DenmarkCPR number (Denmark)
Definition
A CPR number (CPR-nummer, from Det Centrale Personregister, the Central Person Register) is Denmark's 10-digit civil registration number. Foreign health professionals get one by registering in person at their municipality's Citizen Service or an International Citizen Service centre once they have a residence permit and a Danish address, and need it for pay, tax, banking and health care.
Also called: CPR number, CPR-nummer, Danish CPR number, personnummer Denmark, civil registration number Denmark, Det Centrale Personregister
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What is a CPR number?
Every resident of Denmark has a CPR number, and the digits stay the same for life. It has ten digits: the first six are your date of birth in day, month, year order, and the last four are a serial number. The CPR Office's guidance says the final digit is even for women and odd for men.
Life in Denmark, the official guide for newcomers, calls it essential for contact with Danish authorities. You need it to get your salary, open a bank account, take out insurance, see a doctor and get MitID, the national electronic ID, which also requires you to be at least 15.
Who needs one
The CPR Office says you can only be registered if your stay in Denmark will last longer than three months, and Life in Denmark says EU, EEA and Nordic citizens have six months. If you are not a Nordic citizen you first need a residence permit or registration certificate, for a doctor or nurse usually a permit issued by SIRI. People who work in Denmark for three months or less get a tax number instead.
How to get it
- Find a home. A permanent Danish address is mandatory, and you must actually live there before you apply.
- Book or visit your municipality's Citizen Service (Borgerservice, the Folkeregister) or an International Citizen Service (ICS) centre. You must apply in person.
- Bring your residence and work permit, passport, proof of address such as a rental contract, and any marriage, birth or name-change certificates for family members.
- Receive your CPR number and wait for the yellow health insurance card, which Life in Denmark says arrives by post about two to three weeks later.
The health card shows your name, address, CPR number and family doctor, and you need it to see a doctor, dentist or hospital. A digital version is available in the sundhedskortet app.
Where it fits in a health professional's move
For a doctor or nurse from outside the EU/EEA, the order is usually: STPS approves your education, SIRI grants a residence permit, you move, find housing and register for a CPR number. Life in Denmark adds that you must notify the Civil Registration Office if you intend to stay three months or more. Once registered, you can get MitID, receive Digital Post from authorities and set up a NemKonto, the account Life in Denmark says all citizens registered in Denmark must have. The ICS centres, in all parts of Denmark, can handle most of these first steps in one place.
Common problems
- No permanent address. Temporary stays may not count; municipalities set how long you must live somewhere, usually one to three months, Life in Denmark says.
- Banking before the tax card. Life in Denmark says you can only open a Danish bank account once you have your tax card, which needs the CPR number or a tax number.
- Expecting the CPR number to authorise you. It is an identity number only. To work as a doctor or nurse you still need authorisation from the Danish Patient Safety Authority.
See our Denmark guide for the full route.
Questions
It is the 10-digit civil registration number every resident has. The first six digits are your date of birth and the last four a serial number.
Once you have a residence and work permit and a permanent Danish address, apply in person at your municipality's Citizen Service or an International Citizen Service centre with your permit, passport and proof of address.
No. Life in Denmark says a permanent Danish address is mandatory, and the CPR Office says you need a dwelling and a stay of more than three months.
Life in Denmark says it is posted to your Danish address about two to three weeks after you register.
Get paid, get a tax card, open a bank account, see a doctor and apply for MitID. Many public and private services ask for it.
No. The CPR number is a personal identity number. Authorisation to work as a health professional comes from the Danish Patient Safety Authority.