THE SHORT ANSWER
A child insurance policy is usually taken out by a parent while the child is small, but it can run well into adulthood. According to Konsumenternas, a child and youth policy taken out by the parents usually runs until the insured person is 25. The exact end date is in the terms and the policy document.
Some things change at 18, such as who receives the payments and who can pay the premium. When the policy ends, there may be an offer of an adult policy. This guide shows what you can check before then. For the child's first policy, read the guide to pregnancy and newborn insurance. [1][5][6]
Keep these points in mind
- A child insurance policy usually runs until the insured person is 25. The end date is in the terms.
- From 18, payments often go to the young person, who can also pay the premium.
- An offer of an adult policy may come without a new health assessment, at the amount and price stated at that time.
STEP BY STEP
How to check your cover
Find the end date in the terms
Find the policy document and the terms, and look for the section on how long the policy runs. The wording differs. In one insurer's terms from January 2026, the policy can be kept until the annual renewal date after the insured person turns 25. In another insurer's pre-purchase information from April 2026, it ends on the renewal date after age 25.
Konsumenternas says the child policy can be kept as long as possible, which is normally until the 25th birthday. According to Konsumenternas, it gives protection an adult policy cannot give, for example if the child develops a serious illness and never enters working life. Write down the date that applies to your own agreement.
[5][6][3]See who is the policyholder and who is insured
The policyholder is the person who entered into the agreement with the insurer, and the insured person is the one the policy covers. In the terms from January 2026, a parent or other guardian can apply for the policy for children aged 0 to 17. So a parent is usually the policyholder, while the child is the insured person.
According to Konsumenternas, you can pay the child and youth policy yourself from the age of 18. In the same terms, only the policyholder may cancel the policy while the insured person is under 18. Not every document says how payment or the agreement passes to the young person, so ask the insurer how it works.
[5][1]Read what changes at 18
According to Konsumenternas, children who have come of age receive payments into their own account. Otherwise, Konsumenternas says payments go to the guardian registered at the same address as the child, unless something else is stated. In the terms from January 2026, a named beneficiary for the death benefit can be chosen from the age of 18.
Some benefits are tied to age. According to Konsumenternas, payments to a parent who receives a care allowance from the Swedish Social Insurance Agency can often be made until the child turns 19, and in many cases it makes sense to set a medical disability rating only after age 18. In the pre-purchase information from April 2026, a monthly benefit for inability to work can start from age 18, if the young person has been at least 50 percent unable to work without a break for 90 days.
[2][5][6]Check the offer before the policy ends
In the terms from January 2026, a continued sickness and accident policy is offered on the annual renewal date after age 25, without a new health assessment. It is offered on the terms, premiums and lowest insured amount that apply at that time, and special limitations in the child policy carry over. In the pre-purchase information from April 2026, an adult policy is offered without a health assessment at an insured amount of ten price base amounts.
A higher amount there requires a full health declaration for the increase, and no offer is made if the policy document contains a special exclusion. So read the offer beside the policy document: amount, premium, exclusions and the last day to reply. Konsumenternas points out that a new policy does not cover illnesses and injuries that arose before you bought it.
[5][6][3]
Premium and amount can change with age
The premium is not always the same throughout the life of a child policy. In the pre-purchase information from April 2026, the price depends on the chosen insured amount and the child's age. The price can change on each main renewal date, partly because of a changed price base amount, changes to the terms and the insured person's age. Read the premium in each new policy document, not only the first one.
The amount can change too. In the terms from January 2026, the insured amount can be raised up to the age of 17, and it follows the consumer price index on the main renewal date. Konsumenternas says the insured amount in many sickness and accident policies is lowered as you get older. If you hold several personal policies, read how they fit together in the guide to multiple accident policies.
[6][5][4]Before anyone cancels or changes a policy
According to Konsumenternas, many parents wonder whether they can cancel the child's policy when the child turns 18. Konsumenternas points out that changing a personal policy can be risky, because a new policy does not cover illnesses and injuries that arose before it was bought. When changing, you may also need to give a new health declaration and end up with different cover from before.
