Healthcare for Expats in Greenland: A Practical Guide to Living and Getting Treated in the Arctic

Published on April 26, 2026 and written by Cyril Jarnias

Becoming an expat in Greenland means choosing one of the most extreme and isolated environments on the planet. Behind the images of frozen fjords, polar nights, and northern lights lies a very concrete reality: how to get medical care on a vast island with no roads between towns, where hospitals are few and medical evacuations can take days rather than hours.

Good to know:

This article provides a detailed and practical overview of Greenland’s healthcare system for expats, based on available data. It aims to help future residents prepare their project fully informed and guide current residents through a system that is effective but subject to extreme geographic and climatic constraints.

Understanding the structure of Greenland’s healthcare system

Greenland has a fully public healthcare system, funded through taxes and managed by the Greenlandic authorities. Since 1992, responsibility for health has been transferred from Denmark to the local government, which organizes and funds services through the Agency for Health and Prevention.

Important:

Despite the principle of free and equal care for all registered residents, access is unequal in practice. The vastness of the territory, the dispersion of the population (56,000 inhabitants along the coast), and the chronic shortage of staff make this ideal hard to achieve, especially outside the capital, Nuuk.

The territory is now divided into five large health regions. There is a national hospital in Nuuk, a few regional hospitals, health centers in towns, and small health stations in villages. Private clinics are almost nonexistent, except for a few services (dental, physiotherapy, psychotherapy, addiction treatment) mostly concentrated in Nuuk.

For an expat, this means that nearly all possible care will go through the public system, with rules and limits very different from those of more densely populated European countries.

Permanent resident or visitor: what changes for access to care

The key to accessing free care in Greenland is resident status. Citizens and registered residents benefit from free general practitioner consultations, hospital care, most public dental care, prescription medications, and sometimes necessary medical transport.

Expatriates fall into three main categories, each with very different rights.

Expat settled and registered as a resident

A foreigner who settles long-term and obtains a residence permit, then registers as a Greenland resident, is integrated into the public healthcare system. Specifically, once the administrative steps are completed (local registration, the Greenlandic equivalent of the Danish civil registration), they access public care under the same conditions as citizens: no copay, no paid national health insurance, but funding through income tax.

Good to know:

Covered services include general and specialist consultations, public hospital care and stays, home nursing visits, public dentistry, some essential medical transport, and prescribed medications. If a necessary treatment is not available locally, the patient is entitled to a free transfer to an appropriate facility, upon medical prescription.

However, this status does not automatically grant the right to care abroad: evacuations to Denmark or Iceland are granted only for medical reasons, within the framework of care planning by the health authorities.

Worker or resident covered by Nordic agreements

Citizens of Denmark and the Faroe Islands working in Greenland, as well as certain people covered by the Nordic Social Security Convention (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden), may be entitled to care in case of a medical emergency, even if they are not yet fully integrated as residents. Again, it is the precise administrative status that matters, and it is essential for a Nordic expat to verify the scope and limits of this coverage before departure, especially regarding medical transport and treatment abroad.

Tourists, short-term consultants, transient students

For all those not registered as residents—tourists, short-term visitors, expats on assignments of a few weeks or months without local registration—the principle is simple: all care is paid for.

Tip:

Foreigners can receive medical care through the public system, with a level of care equivalent to that of residents. However, certain specific conditions or restrictions may apply.

– it is not possible to request “extra” tests or treatments beyond what is deemed medically indicated for a citizen;

– the care plan is decided exclusively by physicians in the Greenlandic system, independent of the patient’s wishes or the private insurer’s instructions;

– each procedure, consultation, test, and medication is billed to the patient or their insurer.

Important point for Europeans: the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) is not valid in Greenland. European coverage stops here, even though the territory is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Without private travel or expat insurance, a hospitalization or, worse, an air evacuation can become financially catastrophic.

The map of hospitals and health centers: where can you actually get care?

On an island of over 2.2 million km², medical facilities are scarce and very unevenly distributed. For an expat, knowing the hospital geography is essential, whether for choosing a city to settle in or organizing professional travel.

The system’s hub: the national hospital in Nuuk

The heart of the system is Dronning Ingrids Hospital (Queen Ingrid’s Hospital), located in Nuuk. It is the only hospital equipped with heavy equipment and highly specialized services.

This facility has medical and surgical services, a maternity ward, intensive care and intermediate care units, and operating rooms capable of handling emergencies. It is equipped with a CT scanner and an MRI, the only ones in the territory. Heavy imaging procedures like CT and MRI are performed only on medical indication, with no possibility of “buying” one on demand through private insurance.

