Inquiry proposes revoking citizenship for dual citizens

On 18 March 2026 a government inquiry handed over its report, Återkallelse av svenskt medborgarskap (the withdrawal of Swedish citizenship), known as SOU 2026:21. It proposes that Swedish citizenship could in some cases be revoked (återkallas). Nothing has changed yet: this is a proposal, not law.

The proposal would only reach people who also hold another country's citizenship. International rules that Sweden follows say no one may be left stateless (without any citizenship), so a person who holds only Swedish citizenship would not be affected.

Who the proposal would reach

The inquiry describes two grounds for revoking citizenship, both only for people who are also citizens of another state.

• Citizenship obtained by deception: someone who deliberately gave incorrect, incomplete or misleading information, or used bribery, to be granted citizenship.
• Very serious crime: the inquiry gives two alternative versions. One is tied to crimes that threaten Sweden's security, such as espionage or terrorism. The other uses the wording about crimes that seriously harm Sweden's vital interests.

Any revocation would first need a proportionalitetsbedömning (a proportionality assessment). It would weigh how serious the act was, how much revocation would affect the person and their relatives, and how long ago citizenship was granted.

One decision is done, one is left

Revoking citizenship in this way needs a change to the constitution (regeringsformen). A change to the constitution requires the Riksdag (the Swedish parliament) to take the same decision twice, with a general election in between.

The first decision has already been taken. On 20 May 2026 the Riksdag voted yes to betänkande 2025/26:KU34. That decision makes the constitutional change vilande. Vilande is the word for a change that has already passed one vote and is waiting for its second. The citizenship part sits inside a larger constitutional package.

The second decision has to be identical, and it has to come from the Riksdag elected on 13 September 2026. The constitutional change is proposed to start on 1 January 2027.

That change alone is not enough. The detailed rules on who loses their citizenship still need a law of their own, and the inquiry proposes 1 January 2028 at the earliest for those.

The remiss (the round where authorities and organisations give their views) on SOU 2026:21 closed on 1 June 2026. Diskrimineringsombudsmannen (the Equality Ombudsman) and Institutet för mänskliga rättigheter (the Swedish Institute for Human Rights) are among the bodies that opposed or rejected the proposal. The government has not put forward a bill.

This article describes a proposal. What the law says today is unchanged, and questions about your own citizenship can only be answered by Migrationsverket (the Swedish Migration Agency) or a qualified lawyer.