Change of https://www.gov.uk/guidance/living-in-sweden
Change description : 2019-09-23 17:00:00: Brexit update: healthcare section updated to reflect transitional arrangements announcement [Brexit]
Showing diff : 2019-09-03 15:09:24 +00:00..2019-09-23 17:16:21 +00:00
Guidance
Official information British people moving to and living in Sweden need to know, including Brexit guidance, residency, healthcare and driving.
This page tells you what to do ahead of Brexit. It will be updated if anything changes, including if a deal is agreed.
You can also:
The British Embassy holds regular events to inform you about Brexit. For information on timing and how to attend future events check the British Embassy Facebook page.
Check the entry requirements for Sweden.
If you plan to live in Sweden for more than 1 year, you can register with the Swedish Population Register. The Swedish authorities will issue you an ID number (personnummer).
You can only register if you have a right of residence (uppehållsrätt) for a year or more and comprehensive travel insurance. As an EU citizen, you will automatically have this right if you can support yourself, either by work or by other independent means, or you are studying.
You will not be able to register if you are still looking for a job when you come to Sweden and or do not meet other requirements for residency.
If you’re planning to move as a dependent to a family member who lives in Sweden you must apply for a residence permit.
The UK and EU have agreed the full legal text of the draft Withdrawal Agreement in principle. The agreement on citizens’ rights will allow UK nationals to stay in their Member State of residence after Brexit.
If the UK leaves the EU with a deal you can live, work and travel in Sweden mostly as before until the end of the implementation period. TheRead UKthe andSwedish Swedengovernment areguidance negotiatingon new rules for residency whichafter willBrexit applyon fromthe 1 January 2021.
You can check this guide and theSwedish Migration Agency website (Migrationsverket) for updates on when and how you can apply for permanent residence or citizenship under the rules of the Withdrawal Agreement.(Migrationsverket).
If the UK leaves the EU without a deal your residence permit will become invalid if it was acquired based on EU citizenship as opposed to Swedish national laws.
The Swedish government has put in place rules to give you time to register correctly as a resident. UK nationals and their families, even from outside the EU, will be exempt from residency requirements for 1 year from the day the UK leaves the EU.
Children under 18 who live outside Sweden will be included in the exemption if they join you during the grace period. Children born after Brexit will have the same rights as their parents.
You do not have to do anything to be included in the exemption. Your rights to live, work, study, receive healthcare and social benefits will not be affected during this time.
Once you have applied for a residency permit, your stay is legal. You can continue to receive social benefits until a decision is made.
If you have applied for citizenship and this has not been approved toward the end of the 1-year exemption, you must apply for a residence permit. This will not affect your citizenship application.
You can check updates to this guide and the Swedish Migration Agency website on when and how to apply for a residence permit or citizenship during the 1-year grace period.
This guide will be updated as the Swedish government decides what will happen when the 1-year grace period ends.
You can apply for or renew your British passport from Sweden.
You can check our travel advice for Sweden.
After Brexit, the rules on travel will change. Check your passport is valid for travel before you book your trip. You’ll need to renew your passport before travelling if you do not have enough time left on your passport.
If there is a deal, nothing will change until the end of 2020. In this time you can continue to travel freely in the Schengen area with your UK passport. What happens after 2020 will form the next part of negotiations.
If there’s no deal, you must have at least 6 months left on an adult or child passport to travel to most countries in Europe (not including Ireland). If you renewed your current passport before the previous one expired, extra months may have been added to its expiry date. Any extra months on your passport over 10 years may not count towards the 6 months needed.
If there’s no deal, UK nationals will not need visas for short stays elsewhere in the EU. You will be able to stay up to 90 days in another EU, EEA or EFTA country, within a 180-day period. You must retain evidence of travel, like train and plane tickets, in case these are requested by national authorities. If you hold a residence permit from an EU, EEA or EFTA country, you will be able to transit through other EU, EEA or EFTA countries to reach your country of residence.
If you want to travel outside of the country on a UK passport you will need to have it stamped by the Swedish Migration Agency:
this indicates your status and allows you to return to Sweden without a residence permit. You only need to have your passport stamped once during the 1-year exemption period
apply on the Swedish Migration Agency website
the stamp is only valid for the 1-year exemption. After the exemption period, you cannot leave Sweden and be sure of return without a valid residency permit
Read the NHS guidance on who can access healthcare in Sweden and how to register. You can also find information on the Swedish social insurance authority’s website (Försäkringskassan).
