Many people move to and visit Sweden from other countries. Sweden is a central destination for people seeking work, wanting to study, or reuniting with family. Many also seek refuge in Sweden from war, persecution, and other serious crises around the world. So how many were granted residence permit in Sweden 2023? In 2023, Sweden granted a total of 102,000 residence permits. This is a significant decrease compared to 2022 when about 40,000 more were granted residence permits.

The biggest differences between 2022 and 2023 can be seen among those who applied for work permits, residence permits due to family ties, and the ones who came to Sweden seeking protection. This includes people who applied for asylum, quota refugees under UNHCR’s resettlement program, and people who were granted protection under the Temporary Protection Directive. Residence permits granted to people seeking work and protection in Sweden decreased significantly. At the same time, residence permits granted due to family ties instead increased:

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Trends and changes among those who received residence permits in Sweden in 2023

Among those who received residence permits in Sweden in 2023 due to seeking protection, many were Ukrainian citizens. Of the total 16,810 who were granted residence permits, about 65% were Ukrainian citizens. Remaining 35% consisted largely of people from countries such as Afghanistan, Syria and Somalia.

The reason for a decrease in residence permits granted in Sweden in 2023 can be linked to various factors. This includes changes in the global migration situation and stricter immigration laws in Sweden. The decrease in residence permits granted to people seeking protection, particularly Ukrainian citizens, can be explained by a gradual stabilization of the situation in some parts of Ukraine. And also changes in how the EU handles the refugee situation.

Granted work permits also decreased in 2023 compared to 2022. Many of those who applied for work permits are citizens of India, China, and Turkey. The decrease can partly be explained by global economic uncertainty, which has affected demand for labor. Additionally, the much higher income requirement for those seeking work permits in Sweden may also have contributed to the decrease.

The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention (Brå) recently released statistics on the most common crimes in Sweden during the first half of 2024. They’ve also compared the figures with statistics from the first half of 2023. We can already see some clear increases and decreases among the reported crimes. The data reveals a mixed trend where certain types of crimes, particularly those related to drugs and vandalism, are increasing, while traditional crimes such as theft and larceny are decreasing.

The largest increase among the most common crimes in Sweden has occurred in drug-related offenses. Possession of drugs accounts for a significant portion of this increase. Over 10,000 more cases were reported compared to the same period in 2023. Also, vandalism has increased significantly. Particularly graffiti targeting public transportation and vandalism aimed at state and municipal buildings, contributing to a large number of new reports.

At the same time, the number of reported theft and larceny offenses decreased during the first half of 2024. Approximately 170,000 crimes were reported in this category, which is 7% fewer than the previous year. The most significant decrease was seen in vehicle-related thefts, with nearly 7,500 fewer reports.

Among the most common crimes in Sweden, rape against boys and young men increased

Crimes against persons, which include violent crimes such as assault and rape, have increased by 4% in 2024 compared to the first half of 2023. Reported assault cases against both women and men aged 18 and older saw a slight increase. At the same time, the total number of reported rape cases remained roughly the same as the previous year. However, there are significant differences within certain specific groups:

• Rape against adults: The number of reported rapes against women aged 18 and older increased by 1%, while rape cases against men in the same age group increased by 18%.
• Rape against children and young people: Reports of rapes against children under 18 years old decreased overall by 2%. However, the number of reported rapes against boys and young men aged 15–17 increased by a staggering 37%.

The statistics on the most common crimes in Sweden during the first half of 2024 reveal a very complex development. Particularly regarding the increase in reported rapes against boys and young men. This increase could be due to the fact that it’s more acceptable nowadays for boys to come forward about having been subjected to sexual violence. The increase could also be due to multiple reports being filed for the same crime. Therefore, it’s difficult to draw a conclusion about why certain crimes have significantly increased while others have significantly decreased.

