Laws & rules

The law as it stands today

Swedish citizenship is governed by the Citizenship Act. A new Citizenship Act took effect on 6 June 2026. It tightened several of the conditions for becoming a Swedish citizen and introduced a requirement to know something about Swedish society — which in practice became the citizenship test.

All applications are decided by Migrationsverket, the Swedish Migration Agency. It is also the agency that determines which rules apply in your particular case, what documents you must submit, and how each condition is assessed. This page explains how the system is built — it does not replace what the agency tells you.

• You must be able to prove your identity
• You must have lived in Sweden for a certain period — hemvist
• You must have led an orderly life
• You must meet the knowledge requirement, if it applies to you

Proven identity

Proving your identity means showing who you are with documents the agency can rely on. Normally that means a valid passport from your country of origin. Your name, date of birth and citizenship must match what you stated in the application.

Anyone unable to obtain documents from their home country is in a harder position, though not necessarily an impossible one. The law provides routes forward for applicants without identity documents, including after a longer period of residence. Which requirements apply and what evidence is accepted, however, is something only Migrationsverket can answer in your case.

Hemvist — time spent in Sweden

Hemvist is the legal term for the time you have been settled in Sweden on a permanent basis. Simply having been present is not enough: your actual home must have been in the country, normally with a residence permit or right of residence and with registration in the population register.

How long that period must be varies. It depends among other things on the basis of your residence, whether you are married to or cohabiting with a Swedish citizen, and whether you are a citizen of another Nordic country. Long stays abroad during the period can affect the count. Check your own timeline with Migrationsverket before applying — an application filed too early costs you both time and the fee.

Never calculate your residence period from what someone else was granted. Two people who arrived the same year can have entirely different starting points.

Good conduct

The good-conduct requirement concerns how you have lived during your time in Sweden. Migrationsverket obtains information from bodies including the police and the Swedish Enforcement Authority, and makes an overall assessment of your way of life.

Criminal offences can lead to an application being refused or postponed for a period — how long depends on what happened and how serious it was. Unpaid debts registered with the Enforcement Authority, and withheld taxes or charges, also weigh in. Under the new law the bar is higher than before, and self-sufficiency has been given greater weight.

An old matter in the records does not automatically close the door. It means the assessment becomes individual — and that you should read Migrationsverket's information on waiting periods before you apply.

The knowledge requirement — what is new

The biggest change in the 2026 Act is the requirement to know something about Swedish society. It is met through the citizenship test: a multiple-choice test in Swedish based on the study guide Sverige i fokus and its 13 chapters. The guide is free. The test is administered by the Swedish Council for Higher Education, UHR.

The first official sitting is expected in mid-August 2026. The number of questions, the time limit and the pass mark are set by UHR — go to UHR for those figures, and do not trust numbers circulating in groups and comment threads.

The knowledge requirement does not apply to everyone. The law sets age limits at both ends, and there are exemptions for people who cannot sit a test for medical reasons. Whether an exemption applies to you is decided by Migrationsverket in your case.

Special rules: Nordic citizens and children

The rules are not the same for everyone. Citizens of Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway have long had a simpler route to Swedish citizenship, in some cases by notification rather than application.

Separate provisions apply to children. A child can become a Swedish citizen at birth, through an application made by the parents, or through adoption. Children can also be included in a parent's application. The knowledge requirement is designed for adults and does not reach the youngest applicants.

If dual citizenship is on your mind: Sweden permits it, but your current home country may not. Check that question with your home country's authorities before you apply.