No debt too small for Swedish state collections agency

Her debt?

A penalty of 4 kronor (62 cents) for not paying her motor vehicle tax on time.

The postage on the letter cost more than the debt itself, according to the newspaper Nya Wermlands-Tidningen.

Jesper Bergqvist from the head office of the Swedish Enforcement Authority (Kronofogden) in Stockholm explained that the agency asked in 2001 to have the right to overlook debts of less than 50 kronor. But the rules never changed.

Anna Jansson from the agency’s Karlstad branch office added that going after small sums can have positive effects.

“If someone has a debt it goes on their permanent record, and such matters can be good to know about,” she told the newspaper.