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Are you considering insemination and having a child with the help of donated sperm? Or have you watched the documentary The Man With 1000 Kids and wonder about the laws for sperm donation in Sweden?

Sperm donation has been permitted in Sweden for a long time. Initially, it was only allowed for heterosexual couples. However, in 2005, it was also permitted for female couples, and in 2016, for single women. Regulations regarding sperm donation are provided by the National Board of Health and Welfare in Sweden and are found in the Parental Code and the Genetic Integrity Act.

Donor requirements when it comes to sperm donation

To donate sperm, the donor must:

• be of legal age.
• have given written consent.
• be healthy.

The physician is the one who selects a suitable donor for insemination. Parents can’t choose specific traits for the donor. However, the donor’s physical characteristics are matched with the woman who’ll carry the child. If a couple is using sperm donation, the donor’s characteristics are matched with the other parent. Considerations are made to ethnic background, hair color, eye color, and body type.

The sperm donor is allowed to withdraw consent. This means they can change their mind about donating, up until the insemination takes place. Donated sperm can’t be used if the donor has passed away.

Donor rights and responsibilities

A sperm donor has no rights or obligations towards the child. The donor, for instance, doesn’t have the right to know which children he’s fathered. Consequently, he can’t contact either the children or the parents. Legally, the sperm donor isn’t considered a parent of the child. Instead, it’s the mother’s partner, if any, who’ll become the child’s second parent. However, this only applies if the mother’s partner agrees to the use of sperm donation and the child is the result of that donation.

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Right to information about the donor

Sweden was the first country in the world to ban anonymous sperm donation, aligning with the The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the child’s right to know their origin. This means that the child has the right to know they were conceived through insemination and to find out who their donor was. Since 2019, the child can also obtain information about others conceived with the same donor. However, to access this information, those individuals have to opt to have their information recorded in a special journal.

Requirements to undergo insemination with sperm donation

There are specific requirements for those who wish to use sperm donation. These requirements vary somewhat depending on whether it’s a single woman or a couple seeking treatment. By law, the physician handling the case must assess whether the woman or couple is suitable for the treatment. The assessment is based on their medical, psychological, and social circumstances.

Insemination is only allowed if it’s likely that the child will grow up in good conditions. A medical evaluation is also conducted to determine the woman’s likelihood of becoming pregnant. If the woman is married or in a cohabiting relationship, she can only undergo insemination if her partner provides written consent.

How many children can a donor father in Sweden?

According to guidelines from the National Board of Health and Welfare, a sperm donor is only allowed to father children in a maximum of six different families in Sweden. It’s important to note though that there might be other families in other countries who’ve had children with the same donor.

Clinics are responsible for ensuring that the donor doesn’t exceed the limit of six families and doesn’t donate at multiple locations. However, there is no specific national register of donors and sperm donation in Sweden. And so, monitoring whether the six-family limit is followed is difficult. This means there’s a risk that there are children from the same donor in more than six families even within Sweden.

Recently, the National Board of Health and Welfare was tasked by the government to investigate the possibilities of establishing a register to ensure the limit is maintained.

Photographer: Carl Johan Erikson

If you’re suspected of a crime in Sweden, you need a lawyer to defend you. Someone who’s familiar with Swedish law, who will guide you through the legal process and who can explain to you what your options are in the process. Sometimes you may need to hire a lawyer to represent you in court. However, sometimes you could also be entitled to a court-appointed public defender.

Only lawyers who are members of the Swedish Bar Association are allowed to work as public defenders in Sweden. The difference between a lawyer who’s a member and one who’s not is the obligation to follow the Swedish Bar Associations ethical rules.

A common misunderstanding is that lawyers who are not members lack the experience, and thus the expertise members have. The expertise of your defense depends on the cases they’ve worked with and amount of time they’ve spent on them. In other words, a lawyer who’s not a member of the Bar Association but who has worked on criminal cases for several years may have more experience and expertise as a defense attorney than a lawyer is a member but who has mainly worked on immigration cases. Therefore, it’s important that you consider your defenders previous experience rather than if they’re a member or not.

