Vaccines received abroad do not appear automatically in Norway's SYSVAK vaccination register. Take your documentation to a GP, health clinic or other healthcare professional with access to the register. They will assess whether it can be registered retrospectively and how further vaccination should be planned.
Where can you see vaccines registered in Norway?
On Helsenorge you can see vaccinations registered in your name in SYSVAK, the national vaccination register. You can also print a vaccination card in Norwegian or English. This overview is useful, but an empty card does not automatically mean that you have never been vaccinated. Doses received abroad must be assessed and registered separately.
The Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI) says the service shows vaccines registered from 2011, some older vaccinations and childhood vaccinations for people born in 1995 or later. Older information may therefore also be missing for vaccines received in Norway. Read SamfunnPrep's Helsenorge guide if you need help finding the digital health services. SamfunnPrep also offers practical tools for collecting your questions before contacting the right service.
Who can register vaccines received abroad?
Healthcare professionals can add foreign vaccinations to SYSVAK after assessing the evidence. You can ask your GP, municipal healthcare service, a private healthcare service or another professional with SYSVAK access for help. You cannot enter the vaccinations yourself on Helsenorge. FHI also cannot make the registration directly for private individuals.
FHI specifies that healthcare professionals and vaccination sites are not obliged to register vaccines administered abroad retrospectively and may charge for doing so. This differs from several vaccines administered in Norway after 1 January 2011, where the vaccination site may have a duty to correct a missing registration. Therefore, clarify both whether the service is available and its cost before booking an appointment.
For children who began vaccination in another country, recording earlier doses matters when planning the remaining doses in Norway's childhood vaccination programme. Contact the child health clinic and show any vaccination card you have. SamfunnPrep's overview of the childhood vaccination programme explains the Norwegian schedule. Healthcare professionals decide how a foreign schedule fits; you should not restart it on your own.
Which documents should you bring?
Bring an original vaccination card, a digital register extract or a printout from a healthcare professional if available. FHI says retrospective registration should preferably rely on credible written or digital evidence. The document should show your full name, date of birth, vaccination date and vaccine name. Several doses can have the same name, so keep every date.
| Information | Why it helps | If it is missing |
|---|---|---|
| Full name and date of birth | Connects the card to the right person | Bring a passport or other ID and explain differences in spelling. |
| Date of each dose | Shows the interval between doses | Ask the issuer for a complete printout. |
| Vaccine name or disease | Helps the professional choose the correct SYSVAK code | Bring a photo of the packaging or medical record if you have it. |
| Country and treatment facility | Gives context to the record | Tell the professional where the vaccine was given. |
Example: Mariya has a Ukrainian vaccination card showing three doses and clear dates, but her name is transliterated slightly differently from her Norwegian ID. She brings the card and ID to the child health clinic. The clinic assesses whether the information is credible and whether the doses should be registered. Mariya should not alter the dates or write a “Norwegian” vaccine name on the original card herself.
If the document is in a language the professional cannot read, ask in advance whether they want a translation or an explanation from the issuing clinic. There is no single general rule requiring an apostille on every foreign vaccination card for this assessment. Follow the treatment facility's specific needs and keep the original.
What if you have no written proof?
Tell the healthcare professional what you do know about past vaccinations. FHI explains that information from patients or parents, vaccination scars and a country's vaccination programme can help with the assessment. Healthcare professionals decide whether the information is credible enough for registration or for planning further vaccination. A memory alone is no guarantee that a particular dose will be recorded.
For newcomers, a health check can be a useful place to bring this together. SamfunnPrep's guide to health checks and vaccines for newcomers explains whom to contact. Bring a list of diseases against which you believe you were vaccinated, approximate years and any earlier clinics. This gives the professional a starting point without requiring you to guess an exact vaccine name.
Why does the dose still not appear on Helsenorge?
It may be missing because the registration has not yet been sent or processed, the evidence was insufficient or the information was linked to the wrong identity. Start by checking with the facility that was going to register it. Helsenorge explains that incorrect or missing information on screen normally means the SYSVAK registration is wrong or incomplete. Ask the vaccination site to investigate and correct it.
FHI requires an 11-digit national identity number or D number for SYSVAK registration. If you do not yet have one, healthcare professionals must wait before adding the record. FHI stresses that the vaccination should then be recorded in your medical journal and that you should receive a vaccination card. Keep the card until you get a number and can request another assessment.
One technical detail is easy to miss: When adding an older vaccination in SYSVAK-nett, it is not possible to indicate directly that it was given in another country. FHI says this must be documented in the medical record. Ask whether the professional has noted the original vaccination site and the evidence used for registration. A Norwegian facility shown in the register may be the facility that entered the record, not where you received the vaccine.
How to create a useful overview
- Log in to Helsenorge's vaccination service and compare it with your foreign cards.
- Collect original cards, digital extracts and ID. Note which doses are missing from SYSVAK.
- Contact your GP or child health clinic and ask about assessment of foreign vaccines, fees and document requirements.
- Ask a healthcare professional to explain which doses are registered, which are uncertain and whether you need further vaccination.
- Check Helsenorge again later. If something is wrong, contact the treatment facility that registered it.
Helsenorge's vaccination card is available in Norwegian and English. For international travel, some countries may require separate documents, such as the international yellow certificate for yellow fever. Ask the organisation requiring proof what it accepts. SamfunnPrep can help you understand Norwegian terms, while healthcare professionals must assess your vaccination history.
Sources checked on 2 October 2026: the Norwegian Institute of Public Health's guidance on SYSVAK and vaccination registration, and Helsenorge's vaccination service.
