Home > Immigration > Work Permits Immigration -- Choose a Topic -- General Info What are the requirements? Where do I apply? What is the cost? Who decides my case? How long will I have to wait? How long is the permit valid? How do I renew my permit? Can my family come with me? Can I appeal a denied application? The Schengen Agreement Further Info General Information: You must have a work permit in order to work in Sweden. Once you have been granted a permit, it must be entered into your passport before your arrival. Obtaining a Swedish work permit is no easy matter. Swedes, foreign citizens already living in Sweden and EU/EEA citizens have preference over others in obtaining work here. If there is a temporary shortage of labour, or if you have obtained employment as part of an international exchange programme, the Migration Board may grant you a work permit. If the offer of work is for more than three months you will also require a Swedish residence permit. If you will be in Sweden for less than three months, you will not require a residence permit. You may, however, require an entry visa. Information about which citizens are required to have entry visas when entering Sweden is available here. Visas are normally granted for three months at the most. You can read more about visas here. If you are an EU/EEA citizen, click here to find out what applies. What are the requirements? You must have a written offer of work in Sweden, made out on a special form (AMS PF 1704) which your employer can obtain from the employment office. It is also available here. Your employer must complete it and send it to you so that you can enclose it with your application. Your employer must guarantee that you will be paid a minimum of SEK 13,000 per month before tax or be paid in accordance with a Swedish collective wage agreement. Accommodation must have been arranged for you in Sweden You must be fully prepared to leave Sweden when your term of employment is over. Where do I apply? The first time you apply for a work permit, you do so at a Swedish embassy or consulate in your country of origin or in your country of domicile. The addresses of embassies/consulates are available here. What does it cost to apply? You may be required to pay an application fee. If your application is denied, the fee will not be refunded. You can read about the fees In a special information sheet. If you require an entry visa, the application costs the equivalent of SEK 275 (SEK 250 before July 15 2001). The money is not repaid if you are refused a visa. Who decides my case? The embassy or consulate sends yours application to us at the Migration Board in Sweden and we decide whether or not you are to be granted a work permit, after consultation with the county labour board. The work permit must be entered in your passport before your arrival in Sweden. You cannot travel to Sweden and wait for a decision here. The embassy or consulate to which you submitted your application will notify you of our decision. How long will I have to wait for a decision? You should submit your application 6-8 weeks before leaving for Sweden. How long is a permit valid? Work permits are normally granted for one year at a time, or, if it is less than one year, for the period for which employment is offered. Permits are granted for a maximum of 18 months altogether if the employment is due to a temporary labour shortage. If the work is part of an international exchange programme or the like, the permit may be extended up to a total stay of four years. The permit is restricted to the trade or profession envisaged in the offer and to the employer who made you the offer. How do I renew my permit? If you want to renew your permit, send an application to the Migration Board - Migrationsverket, Arbetstillståndsenheten, SE 601 70 Norrköping, Sweden. Alternatively, you can apply at any of the Migration Board offices in Sweden. The office addresses are listed here. May my family come with me? Your family, i.e. spouse/cohabitant and children under 18, can obtain residence permits for the same period as you. If you have a work permit valid for at least six months, your spouse/cohabitant can also obtain one for the same period. Can I appeal if the Migration Board turns down my application? If the Migration Board decides not to grant you a residence permit, you may lodge an appeal with the Aliens Appeals Board (Utlänningsnämnden). This must be done in writing within three weeks of the date on which you received notice of the decision. Send your appeal to the Migration Board - Migrationsverket, SE 601 70 Norrköping, Sweden. The Migration Board then goes through your case once again to see whether your appeal contains information that would cause it to revise its decision. If it finds no relevant new information, it forwards your appeal to the Aliens Appeals Board in Stockholm. There is no right of appeal against decisions to turn down work permit applications. Nor can you appeal against a decision to refuse you an entry visa. If you have new grounds for applying, however, you can reapply or ask for your original application to be reconsidered. In that case you write in and request a review (omprövning) of the decision. You send the letter to the body that took the original decision (the embassy, the consulate or the Migration Board). Remember! Neither the embassy/consulate nor the Swedish labour market authorities can help you find a job in Sweden. You will be expected to contact potential employers yourself. You will not be listed in the Swedish civil registry if your residence permit runs for less than one year, so you will be ineligible for social welfare benefits. You should make a point, therefore, of taking out insurance beforehand to cover any costs you may incur in Sweden arising from an accident or illness. The Schengen Agreement The rules in the Schengen Agreement on travel within the Schengen zone now apply in Sweden as well. One result is that people with Swedish residence permits can travel freely throughout the zone for a period of three months without first applying for a visa. All travellers must have a valid passport and be able to prove their identities. The countries that have signed the Schengen Agreement are: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. Further information For further information about work permits in Sweden, contact the nearest Swedish embassy/consulate or the Swedish Migration Board: Migrationsverket, Arbetstillståndsenheten, SE 601 70 Norrköping, Sweden.

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