Residence permit for young adults: new rule 1 October 2026

The Riksdag (the Swedish parliament) voted on 13 August 2026 in favour of a change to utlänningslagen (the Aliens Act, the law on entering and staying in Sweden). The change starts on 1 October 2026. It applies to you if you are under 21 and have held a residence permit in Sweden through a parent.

A child who holds a permit through a parent can no longer be granted one on that ground once they turn 18. The new rule lets a permit be granted again.

Migrationsverket (the Swedish Migration Agency) has held back refusals in some of these cases since March 2026. It has not said what happens to them from 1 October 2026.

What the new rule says

The new provision sits in Chapter 5, Section 3 g, first paragraph, point 2 of utlänningslagen. It comes from proposition 2025/26:301 (a bill from the government to the Riksdag). The provision is permanent.

It applies to you if you have previously held a residence permit through the same anknytningsperson (the relative in Sweden you got the permit through). You must be under 21. The proposition says that point sets no further requirements for that group.

The law says a permit may be granted. That is not the same as a right to one. The proposition says the starting point is a permit, unless there is something against it.

The same point has a second branch if you are 21 or older. There too, you must have held a permit through your anknytningsperson. But more is required.

You must live in the same household. There must also be a särskilt beroendeförhållande (that you depend on that person in a particular way). It can be because of a disability, for example.

The requirement that the dependency already existed in your home country has been removed for this group. For other close relatives it stays.

How long the permit runs follows your anknytningsperson's own permit. If theirs is time-limited, yours runs for the same time. If they are a Swedish or Nordic citizen, or hold a permanent uppehållstillstånd (PUT, permanent residence permit), yours runs for two years.

Applying from inside Sweden

The same law opens a second route. That route is temporary. It applies to you if you have held a residence permit in Sweden as the child of a parent, or of the parent's spouse or cohabiting partner.

You must have held that permit at some point after 1 October 2023. You may then apply for a new permit without leaving Sweden first. It can be on any ground: the new provision, work, studies or an EU Blue Card (EU-blåkort).

The temporary route ends on 1 January 2028. After that the main rule applies again: a permit has to be applied for before you enter.

A final expulsion decision (one that can no longer be appealed) does not stop the application from being granted. The decision must have become final on 1 January 2025 or later. That matters most if you already have such a decision.

Migrationsverket, or a migration court, may then decide on inhibition (that the expulsion is paused) while your case is decided. The law says may, not shall. It does not happen by itself.

The normal requirements for the permit you apply for still apply in full. A work permit still requires the salary rule to be met. The route changes where you apply, not what you have to meet.

The requirement that still applies

A permit under the new provision carries a försörjningskrav (that your anknytningsperson must be able to support you both). That person must also have a home of sufficient size and standard for you both.

The proposition says the requirement applies even when you do not live with your anknytningsperson. Your own home can then be taken into account. Exceptions exist, and särskilda skäl (special reasons in the individual case) can lower or remove the requirement.

The two-year requirement in the same law does not apply to the new provision. That requirement otherwise applies when your anknytningsperson has a time-limited permit. Then that person must have lived here two years with a residence permit.

What this means for you

Migrationsverket paused some of these cases before the vote. Its Director-General decided on 10 March 2026 that the agency would not issue refusals in certain extension cases. People who already had an expulsion decision were not covered by that.

On 2 June 2026 Migrationsverket also stopped enforcing expulsions in cases covered by the proposal.

Migrationsverket has not published how the paused cases are handled from 1 October 2026. It has not said whether a refusal already issued can be looked at again. So that is not clear yet.

The slides from the government's press conference of 1 June 2026 say this is not an amnesty like gymnasielagen. That is the 2018 law that let some young people stay and finish upper secondary school.

One question is still open. The government's press release says a fast-track inquiry will look at it. The question is when you, holding a permit under the new provision, may apply for another one without leaving Sweden.

The requirements for other permits are the same as before. What is new is only that you can apply without leaving Sweden. Read what applies when you work in Sweden or study here.

This article describes what the law says. Migrationsverket decides which rules apply in your own case. A difficult case is worth taking to a qualified lawyer.