The young person may also have cover through school, work or a membership. Konsumenternas says you may have cover through a group policy via, for example, work, school or a membership, but that policies through an employer end when you stop working. The difference between school cover and a child policy is explained in the guide to child and school insurance.
[3][4]Keep the end date and the offer in one place
Keep the insurance documents you are entitled to add in My Forsio, for example the child policy's policy document, the terms and an offer of an adult policy. Each detail is shown with the passage it came from, so you can read the end date, amounts and exclusions yourself. If the terms are missing, the detail is shown as Not verified, not as confirmed absent.
Forsio does not decide whether a policy is kept, cancelled or replaced, and does not assess health or what an offer means for you. The insurer decides what the agreement covers. Forsio is not an insurance intermediary and does not provide insurance advice.
Fictional example
Two years left, one offer to read.
Alva is 23. Her parents took out a child insurance policy when she was a newborn. Now she wants to pay it herself and understand what happens at 25.
- End date in the terms
- Annual renewal date after age 25
- Payment from age 18
- Not verifiedAsk the insurer how payment is transferred.
- Offer of an adult policy
- Ten price base amounts, no health assessmentPotential gapA lower amount than now. Read the premium and exclusions.
The end date is confirmed in the documents. The payment and the content of the offer need reading and confirming before the child policy ends.
Common questions
How long does a child insurance policy last?
According to Konsumenternas, a child and youth policy taken out by the parents usually runs until the insured person is 25. The exact end date differs. One insurer says it runs through the policy year in which you turn 25, another that it can be kept until the annual renewal date after age 25. Read your own terms. [1][7][5]
Can a child policy become an adult policy without a health assessment?
There may be such an offer. In one insurer's terms, a continued sickness and accident policy is offered without a new health assessment, on the terms and premiums that apply at that time. In another insurer's pre-purchase information, an adult policy is offered without a health assessment at ten price base amounts, but no offer is made if the policy document contains a special exclusion. [5][6]
Who pays for the child policy after 18?
The agreement was entered into by the policyholder, usually a parent. According to Konsumenternas, you can pay the child and youth policy yourself from the age of 18. Ask the insurer how the payment, and possibly the agreement, is transferred, and check the names in the next policy document. [1][5]
Who receives the payments once the child has turned 18?
According to Konsumenternas, children who have come of age receive payments into their own account. In one insurer's terms, payments go to the insured person, and to the guardian if the insured person is under 18. [2][5]
Can the child policy be cancelled when the child turns 18?
The terms set out how. In one insurer's terms, the policy can be cancelled at any time, but while the insured person is under 18 only the policyholder has that right. Konsumenternas points out that a child policy gives protection an adult policy cannot give, and that a new policy does not cover illnesses and injuries that arose before it was bought. Forsio does not decide whether a policy is kept. [3][5]
Does the premium change as the child gets older?
It can. In one insurer's pre-purchase information, the price depends on the insured amount and the child's age, and it can change on each main renewal date. A continued policy offered when the child policy ends carries, under another insurer's terms, the premiums that apply at that time. [6][5]
MY FORSIO
See when the child policy ends.
Keep your policy documents, terms and offers in My Forsio. Each detail shows the passage it came from, so you can read it yourself. Free for individuals.
Sources and references
Sources checked
This guide explains general principles of Swedish insurance. Your policy schedule and terms set out what applies to you.
- Konsumenternas: which insurance does a student need?
- Konsumenternas: what does child insurance pay for?
- Konsumenternas: the risks of changing or cancelling child insurance (January 2024)
- Konsumenternas: sickness and accident insurance, and group cover
- An insurer's terms for child and youth insurance, January 2026
- An insurer's pre- and post-purchase information for child insurance, April 2026
- An insurer's website: child insurance up to age 25