When you have the right to a public defender

You always have the right to a public defender if:

• you’re arrested or detained.
• you’re suspected of a crime punishable by imprisonment for at least six months.

Important to note here is that in both cases you must ask for a public defender. You won’t get one automatically. If you don’t qualify for a public defender, you can still ask for one. Sometimes you could be granted one anyway if the court deems there’s special need for it.

When you want a public defender, you have to contact the prosecutor handling your case. The prosecutor will take it up with the court. Depending on what you’re suspected of, you’ll then be given a public defender straight away or the court will review your case to determine if the need for one exists. If your case has already been prosecuted, you can instead go directly to the court and ask for a public defender.

What a public defender will cost you

A public defender is not completely free of charge. But the difference between a public and private defender is that the state will pay part of the public defender’s costs. How much they will pay and what you have to pay yourself differs from case to case. You’ll usually find out how much that is at the trial.

If you’re not satisfied with your public defender, you can ask to have them replaced. However, it’s not guaranteed that the court will approve this. Should they not, you can always choose to hire a private defender instead.

How to hire a private defender

A private defender is simply a lawyer that you hire yourself. Even if you have the right to a public defender, you can always choose to hire a private one instead. The costs of a private defender differs between different law firms. Sometimes the firm will charge you by the hour and give you an estimate in advance of how many hours your case may take. But there is a risk that the final cost will be higher than what they’ve estimated. At Kliently, we know that a legal process is a great stress for all parties. That’s why we give our clients a quote in advance with a fixed cost for the entire case. If you’re accused of a crime but are acquitted, you can request compensation from the court for the costs you incurred when you hired your private defense attorney.

If you’re suspected of a crime and need to hire a private defense attorney, you can always turn to us at Kliently. Start by booking a video meeting with one of our lawyers in the Kliently app and we will advise you on what options you have and what we recommend for you.

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Especially during the holidays, many people wonder what they’re entitled to when it comes to annual leave. The Swedish Annual Leave Act entitles all employees to 25 days annual leave each year. This corresponds to five weeks. Of those days, you have the right to take at least four consecutive weeks of holiday leave during the summer, i.e. during the months of June-August. If you don’t work five days a week, you’re still entitled to what would equal 25 days of leave. The number of days you’re entitled to will then recalculated based on how many days per week you actually work.

It’s important to distinguish between the right to annual leave and the right to receive compensation during your leave. The Annual Leave Act always gives you the right to leave. If you’re entitled to compensation during your leave depends on whether you’ve worked long enough to earn paid leave days. Also collective agreements and other conditions that you and your employer have agreed upon can affect what you’re entitled to in terms of annual leave.

Annual leave for part-time employees

The Annual Leave Act doesn’t take into account how many hours per day you work. It only takes into account how many days per week you work. As long as you work five days a week, you’re entitled to 25 days of annual leave. This also applies when you work five days a week but part-time. However, if you work fewer than five days a week, you’ll also get fewer annual leave days per year. If you work an average of four days a week, i.e. 80 percent of a five-day week, you’re also entitled to 80 percent of the 25 days the Annual Leave Act guarantees, which then becomes 20 days.

You can only take annual leave for whole days and only on the days you would normally have worked. You can never take half a day off as leave. So when you calculate how many leave days you’re entitled to, you must also round the number of days up to the nearest whole number. An example of this is if you work an average of 3.5 days a week. This means that you work 70 percent of a five-day week, which gives you 17.5 leave days. These should be rounded up to 18 days instead.

Right to compensation during annual leave

To also be entitled to pay during your leave, you must have worked and earned paid annual leave days. The 25 days you’re entitled to according to the Annual Leave Act only gives you the right to take time off. It doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be paid during that time.

