New reception law: where asylum seekers live

The Riksdag has decided a new mottagandelag (reception law) for people who seek asylum. It starts on 1 October 2026 and changes where you may live while you wait for a decision.

This matters if you are an asylsökande (asylum seeker) in Sweden. The main rule is new. To get money to live on, you must live in the housing that Migrationsverket assigns to you.

What the new law changes

Migrationsverket gives you a place in one of its housing centres. To receive dagersättning (the daily allowance), you must live there. The allowance is small and is meant for basic needs while you wait.

Before, many people arranged a home on their own instead. This is called EBO, or eget boende (arranging your own housing). Under the new law, EBO no longer gives you the right to dagersättning.

The old rules come from a law from 1994, often called LMA (lagen om mottagande av asylsökande). The new mottagandelag replaces it.

• You must live in the housing that Migrationsverket assigns to you.
• EBO (eget boende) no longer qualifies for the daily allowance.
• You are expected to stay in the county where your housing is.
• Migrationsverket can check that you are present. The allowance can be lowered or stopped if you do not follow the rules.

In short: assigned housing keeps the daily allowance, and eget boende no longer does.

When you can work

The law also changes when you may work. An asylum seeker can get an undantag från kravet på arbetstillstånd (AT-UND, an exemption from the work permit rule).

This exemption now starts six months after you hand in your asylum application, if you meet the other conditions. Before, you could work earlier than that.

There is one more part. If Migrationsverket has not decided your case after six months, and the delay is not your fault, you may still be allowed to work.

What to do now

This is decided, not a proposal. The law starts on 1 October 2026. Some parts have transitional rules, so a few older cases may follow different dates.

If you plan to seek asylum, prepare for assigned housing. Self-arranged housing will not give you the daily allowance once the law starts.

Rules like this raise practical questions, such as what happens if your family already lives somewhere else. Watch for information from Migrationsverket about how the change affects people who are already in the system.

This article is general information, not advice for your case. What these rules mean for you is something only Migrationsverket can tell you.