Hej hej!
In previous article, I wrote about Swedish Personal Number, what it is and how to get it. Now it´s the right time to tell you why is it convenient to have one.
Another thing which I should mention first is that having personal number is not sufficient. You have to obtain ID card to be able to prove that it is really your number. Therefore, another adventure begins with applying for ID card, however, this process is smoother in comparison with applying for personal number. The thing that I was surprised by is that you have to pay 400 SEK to get it. Even though you will have it for the rest of your life, it is kind of costly. But here come the advantages of having the personal number, or to be precise, having the ID card.
- Bank account
You will probably want to open a bank account when you study in Sweden and without personal number, you cannot do that. This is probably the first thing you will do with your ID card and it will be the first moment of gratitude for having it 😀
- Membership cards
This is a huge category as you can easily create a membership in some companies and hence get some discounts. You can become a member in the supermarket to be able to shop for better prices, be part of IKEA Family, create membership in the gym and basically, you can become member whichever store.
- Swedish course
As soon as you get personal number, you can sign up for Swedish courses, which are for free. Yes, you do not have to pay for language course, which is amazing. Sweden offers free Swedish courses for immigrants and after completing the course, you can take a national exam and receive a certificate and possibly continue with other levels.
- Online orders
Once, I wanted to buy something online and without personal number it would not be possible.
- Phone contract
To make a contract with phone service provider, you need a personal number, otherwise, you can just pay a monthly fee for the services without any contract, which is sufficient for me.
- Insurance
Once you have received your personal number, you will be entitled to all healthcare and pay fees as a Swede.
You can see that there is a wide range of advantages and for sure if you plan to stay longer in Sweden, personal number is a must !
Hopefully, you can see usefulness of personal number now and this article was helpful.
Hope you had nice weekend and enjoyed snowy days 🙂
Denisa