According to the Annual Leave Act, a holiday year spans from April 1st of year 1 to March 31st of year 2. The holiday pay you earn during a holiday year can then be withdrawn starting from April 1st of year 2. If you’ve only worked part of a holiday year, for example half, you’ll only get holiday pay for half of the leave days. However, you still have the right to all of your leave days. Only that the rest of the days will be unpaid. If you’ve worked a full holiday year, you’re entitled to 25 paid leave days according to the Annual Leave Act.

If you’re employed for a maximum of three months, your employer can waive your right to annual leave. You won’t have the right to take any leave during your employment then. But you’re still entitled to holiday pay. Your holiday pay cannot be included in your regular salary and your employer has to report the pay separately on your salary statement.

Calculate what you’ll receive in holiday pay

Many employees have a collective agreement that regulates how much your holiday pay is. But if you don’t have one, there’s a minimum level for holiday pay according to the Annual Leave Act. Usually you’ll receive the same salary as you would’ve had you worked, but with a bit more in addition. To calculate your holiday pay you can use the following formula:

(Monthly salary/21) + (0.43 x Monthly salary/number of annual leave days)

If you have a variable salary and, for example, work on commission, there’s another way to calculate what you’ll receive in holiday pay. In this case you can take 12 percent of the total salary you’ve earned from April 1st of year 1 to March 31st of year 2. That’s your total holiday pay. How much that would be per leave day is the amount of the total holiday pay divided by 25.

Should you in this case have more than 25 leave days, you need to add 0.48 percent for each additional day. Instead of taking 12 percent of the total salary, you take 12.48 percent if you have 26 leave days, 12.96 percent if you have 27 leave days, etc.

When your employer doesn’t comply with the Annual Leave Act

What the Annual Leave Act says is the basis for all employees in Sweden. You could be entitled to more if you also have a collective agreement or extra benefits in your contract. But if your employer should deny you annual leave and holiday pay when you’re entitled to it, you can contact a lawyer for advice and to pursue your case in court. In the Kliently app, you can get in touch with our lawyers seven days a week, 365 days a year.

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It has become more common to use sexsomnia as a defense in rape cases in Sweden. Sexsomnia is a scientifically established and recognized variant of sleepwalking. It simply means that the person with sexsomnia engages in involuntary and uncontrolled sexual acts during sleep. To be able to convict someone in a rape case, they have to have been aware of their actions. This means that people who perform uncontrolled movements and actions during their sleep cannot be convicted by law. Another way of looking at it from a criminal law perspective is that the perpetrator lacked intent for the deed. Since intent is a requirement in rape cases, it becomes more difficult to convict when words stand against words.

It becomes even more complicated when current research establishes that individuals can engage in uncontrolled sexual movements and behaviors due to sexsomnia. For example, people with sexsomnia have been able to engage in masturbation, sexual touching and even penetrative intercourse with others without being aware of what they’re doing. It’s during the so-called non-rapid eye movement stage of sleep that these actions usually take place. People with sexsomnia have shown that they’re completely unaware of the sexual acts they perform. And that they completely or partially lack memories of this when they have woken up. This is because there is a partial awakening in the brain. The person sleeps to some extent, but the brain doesn’t store any memories.

Difficult to disprove the lack of intent

Since Swedish law requires a person to have intent in order to be convicted of a sexual crime, it’s up to the prosecutor to prove that the sexual act was committed while awake. However, the prosecutor only needs to prove that objections from the accused are unfounded. When it comes to sexsomnia, prosecutors in several legal cases have used sleep scientists to determine whether the perpetrator could have committed unconscious sexual acts in their sleep.

It’s important to remember that a conviction is difficult to obtain if the perpetrator tends to sleepwalk. For instance if the person showed such tendencies at an early age. Or if the person has previously woken up confused and with memory gaps. And the difficult thing for the prosecutor here is to try and disprove the existence of sexsomnia after the fact.