If you live in Sweden and receive an exportable UK pension, contribution-based Employment Support Allowance or another exportable benefit, you may currently be entitled to state healthcare paid for by the UK. You will need to apply for a certificate of entitlement known as an S1 certificate.
If you are resident in Sweden, you shouldmust not beuse using a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) from the UK to access healthcare in Sweden.
When you travel to Sweden for a temporary stay in another European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland, you can use an EHIC to access state-provided healthcare in that country. During that short stay:
If you are a student, read the NHS guidance on healthcare and studying abroad.
You can find an English-speaking doctor in Sweden.
Check that your prescriptions are legal in Sweden. Many over-the-counter medicines in the UK are only available by prescription in Sweden. You can only buy medicines at authorised chemists (Apoteket).
If there is a deal, your current rights on access to healthcare in Sweden will remain the same until the end of the implementation period, as long as you remain a resident in Sweden.
If there’s no deal, you will be able to continue to access healthcare for a 1-year grace period after Brexit.
You must apply for a residence permit to continue to access healthcare after the 1-year grace period. You will continue to obtain healthcare until there is a decision on your application, even if it takes longer than a year.
If you currently have your healthcare costs paid for by the UK government, we can help if you are asked to pay for treatment during the first 6 months after Brexit. To organise a payment, you must give your healthcare provider’s details to the NHS Business Services Authority’s Overseas Healthcare Services.
The UK has offered to continue paying the country you live in for your healthcare in the event of no deal, just as it does now. The government has proposed maintaining current healthcare cooperation with Sweden for S1 form holders until the end of December 2020. If there’s no deal, and there is no arrangement with Sweden to continue reciprocal healthcare, pensioners receiving coverage through the S1 form will not be covered.
You must confirm your residency status and decide what steps you need to take to ensure access to healthcare if there’s no deal.
Your EHIC may not be valid if there’s no deal. The UK has offered to maintain the EHIC scheme should the UK leave the EU without a deal, however this relies on Sweden continuing to accept UK EHICs.
You should read the NHS guidance on healthcare for UK nationals living in Sweden and how it may change after Brexit.
You can read our guidance on working in another EU country.
Some jobs may require a UK police certificate.
You can find more information on the Swedish Public Employment Service website (Arbetsförmedlingen).
Read the guidance on providing services after Brexit if you’re planning to start a business, provide a service, or do a job in a regulated profession after Brexit.
If there is a deal, your right to work will stay the same until the end of the implementation period.
If there’s no deal, you will be able to continue to work as normal for a 1-year grace period.
You should:
The UK has a double-taxation agreement with Sweden to ensure people do not pay tax on the same income in both countries.
Read guidance on:
You should obtain professional advice on paying tax in Sweden.
You can find an English-speaking lawyer.
Find out if you can pay National Insurance while abroad so that you protect your State Pension and entitlement to other benefits and allowances.
If you are employed or self-employed in the EU and you have a UK-issued A1/E101 form, you will remain subject to UK legislation until the end date on the form.
If the end date on your form is after 31 October 2019, you should contact the relevant EU, EEA or Swiss authority to confirm whether you need to start paying social security contributions in that country after 31 October, as well as UK National Insurance contributions.
Find out more about social security contributions after a no-deal Brexit.
If there’s no deal, it may become more expensive to use your UK bank card in the EU. You can read more about using a bank card, insurance or other financial service in the EU.
Brexit will not change existing double taxation arrangements for UK nationals living in Sweden. Send your questions about double taxation to the relevant tax authority.
You will need to tell the UK government offices that deal with your pension if you retire abroad.
If you retire in Sweden, you can claim:
If you get a ‘life certificate’ from the UK Pension Service, you need to fill it in promptly or your payments may be suspended.
The UK government will continue to pay a State Pension to those eligible in the EU after Brexit. Your UK State Pension will be uprated in April 2020, 2021 and 2022 if you live in the EU, EEA or Switzerland.
If there is a deal and you work and pay social security contributions in Sweden, you will still be able to add your UK social security contributions towards your Swedish pension. This will happen even if you claim your pension after the end of the implementation period.
Read our guidance on pensions if there’s no deal.
You may still be able to claim some UK benefits if you live in Sweden.
You should:
Many income-related benefits such as pension credit and housing benefit cannot be paid to you if you’re abroad for more than 4 weeks.
You can request proof of the time you’ve worked in the UK from HMRC if you are asked for this.
