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.

Why it cannot happen soon

Revoking citizenship in this way needs a change to the constitution (grundlag, 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 inquiry proposes that the rules could enter into force on 1 January 2028 at the earliest.

The report is now out for consultation (remiss), the stage where authorities and organisations give their views before the government decides whether to write a bill. Some bodies, including Diskrimineringsombudsmannen (the Equality Ombudsman) and the Institute for Human Rights, have opposed or rejected the proposal.

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.