay is planned for more than six months. It assigns an identity number: a fødselsnummer for a person registered as a resident, a D-nummer for a foreign national who does not meet that criterion (shorter stay, one-off need for identification).
• Affiliation with the Folketrygden: funded by the social contribution (trygdeavgift), it gives access to the reduced rate (egenandel) with a fastlege or a public hospital.
• Without a fødselsnummer/D-nummer or an EHIC: care is billed at the full rate, without the benefit of the egenandelstak cap or the reduced egenandel rate reserved for affiliated persons.
• Student: the EHIC is enough for a temporary stay (Erasmus-type); beyond six months, registration with the folkeregisteret becomes mandatory, and supplementary student insurance remains advisable during the transition period.
• Seconded employee : for up to 24 months (extendable), stays on the French scheme via the A1 form, exempt from registering with the folkeregisteret and from affiliation with the Folketrygden.
• Retiree: S1 form with their French pension fund before departure, for cover by the Folketrygden without any new contribution of their own.

No fine applies for failing to register with the folkeregisteret, but the risk is purely financial, particularly during the administrative period preceding the assignment of the identity number and registration with a fastlege, with no help from the French embassy.

As Norway is not an EU member, no membership of EU institutions applies in theory — but in practice, social security coordination with France runs through the same European regulations 883/2004 and 987/2009 as for an EU member state, thanks to the European Economic Area (EEA) agreement, which has made them applicable to Norway since 2012.

• Temporary stay: the EHIC gives entitlement to the same cover as a local insured person (egenandel of around 160 NOK for a GP, 375 NOK for a specialist); a provisional replacement certificate (PRC), valid for three months, stands in for a forgotten or lost card.
• Secondment: A1 form, staying on the French scheme for up to 24 months (extendable), exempt from registering with the folkeregisteret and from affiliation with the Folketrygden.
• Long-term move: registration with the folkeregisteret with the Skatteetaten (stay of more than 6 months), then affiliation with the Folketrygden; S1 form for a retiree, covered by the Norwegian scheme without any new contribution of their own.
• The EHIC covers neither repatriation, nor scheduled care, nor a long-term move.

1. Before departure: notify French agencies of your departure (CPAM, CAF, France Travail, pension funds).
2. Seconded employee: request the A1 form from your French fund before departure.
3. Retiree: request the S1 form from your pension fund before departure.
4. Before departure or on arrival: request the EHIC to cover the transition period.
5. On arrival, for a stay planned for more than six months: notify the Skatteetaten of your move for registration with the folkeregisteret and assignment of the identity number (fødselsnummer or D-nummer depending on status).
6. Once the identity number is obtained: register with a fastlege (family doctor) of your choice, the entry point to the care system.
7. Register with the roll of French nationals living abroad (French Embassy in Oslo).