You may be eligible to claim some Swedish benefits. To find out contact:
The UK government will continue to pay child and disability benefits to those eligible after Brexit.
If there is a deal and you work and pay social security contributions in Sweden, you will still be able to add your UK social security contributions towards your Swedish contribution-based benefits. This will happen even if you claim your pension after the end of the implementation period.
You can read our guidance on access to benefits and services in the UK if there’s no-deal.
If you are a resident in Sweden, you should exchange your UK licence for a Swedish driving licence before the UK leaves the EU.
You can still use your Swedish licence in the UK for short visits or exchange it for a UK licence without taking a test if you return to live in the UK.
For more information on driving in Sweden, read:
You must read the EU guidance on car registration and taxes in Sweden. You may be exempt from some of these taxes. If so, you will need certificates of exemption.
If there is a deal, driving licence rules will stay the same during the implementation period.
If there’s no deal, your driving licence will remain valid in Sweden for 1 year.
You can read our guidance on driving in the EU after Brexit.
You may be able to vote in some UK elections. You can:
If you’re resident in Sweden, you can vote in local municipal and European parliamentary elections.
The election authorities will send you a voting card to the address linked to your ID number (folkbokföringsadress).
You cannot vote in general elections.
After Brexit, you can continue to vote in Swedish local elections. You can read more information on the Swedish government’s election authority website (Valmyndigheten).
You will not be able to vote in European Parliament elections. The election authority will update information (in Swedish) on its website.
If your child is born in Sweden, you need to register the birth abroad.
If someone dies in Sweden you can:
Find out how you can get married abroad.
You may also need English-speaking lawyers in Sweden, or notary services in Sweden.
Read guidance on how to buy or let property in Sweden.
You will still be able to travel to and from the UK with a cat, dog or ferret when the UK leaves the EU, but the rules will change. You can read our guidance on pet travel to Europe after Brexit.
While the UK is still a member of the EU you’ll be able to travel with your pet to the EU under the current pet travel rules using your current EU pet passport. If you’re travelling with your pet for the first time you must visit your vet to get a pet passport.
You can read our guidance on returning your cat, dog or ferret to the UK.
For moving pet horses and other equines read our guidance on export horses and ponies: special rules.
Read our guidance on:
Tell the Swedish and UK authorities if you are planning to return to the UK permanently.
To move your pension to the UK, contact the International Pension Centre.
If you get healthcare in Sweden through the S1 form, you must contact the Overseas Healthcare Team on +44 (0)191 218 1999 to cancel your S1 at the right time.
Please note that this information is provided as a guide only. Definitive information should be obtained from the Swedish authorities. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office will not be liable for any inaccuracies in this information.
2025-08-20 10:59
Updated with the start date for the EU Entry/Exit System (EES).
2024-08-12 08:15
Information about the new EU Entry/Exit System (EES) added. The guidance has also been reviewed and updated as necessary.
2023-08-08 15:22
Visas and residency, healthcare, accommodation and buying property, and births, deaths, marriage and civil partnerships sections updated.
2022-03-11 08:00
Important information in the Working in Sweden, and National insurance sections if you work in Sweden, even it if it is for an employer based in the UK.
2022-01-01 07:00
Visas and residency guidance updated, following the 31 December 2021 residency deadline for people with rights under the Withdrawal Agreement.
2021-06-07 13:14
See Driving section for when you can exchange your UK driving licence; see Working in Sweden for update on frontier worker permits; see Studying in Sweden for student healthcare registration.
2021-02-16 10:03
Coronavirus section updated with a link to guidance on vaccines.
2020-09-07 14:00
Passports and travel section updated to include information on passport validity and entry requirements when travelling to other European countries from January 2021
2020-01-23 13:30
Brexit update: includes further details on passport validity, healthcare rights and State Pension uprating if the UK leaves the EU with a deal.
2019-10-03 13:07
New information on the proposed Swedish special residency process permit added to the ´visas and residency after Brexit´ section.
2019-09-30 13:09
Brexit update: Register for new Q&A session for UK nationals on 7 October in central Stockholm. See the 'attend one of our citizens outreach meetings' section.
2019-09-23 17:00
Brexit update: healthcare section updated to reflect transitional arrangements announcement
2019-09-03 16:05
Brexit update: Pensions section updated to include further details on State Pension uprating.
2019-07-15 15:04
The guide contains new links to government guidance on returning to the UK in case of a no-deal Brexit.