1

Nuuk Hospital is the only facility in the country that handles complex treatments and admits the majority of patients requiring specialized care.

Nearby, a health center, the Queen Ingrid Health Center, provides standard primary care for capital residents.

Regional hospitals: an intermediate level without a full technical platform

Five regional hospitals complete the system, located at:

– Aasiaat

– Ilulissat

– Sisimiut

– Qaqortoq

– Tasiilaq (for the east coast)

They offer a range of basic and intermediate care: consultations, “simple” hospitalization, bone and chest X-rays, and certain lab tests. However, they have neither a CT scanner nor a guarantee of a surgical team available around the clock. When a patient needs heavy care, they are transferred to Nuuk.

Good to know:

Expats based in some cities benefit from direct access to a doctor and basic services. However, it is essential to know that any serious health problem, complex trauma, or condition requiring advanced diagnosis will involve a medical transfer by plane or boat.

Health centers and stations: the everyday reality outside major towns

In other towns—Qaanaaq, Upernavik, Uummannaq, Qeqertarsuaq, Qasigiannguit, Maniitsoq, Paamiut, Narsaq, Nanortalik, and others—there are health centers offering primary care. A doctor is often present, but not always, and many procedures are performed by nurses or paramedics.

In small villages and hamlets, the situation is more basic. There are health stations staffed by community health workers, sometimes without extensive training. There may be no permanent doctor or nurse. Most contact with the healthcare system then goes through telemedicine, via phone (and increasingly, video), with remote supervision from a hospital or larger center.

Important:

For expats and visitors in Greenland, it is impossible to be hospitalized in small town or village centers. Any hospitalization requires a transfer to a regional hospital or to the capital, Nuuk. In case of serious illness in a small locality, the patient must first be transported to the nearest town, then potentially to Nuuk, and eventually abroad for specialized care.

Care abroad: when and how do you leave the territory for treatment?

When the necessary treatment exceeds local capabilities, Greenland turns to its partners, primarily Denmark and, more rarely, Iceland. Cases are triaged based on severity and nature of the problem: highly specialized surgery, complex pathologies, extreme prematurity, highly technical care that cannot be provided in Nuuk or regional hospitals.

These medical evacuations are decided by physicians in the Greenlandic system, based strictly on medical criteria. Neither the patient nor their insurance can demand a “comfort” transfer to a foreign hospital. For a resident, these transfers are funded by the public system. For a non-resident, private insurance—if any—pays the bill, which can run into tens of thousands of dollars per case.

Daily life as a patient in Greenland: teleconsultations, distances, and regional inequalities

To understand what it means to receive care in Greenland, you need to grasp three realities: distances, dependence on the weather, and understaffing.

A vast, sparsely populated country with no roads between towns

Greenland is the largest island in the world, with an area of about 2.2 million km². Yet its population does not exceed 56,000, of whom nearly 20,000 live in Nuuk. About 60% live in the five largest towns (Nuuk, Sisimiut, Ilulissat, Aasiaat, Qaqortoq), with the rest scattered in small coastal communities, connected by no land roads.

Travel between localities is by plane, helicopter, boat, snowmobile, or dogsled depending on the season. For healthcare, this means that every medical transfer requires heavy logistics, subject to weather, availability of aircraft or helicopters, daylight hours, and infrastructure capacity.

Studies on medical evacuations show that transport times are often measured in hours, but in practice, due to weather and organizational issues, the total time from the decision to evacuate to arrival at a specialized hospital is frequently measured in days.

Telemedicine: a cornerstone of care

To compensate for this dispersion, Greenland’s healthcare system has heavily invested in telemedicine. Since 2008, all health units in localities with more than 50 inhabitants are equipped to communicate remotely with doctors, either in Nuuk or abroad. These tools are used for:

– locally supervised remote consultations;

– exchanges between Greenlandic and foreign specialists;

– training and supervision of local staff.

Example:

In Nuuk, telephone consultations have become the most common mode of contact with primary care, ahead of in-person visits. This situation has been reinforced by the widespread use of electronic medical records and, more recently, by the implementation of a new national telemedicine system.

For an expat living in a small community, you need to accept that many care interactions will happen by phone or videoconference, sometimes with professionals who are not fluent in French or English, hence the need for preparation (translation of medical terms, English-language sheets, etc.).

