Council of Europe rights body rules that Sweden must ensure access to healthcare for all ‘vulnerable EU migrants’
09 July 2026
On June 26, the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) in a decision on the plight of vulnerable and mainly Romani EU migrants, stated that “healthcare is a prerequisite for the preservation of human dignity” and held that Sweden’s practices placed them in an “unacceptable situation regarding the enjoyment of these rights, as compared with the situation of nationals and of lawfully resident foreigners”.
In response to a complaint lodged against Sweden by Amnesty International and Médecins du Monde – International (MdM), the ECSR concluded that the denial of access to healthcare to vulnerable EU migrants amounted to a violation of Article 11§1 of the European Social Charter, and that differences in regional practices and the lack of clear national rules exacerbated indirect discrimination, particularly against Roma migrants.
Amnesty and MdM alleged that the situation of vulnerable EU migrants in Sweden was in violation of Articles 11 and 13, concerning the rights to health protection and social and medical assistance, on the grounds that in many cases vulnerable EU migrants were denied necessary healthcare; in other cases, they were billed for the full cost of treatment; and that these factors had such a chilling effect that many vulnerable individuals “refrained from seeking necessary healthcare”.
In one case in 2023, 26 May 2023, an appeal submitted by a Bulgarian woman who received bills for healthcare in connection with pregnancy and childbirth was deemed inadmissible. The total amount of 26 bills was approximately €15,950, which was submitted to a debt collection company and at the time of the submission of the collective complaint amounted to approximately €20,100. The appeal then went to the Supreme Administrative Court.
Based on the evidence submitted, the ECSR held that Sweden must ensure effective access to healthcare and eliminate discriminatory treatment for all vulnerable EU migrants, irrespective of their residence status or ethnic origin.
Longstanding concerns
The plight of vulnerable EU (mainly Roma) migrants has been an issue of concern for UN committees for at least a decade. In April 2016, the UN Human Rights Committee noted that the vulnerable position of citizens of other European Union countries of Romani origin who, because of their lack of formal residency status in the State Party, have only limited access to social benefits, subsidised healthcare and education.
In July of the same year, the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, expressed similar concerns and recommended that Sweden takes measures to “facilitate access to basic services by vulnerable foreigners, including citizens of other EU countries, notably those of Roma origin.”
More recently, in March 2024, the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recommended that Sweden ensures that any immigration policy does not impede the equal access, in particular migrant children and undocumented migrants, to services essential for the realisation of economic, social and cultural rights, including healthcare and education.
Unclear legal status of vulnerable EU citizens
The Amnesty/MdM complaint concerned the particular group which in Sweden is known as ‘vulnerable EU citizens’, referring to persons who are nationals of other EU Member States living in Sweden in a state of destitution and marginalisation. The Committee noted that, if an EU citizen has health insurance in their country of origin, such person is entitled to necessary medical treatment in the EU Member State where they temporarily reside at the same cost as nationals of that country. However, from the submissions of the complainant organisations, it was clear that the majority of the EU migrants concerned lack health insurance in their countries of origin and could not access subsidised healthcare in Sweden.
According to EU law all EU citizens can stay in the country for a maximum period of three months if they have a valid identity card. Amnesty International and MdM maintained that, after three months, the legal status of EU migrants becomes unclear. Some argue that such persons should be considered undocumented migrants, while others insist that nationals of other EU Member States cannot be classified as undocumented. This classification is particularly important in relation to the right to healthcare because, according to Swedish law, persons considered to be undocumented migrants have a right to subsidised care, where such care cannot be deferred. Moreover, children who are undocumented have a right to healthcare free of charge.
For vulnerable EU migrants, the ECSR held that Sweden’s practices – which prevented the affected individuals from the enjoyment of the right to healthcare, compared to nationals and lawfully resident foreigners – amounted to a violation of Article 11§1 of the Charter. It further held that there is a violation of Article E taken in conjunction with Article 11§1 of the Charter with respect to the difference in treatment of vulnerable EU migrants in different regions and in comparison, to undocumented migrants. The Committee also established the existence of indirect discrimination on the ground of ethnic origin having regard to the same Charter provisions.