Sexsomnia complicates for victims of sex crimes

Since there are no Supreme Court cases in Sweden to use as guidance where sexsomnia has been used as an objection, these types of cases are complicated to handle. This risks worsening the victims experience of the crime and the process thereafter. There’s also a risk that potential sex offenders could use sexsomnia as a loophole very early in a criminal process. In addition, there are clear flaws when the court can objectively come to the conclusion that a crime took place, but at the same time can’t sentence the perpetrator to punishment simply because it hasn’t been possible to prove that they had intent. In the end, this mainly affects the victim who doesn’t get justice for the crime they’ve been a subject to.

What can you do if you’re a victim?

If you’ve been the victim of a sexual crime, it’s important to report it, no matter how painful and difficult it may feel. It’s important partly to try and get the perpetrator convicted and because part of preventing sexual crimes is to minimize hidden statistics within sexual crimes. If you’re a victim and need help or advice from a lawyer, you can always turn to Kliently. Get in touch with us through the Kliently app. The app will give you access to Swedish lawyers at any time, wherever you are.

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The Swedish police are now allowed to instate stop and search zones for shorter periods. Within the zones, they’re allowed to search people without any criminal suspicion. Previously, the police were only allowed to search people when there was a clear suspicion that the person in question was carrying any sort of weapon. But now, the police have been given greater powers within these specific zones.

The stop and search zones can only be instated by the police if there’s a significant risk that a shooting or explosion could take place in a specific area. The police also have to make the assessment that it’s of particular importance that instating stop and search zones could prevent more shootings and explosions. According to law, these requirements have to be fulfilled in order to instate a stop and search zone.

The stop and search zones can only be instated for a maximum of two weeks. However it’s possible to request that the zone be extended for a longer period of time. The police have the right to search people and search vehicles without criminal suspicion within the zone. They’re also allowed to search children within the zones. When searching, the police are only allowed to do so outside of ones clothes. An example of when the police could instate a stop and search zone is if there have been a shooting or explosion in an area and the police assess that more shootings and explosions could take place as an act of revenge.

What does research about stop and search zones say?

There are no studies that have looked specifically at how stop and search zones affect gang violence and shootings. Although, there is research from England where the conclusion has been that similar scenarios didn’t lead to reduced gang violence. There is some research that shows that it’s effective when the police stop to check people. However, it isn’t possible to say whether that was due to the controls or due to police patrolling the area.

Manne Gerell is an associate professor and university lecturer at Malmö University. He has studied a situation similar to stop and search zones. He looked at areas that the Malmö police had pointed out as areas where they wanted to prevent gang violence. The Malmö police sent officers to check people in those areas. The study showed that crime didn’t decrease, but that the police seized more weapons and more drugs in these areas.

An increased risk of discrimination

There is research that shows that minorities, young people and socio-economically vulnerable people are usually checked by the police to a greater extent. And even if that, to some extent, follows what it looks like in crime statistics, there are also international studies that show that minorities are checked more than their criminality can justify.

Even though the Swedish police say that a certain type of clothing and a certain appearance isn’t enough to stop and search someone, the Swedish Equality Ombudsman (DO) believes that there’s a risk that certain ethnic groups could be discriminated against in within the stop and search zones. Especially since both research and studies show that discriminatory ethnic profiling is already occurring in various police interventions in Sweden today.

The way the Swedish Discrimination Act is designed, you cannot report the police if you’re subjected to a body search and you consider it to be discriminatory. DO has suggested that the Discrimination Act should be revised if the law on stop and search zones is passed. However, it isn’t decided if this is something that will happen in the future.

If you have been discriminated against and you need legal help

If you’ve been discriminated against, it’s important to report it to prevent continued discrimination. Do you need a lawyer’s help with reporting discrimination? Or do you need to talk to a lawyer to get advice regarding your specific situation? Make an appointment with one of our lawyers in the Kliently app today.