Human resources under constant pressure

The human resources figures are telling: there are about 120 medical positions for the entire country, but only about half are permanently filled; the rest are covered by short-term contracts. Out of approximately 300 nursing positions, 200 are permanently occupied. The same trend holds for dentists: about thirty, with about fifteen in stable positions.

1,000

Number of health employment contracts signed each year in Greenland, representing about 1,600 employees.

For expats, this reality has two practical implications. On one hand, the quality of medical communication can vary greatly depending on the location and the person you encounter. On the other hand, delays and continuity of care can be affected by staff shortages and rotation.

The table below summarizes some key figures on the healthcare system:

Emergencies and evacuations: what you need to know before you need them

The concept of medical emergency takes on a special meaning in Greenland. Distances, weather, lack of roads, and limited air assets make every critical situation more complex to manage than in most countries.

Emergency numbers and first reflexes

The emergency number is 112, as in the rest of the Kingdom of Denmark, for police, fire, and ambulance. In larger towns, there are direct lines to local health centers, but for an expat, 112 remains the main entry point.

In Nuuk, the hospital has a medical on-call line, +299 55 99 55, used especially for evacuations and specialized advice, particularly for ships and cruises.

At sea, procedures are highly codified: the ship’s doctor contacts Radio Medical Denmark (+45 75 45 67 66), which consults the on-call doctor at Nuuk Hospital, decides on the course of action, and, if necessary, triggers a search and rescue (SAR) operation via the Arctic Command.

Available means of transport

For patient transfers, Greenland’s healthcare system has an emergency services network, adapted means of transport, and coordination between health facilities.

Medical evacuation resources

Greenland has several medicalized transport options for medical evacuations, adapted to the geography and specific climatic conditions of the territory.

Air ambulance

A specially equipped Beechcraft King Air for two stretchers, dedicated to urgent national transfers.

Regional airliners

Aircraft like Air Greenland’s Dash 8 can be chartered for evacuations when the air ambulance is unavailable.

Helicopters

Used to reach localities without airports or for specific rescue missions.

Ships and boats

Used mainly for coastal transfers when weather prevents any flight.

This fleet is limited, and the air ambulance in particular is reserved for the needs of the public system: private insurers cannot book it directly. Evacuations are therefore always prioritized by medical severity, not by ability to pay.

Airports and international evacuations

Three airports can accommodate air ambulances for evacuations out of the country:

– Nuuk (BGGH)

– Kangerlussuaq (Søndre Strømfjord, SFJ)

– Narsarsuaq

Good to know:

Only Nuuk has a hospital. The localities of Kangerlussuaq and Narsarsuaq have no hospital service or 24/7 care. In case of medical evacuation abroad, the patient is first transferred to Nuuk, then taken to one of these airports for a medical flight to Copenhagen or, more rarely, Reykjavik.

Data from 2018 illustrate the scale of the phenomenon: of 481 patients identified as having undergone a medical evacuation, 432 cases were analyzed. Evacuations within the country accounted for about two-thirds of the total, and Nuuk Hospital received more than 60% of those patients. Fifty-five patients were transferred to other countries, including 47 from Nuuk to Denmark or Iceland.

The most common diagnoses leading to an evacuation were digestive diseases, cardiovascular conditions, and complications of pregnancy or childbirth. Among evacuated women, nearly a third of cases were related to pregnancy or the postpartum period; among men, cardiovascular and digestive conditions predominated.

Cost of evacuations and implications for insurance

The cost of evacuations is substantial. The 2018 study reports a range from less than $4,800 US to over $50,000, with a median cost around $4,700 per patient. Operations performed outside regular hours—evenings, nights, weekends, holidays—were notably more expensive. Pooling several patients on a single flight, when possible, reduced the bill.

Tip:

Medical transport costs, especially for medical evacuation, account for about 6–6.4% of Greenland’s health budget. For non-residents, these costs are borne by the patient or their insurance. Consequently, local authorities and several countries, including the United States, strongly recommend purchasing travel insurance that explicitly covers medical evacuation before any trip to Greenland, even for a short stay.

The table below summarizes some data on medical evacuations:

For an expat, this reality translates into a simple rule: never consider evacuation as an “exceptional” optional scenario. In a country where an acute cardiac condition or a complicated childbirth sometimes requires a flight of several thousand kilometers, evacuation is a central element of risk management.

Key specialties: what an expat should anticipate

Certain dimensions of the healthcare system are particularly important for expats: medication availability, dental care, maternity, and management of chronic diseases.

