Work permit & work visas in Sweden

Having a work permit in Sweden means you are allowed to live, reside, and work in the country. In most cases, you must have applied for and received the work permit before coming to Sweden. The work permit is often issued for a specific position, so if you wish to change jobs, you need to check whether your current permit allows it. In some cases, you may need to apply for a new work permit if you are changing employment. We have many years of experience and can help you navigate the pitfalls in the application process.

If you do not have permission to work in Sweden but wish to do so, you need a work permit. For example, you cannot visit Sweden as a tourist and then start working without a work permit. Working in Sweden without a permit, and without being exempt from the work permit requirement, is against the law. This can make it more difficult to obtain a work permit later if you have not followed the regulations. Always make sure to check whether you have the right to work in Sweden before you actually start working.

To obtain a permit to work in Sweden, the following requirements must be met:

• You need a valid passport.

• You must have signed an employment contract for a job with working conditions at least on par with Swedish collective agreements or what is customary in the profession or industry. (Exceptions apply for researchers, au pairs, and seasonal workers, where a job offer is sufficient.)

• Your salary must be at least at the level of Swedish collective agreements or what is customary in the profession or industry.

• You must be able to support yourself with your employment, which means that the salary must be at least SEK 29,680 per month. This corresponds to 80 percent of the current median salary. Please note that this amount may change (it is usually adjusted in June each year). The Swedish Migration Agency bases its calculations on the median salary that applies at the time you submit your application.

• Your employer must have taken out health insurance, life insurance, occupational injury insurance, and occupational pension insurance for you when you start employment.

Source: Swedish Migration Agency

If you do not meet the above requirements, it will be difficult to obtain a work permit. It is important that the requirements are met for the entire period you work in Sweden.

Do you have questions about whether you meet the requirements? Contact us completely free of charge, and our highly experienced work permit specialist will get back to you.

You can bring your family to Sweden, and “family” includes a spouse/partner and children under the age of 21. This application can be submitted at the same time as your work permit application. If your family later wishes to join you, they must submit their own application afterwards. To bring your family, you must meet the financial support requirements.

Please note that children over the age of 21 are generally not granted residence as family members and must instead apply for their own work or study permit.

The salary offered to the applicant must, after tax, be sufficient to cover living expenses and housing costs. For calculating living expenses, the standard amounts established per year are used. For 2025, the amounts are as follows:

• 6,186 SEK for a single adult

• 10,219 SEK for married couples or partners

• 3,306 SEK for children aged 0–6

• 3,967 SEK for children aged 7–10

• 4,629 SEK for children aged 11–14

• 5,290 SEK for children aged 15 or older

Housing costs are calculated based on the actual cost of accommodation and any interest costs for loans.

It depends on the industry for which you have applied for a work permit.

• For highly qualified workers, it should take up to 30 days to receive approval from the date the application is submitted.

• For non-highly qualified jobs, it should take up to 5 months according to the Swedish Migration Agency’s new processing times.

Note that these timeframes only apply if the submitted application is error-free. We can help you or your company submit flawless applications. Contact us!

By submitting an application on the Swedish Migration Agency’s website. You need to apply for an extension of your work permit before your current permit expires. If you submit the application on time, you can continue working while waiting for a decision from the Migration Agency. If your application is submitted late, it will be considered a new application from within Sweden. This can make it more difficult to be granted an extension of your work permit. Therefore, make sure to apply for an extension of your work permit well in advance. You can apply for an extension no earlier than two months before your current permit expires.

Yes, you can obtain permanent residence in Sweden if you have worked in the country for at least four of the past seven years. To qualify, you must have worked for the employer and in the position for which your work permit was granted. Additionally, all the requirements of the work permit—such as insurance, salary, and other conditions—must have been met throughout your period of employment.

As an asylum seeker, you may be exempt from the requirement to have a work permit (abbreviated as AT-UND).

You are exempt from the work permit requirement if the following conditions are met:

• You provide acceptable identity documents to the Swedish Migration Agency, or assist the Agency in establishing your identity.

• Your asylum case is being processed in Sweden.

• Your application has valid grounds. You cannot receive AT-UND if you have received a deportation order that is to be carried out immediately.

If these conditions are met, you will receive an LMA card indicating that you have AT-UND, which exempts you from needing a work permit while awaiting a decision from the Migration Agency.

The employer initiates the work permit application by submitting a job offer to you through the Swedish Migration Agency. After that, you will receive an email from the Agency with instructions on how to apply for a work permit. In many cases, your employer can assist you if you are unsure how to proceed with your application.

Yes, you can appeal the Swedish Migration Agency’s decision to deny a work permit, whether it concerns a new permit or an extension application.

When appealing the Migration Agency’s decision, no leave to appeal is required from the Migration Court. However, leave to appeal is required if you wish to appeal further to the Migration Court of Appeal. Leave to appeal means that only cases the Court of Appeal considers of particular importance for legal precedent will be reviewed.

Therefore, it is important to submit a well-prepared appeal from the start and to make sure it is submitted on time. Contact us if you need assistance from a lawyer.

Working in Sweden without a work permit is illegal and not recommended. It can lead to deportation and a re-entry ban. Therefore, make sure you have a valid work permit before working in Sweden.

A work permit specialist or lawyer can help you review your application to ensure all necessary documents are included, reducing the risk of requests for additional information. The lawyer can also assist in appealing any potential denial from the Swedish Migration Agency and optimize your chances of a favorable decision in the Migration Court.

By hiring us at Enkla Juridik from the start, you won’t miss out on the assistance we can provide. It is important to seek help in time; otherwise, there is a risk that your application may be incorrect, causing you to lose months or even years by having to redo the process later. Contact us for a free legal assessment.

If an employee changes position or employer during their first two years in Sweden on a work permit, an application must be submitted to the Swedish Migration Agency. During the second period, i.e., after working 2–4 years in Sweden, an application to the Migration Agency is only required if the employee changes profession.

For a person who has held a work permit for 4 years during the past 7 years and has met the work permit requirements during that period, it is possible to obtain permanent residence. In addition to the usual requirements for extending a work permit, there are also stricter financial support requirements and a requirement to have led a well-behaved life. If the requirements for permanent residence are not yet met, one can, provided the work permit conditions are fulfilled, receive an additional two-year work permit period. After that, it is possible to apply for permanent residence again.