OBJECTIVES: Organized nationwide screening programme for cervical cancer was introduced in Hungary in 2003. Women between the ages 25-65 are invited by a personal letter and a 3 years screening interval has been applied. Before the implementation of organized screening programme there was an opportunistic screening. The aim of this study is to analyse both the annual and three year screening rate (attendance) of the organized programme. METHODS: The data derive from the financial database of the National Health Insurance Fund Administration (OEP) of Hungary covering the period of 2000-2005. First we calculated the annual screening rate than we compared the three-year screening rate of two periods: 2000-2002 without and 2003-2005 with organized screening programme. Screening is defined with cytological examination of Papanicolau smear and includes all smears taken either within or outside of the organized programme. RESULTS: The annual screening rate of women for all age groups varied between 15.5 % and 16.8 % during the 6 years between 2000-2005. The age specific screening rate of women aged 25-64 years varied between 21.8 % and 24.3 % between 2000-2005. The three-year screening rate of women for all age groups was 31.4 % in 2000-2002 and 32.9 % in 2003-2005. The age specific screening rate of women in the target population aged 25-64 years increased from 48, 45 % in 2000-2002 without organized screening programme to 52, 65% in 2003-2005 following the introduction of organized screening programme. CONCLUSIONS: The introduction of organized cervical screening programme resulted in a 4.2 % increase in screening rate in the target age group of women aged 45-64 years. The effect of organized cervical screening on screening rate (attendance) was very low. In order to reduce cervical cancer mortality, screening rate (attendance) must be increased.