Medications: limited supply, possible shortages

Unlike major European capitals, pharmacies are not plentiful in Greenland. The central pharmacy is at Nuuk Hospital, and distribution occurs mainly through regional hospitals and health centers. A few independent pharmacies exist in the capital, but the overall supply is limited.

Prescription medications can only be obtained from a regional hospital or Nuuk Hospital. The list of available products is limited, and some treatments may be out of stock. A few analgesics and simple over-the-counter products are sold in supermarkets, but again, the selection is small.

It is therefore strongly recommended for expats:

Good to know:

To travel smoothly with your treatments, bring a sufficient supply while respecting import rules (generally three months for ordinary medications, less for narcotics). Have detailed prescriptions, ideally in English, with the INN (international name). Always check the legality of your medications at your destination, as some, like medical cannabis, may be strictly prohibited.

Studies on medication poisoning show that acetaminophen is the most commonly implicated drug, followed by ibuprofen and quetiapine, and that poisonings in Greenland tend to be more severe than in Denmark. Here again, distance and climate complicate the management of toxic emergencies.

Dental care: stay on top of checkups

Public dental care is free or subsidized for residents, but access varies greatly by location. There are district dental clinics and mobile teams that travel to remote localities to provide basic care. Specialized treatments—complex orthodontics, maxillofacial surgery, elaborate prosthetics—are rare and may require a transfer to Denmark.

For dental emergencies, the National Dental Service can intervene when a dentist is available. The administration number for emergencies during weekdays is +299 34 40 16. In the case of a tourist or non-resident expat, the patient must organize and pay for their transport to the treatment location, as well as the cost of emergency care.

Long-term expats should:

– schedule major dental checkups and treatments during stays in their home country or in Denmark;

– put together an emergency kit (painkillers, temporary care products);

– know the contact information of the nearest dental clinic.

Pregnancy and maternity: a highly centralized organization

Maternity is an area where Greenland’s geography heavily affects the organization of care. Pregnant women have access to standard exams (blood and urine tests, screening for hereditary diseases and sexually transmitted infections, ultrasounds), but the frequency of consultations and access to a midwife vary depending on the place of residence.

Example:

In Nuuk, pregnant women contact the Dronning Ingrid Health Centre, which assigns them a midwife. In coastal towns with a regional hospital, care is provided locally. In villages without a hospital, a health station nurse often provides basic follow-up, in coordination with a hospital where the expectant mother visits a few times during the pregnancy.

High-risk pregnancies are referred to Nuuk Hospital, which is the only facility in the country capable of handling premature births and very complicated deliveries. In these cases, women are transferred to Nuuk about three weeks before the due date and housed in a patient hotel, at government expense. Partners must cover their own travel costs, except in cases of twin pregnancies where costs are partially covered for both parents.

Good to know:

For an expat couple, a pregnancy in Greenland requires careful planning. This includes choosing a place of residence, anticipating an extended stay in Nuuk for the delivery, and a prior discussion with the employer and insurance about possible transfers to Denmark in case of complex maternal or fetal conditions.

Chronic diseases and an aging population

Greenland is experiencing a rapid epidemiological transition: an aging population, high prevalence of chronic diseases, especially among those over 55, nearly 77% of whom are considered to have chronic conditions. Diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disorders, and musculoskeletal diseases are common.

For an expat already suffering from a chronic disease (heart disease, diabetes, COPD, stabilized psychiatric disorder, etc.), the central issue is continuity of care. It is essential to:

– have a complete medical file summarized in English (or Danish), including recent tests, reports, treatments, and emergency protocols;

– identify a referring physician in Greenland, ideally in Nuuk or a large town, keeping in mind that many GPs work in hospitals or health centers;

– clarify with insurance the coverage for possible treatments abroad (sophisticated exams, specialized procedures).

Distances, medication supply interruptions, and the lack of specialists require the expat patient to be highly self-reliant, actively managing their own care and not hesitating to use telemedicine to consult specialists based in Denmark or elsewhere, through their private insurance.

Mental health and extreme environment: a frequently underestimated challenge

Beyond physical aspects, Greenland faces a deep mental health crisis, with one of the highest suicide rates in the world, especially among young men. For expats, this particular environment also poses psychological challenges: isolation, polar night, harsh climatic conditions, distance from family networks.