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An overwhelming majority of the Swedish government voted yes to a new gender law. This was after much debate regarding what is and is not right for the Swedish citizens. But what does the new gender law actually mean? And how will it make a difference? Below, a summary of the most important changes that the new law will entail.

The new Swedish gender law comes into force starting July 1st 2025. Unlike the current law, the new one targets all people who want to change their legal gender. Today, it’s only possible for transgender people to change their legal gender. Other groups, such as people that are non-binary, who doesn’t identify themselves as trans but want to change their legal gender aren’t able to do so under the current law. A persons legal gender is what is stated in your passport and what your Swedish social security number indicates. So it’s not about making physical changes to the body. In other words, the new Swedish gender law makes it possible to change legal gender on paper. So you’re not obligated to undergo surgery or physically change gender to do so anymore. This is also something that particularly benefits non-binary people.

The age limit for changing legal gender will also be lowered to 16 compared to today’s 18. And you don’t have to have a gender dysphoria diagnosis to be able to make the change. A simple doctor’s certificate will be enough. However, minors need their guardian’s approval to change their legal gender.

The new Swedish gender law is important for LGBT+ people

Even if the new Swedish gender law means some changes for LGBT+ groups, it’s only a step in the right direction according to the RFSL. Their hope is that people will be able to decide their physical and legal gender identity themselves, without the influence of healthcare and authorities. This is to increase the well-being of LGBT+ people, who are more likely to suffer from mental illness and are also at risk of being discriminated against.

If you’re discriminated against, for example at your workplace, because of your gender identity, you can get help from our lawyers at Kliently. Download our app to book a video meeting with our lawyers today.

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Two friends embracing, other two friends smiling

If you have family and friends residing in countries outside of EU and Schengen, you may have talked about the possibility for them to visit Sweden. After all, inviting family and friends here is a chance to show off your home and what your life in Sweden looks like, something that’s very important to many. Before you start planning the visit, there are some practical things you need to take care of depending on how long the visit will be.

When someone outside the EU and Schengen wants to visit Sweden for a maximum of 90 days

If you want to invite relatives who want to visit Sweden for a maximum of 90 days, you have to start by filling out an invitation before their visa application. If there are several people who’ll visit you, you have to fill in one form per person. When you’ve done that, you need to send the completed form to the person you’re inviting along with:

• a copy of valid identification showing your identity. Passport or ID card works just fine.
• documentation showing income and assets of the person who’s responsible for providing during the visit. You don’t have to be the provider, it can be someone else. And then you can send a copies of payslips, bank statements, pension notices or similar for the last three months.
• population registration certificate marked “invitation” which can be ordered from the Swedish Tax Agency.

The form and the attached documents has to be submitted to a Swedish embassy or consulate general together with the application for visa.

When someone outside the EU and Schengen wants to visit Sweden for more than 90 days

If the person who wants to visit Sweden wants to stay for more than 90 days, they have to apply for a residence permit, not a visa. And then you need to fill in an invitation for visits longer than 90 days. If there are several people who’ll visit you, you have to fill in one form per person. Along with the form, you have to send:

• a copy of valid identification showing your identity. Passport or ID card is fine.
• documentation showing income and assets of the person who’s responsible for providing during the visit. You don’t have to be the provider, it can be someone else. And then you can send a copies of payslips, bank statements, pension notices or similar for the last three months.

The form and the attached documents has to be submitted to the Swedish Migration Agency when applying for residence permit before the visit to Sweden.

Do you need help with filling out the forms before the visit?

Are you or a loved one going to visit Sweden? Do you need help filling out the forms? Or does your loved one need help applying for a visa or residence permit? Then book a video meeting with one of our lawyers in the Kliently app. The app can be used from anywhere in the world, so even your loved ones can get help with Swedish legislation as long as they download the app. And it’s possible to choose a lawyer based on the different languages the lawyers speak.

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