Available data indicate that:

– the Greenlandic population shows very high rates of psychological distress and suicidal behavior, particularly among adolescents;

– alcohol and substance use is a major public health problem;

– access to psychiatric and psychotherapeutic services is limited outside Nuuk.

Good to know:

The national service Allorfik offers free addiction treatment (alcohol, cannabis, gambling) through centers in five major towns, with remote follow-up and a six-month aftercare program. Additionally, the online service mindhelper.gl provides resources in Greenlandic on anxiety and stress management, based on acceptance and commitment therapy.

Expats, for their part, can turn to local psychologists (mainly in Nuuk) or international teletherapy via online platforms, provided they have insurance that covers psychological care. Language and cultural barriers make access uneven, hence the importance of planning support solutions before departure (remote therapist, online expat groups, etc.).

Private insurance and protection strategies for expats

Even when you are a resident and theoretically covered by the public system, private international insurance remains a major safety tool for an expat in Greenland. It allows you to:

Good to know:

Private health insurance allows residents or expats in Greenland to receive care abroad (Denmark, Iceland, home country) without relying solely on the local system, reduce wait times for specialists and treatments, cover care not available locally (mental health, advanced dental), and ensure full coverage for medical evacuations and repatriations, which are often not covered by the public system.

Several major international insurers offer policies tailored to expats living in Greenland, such as Allianz, AXA, Cigna, NOW Health, or William Russell, with annual coverage limits often reaching several million dollars. Typical benefits include:

Health coverage areas

Coverage from an international health insurance policy may include the following essential medical services:

Inpatient and day care

Coverage for surgical procedures and heavy medical treatments requiring hospitalization.

Outpatient care

Covers medical consultations, lab tests, medical imaging, and pharmacy medications.

Long-term treatments

Specific coverage for conditions like cancer and extended therapeutic treatments.

Mental health

Coverage for psychotherapy sessions and psychiatric consultations.

Medical emergencies

Organization and funding of emergency medical evacuation and medical repatriation.

Additional options

May include, depending on the policy, coverage for maternity and dental care.

Choosing a policy involves analyzing several parameters: budget, deductibles, limits, exclusions (especially for pre-existing conditions), network of care, possibility of direct billing in foreign hospitals, and, above all, the level of coverage for evacuations from such an isolated area as Greenland.

Short stays, on the other hand, should be covered by travel insurance that clearly includes medical evacuation and repatriation, but also unexpected costs related to transport delays, which are common due to weather conditions.

Practical tips for managing your health as an expat in Greenland

Living in Greenland is not incompatible with good quality care, but it requires thorough preparation. A few practical areas are essential for any expatriation project.

Anticipating your medical needs is the first reflex: a complete health checkup before departure, updating recommended vaccinations for the Arctic (hepatitis A and B, flu, pneumococcus, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis booster, possibly rabies depending on wildlife exposure), planning dental treatments and non-urgent procedures in your home country.

Tip:

Put together a portable medical file containing all your important documents (reports, images, test results, treatment plans). These documents should be written or translated into English or Danish and kept in a secure digital format for quick access when needed.

On a daily basis, it is useful to quickly identify the health center, the reference regional or national hospital, emergency contacts, and the procedures for accessing care in your area of residence. In Nuuk, access to English-speaking professionals is more likely; in other towns, help from a Danish- or Greenlandic-speaking colleague can be valuable for navigating the system.

Important:

Life in the Arctic poses major psychological challenges: polar night, intense cold, isolation, and distance from loved ones. It is essential to plan support spaces, such as online therapy, expat groups, and physical activities adapted to the climate, to protect yourself, just as much as having good insurance coverage.

In summary, healthcare for expats in Greenland is based on a generally solid public system but constrained by geography, weather, and human resources. To get the most out of it, you must accept that access to care will not resemble that of a major European metropolis, and compensate for these limitations with rigorous preparation, robust insurance, and strong self-reliance in managing your health.

Cyril Jarnias

Cyril Jarnias is an independent expert in international wealth management with over 20 years of experience. As an expatriate himself, he is dedicated to helping individuals and business leaders build, protect, and pass on their wealth with complete peace of mind.

On his website, cyriljarnias.com, he shares his expertise on international real estate, offshore company formation, and expatriation.

Thanks to his expertise, he offers sound advice to optimize his clients' wealth management. Cyril Jarnias is also recognized for his appearances in many prestigious media outlets such as BFM Business, les Français de l’étranger, Le Figaro, Les Echos, and Mieux vivre votre argent, where he shares his knowledge and know-how in wealth management.

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