Do I need to renounce Indian citizenship before I can apply for Swedish citizenship?

No. You shouldn’t renounce your Indian citizenship until your Swedish citizenship has been approved.

In fact, you can’t renounce it before then, as you’ll need to provide a copy of your new Swedish passport and a copy of your new Swedish citizenship certificate (medborgarskapsbevis) when you apply for renunciation.

How do I renounce my Indian citizenship?

Once you’ve received your Swedish citizenship, you’ll have to visit the Indian government’s Indian Citizenship Online Portal at this link.

You’ll need a digital copy of the first and last pages of your new Swedish passport and your old Indian passport, as well as a copy of your Swedish citizenship certificate, so make sure you have them ready before you start the application process (although you can save it and come back to it later if you find out you’re missing something halfway through the process).

You’ll need to click on “initiate application” and start filling in your details, such as your name, email, contact details and marital status.

You’ll also need to say here whether you have any children – this is important, as any children you have who are under the age of 18 will also lose Indian citizenship when you renounce yours. If they don’t qualify for Swedish citizenship (usually because they do not yet have permanent residency), this means that they could be made stateless when you renounce your citizenship.

Next, you have to fill in the details of which country you’re becoming a citizen of, as well as your birth details, details of your Indian passport, your parents’ names and nationalities and a digital photograph and signature.

Once you submit this page, you’ll be able to see your application ID. Save this in a safe place so you can return to your application later if you need to.

The next step is to add in the details of any children you have (or skip this step if you don’t have children), then you’ll need to provide your address details (where you currently live and your residential address in India) and the embassy where you’ll be submitting your application – in this case, the Indian Embassy in Stockholm.

After this, you have to upload digital copies of documents like your passport, proof of address (like a personbevis from the Tax Agency, a rental contract or a utility bill), and any other relevant documents, like your certificate of Swedish citizenship. Double check that all of these documents are legible and correct, as you won’t be able to edit your application once you’ve submitted it.

Next up is the final submission of your application. Check everything thoroughly, including your contact information, as your application could be denied if your information is incorrect. You can edit anything on this screen before you click on the green “final submission” button at the top.

Once you’ve submitted your application, note your application number (or MHA file number), and download your application. This will generate a document titled Form XXII, which you’ll need to print out and take to the embassy in person. 

After you’ve submitted, you can pay the renunciation fee (8,000 rupees or 989 Swedish kronor, according to 2024 figures listed on the embassy’s website).

What do I do now?

The next step is to book an in-person appointment at the embassy in Stockholm on this website. Bring your Form XXII to this appointment along with the following documents required by the embassy: 

• a copy of your Swedish passport
• a copy of your Indian passport
• originals of your current and previous Indian passports
• a coloured passport-style photograph (on a white background, no more than six months old and 51x51mm in size)
• a copy of your Swedish citizenship certificate
• a copy of your personbevis from the Tax Agency, in English
• proof of payment for the renunciation fee

You’ll also need to get someone else who is an Indian citizen living in Sweden to sign the second page of your Form XXII as a witness (your spouse doesn’t count). 

On top of this you’ll also need to fill out a passport surrender certificate, which you also have to do online – but on this website, not the same website as before.

You’ll need to register, where you’ll set up a username and password (your username can be your email address), before selecting Sweden-Stockholm in the Embassy/Consulate box. Log in with the username and password you chose, before clicking on “apply for surrender of Indian passport”.

Once you’ve applied, you need to print out your application, before taking it with you to the embassy – you can do this at the appointment you’ve already booked or book a new appointment.

Bring the following documents with you for your passport surrender (these are almost the same documents as for the renunciation appointment above, with the exception of an extra passport photo and proof of payment for the passport surrender fee):

• a copy of your Swedish passport,
• a copy of your Indian passport, 
• originals of your current and previous Indian passports, 
• two coloured passport-style photographs (on a white background, no more than six months old and 51x51mm in size),
• a copy of your Swedish citizenship certificate
• a copy of your personbevis from the Tax Agency, in English
• proof of payment for the passport surrender fee (note that this is not the same as the renunciation fee but is a further 1,000 rupees or 276 kronor, payable to the bank account at the bottom of this page.)

Once all this is done, you should hear back from the embassy within eight to ten weeks. They’ll get in touch with you to let you know your renunciation certificate is ready (you’ll need this if you ever want to apply for an Overseas Citizen of India [OCI] card, see more details on that below), and you can book another appointment to pick it up along with your documents.

What happens if I become a Swedish citizen and don’t renounce Indian citizenship?

According to Indian law (specifically Section 12[1A] of the Passports Act), you’d be breaking the law and could be sentenced to between one and five years in prison, alongside a fine of between ten and fifty thousand rupees (roughly 1,200 to 6,500 kronor).

What if I want to visit or move back to India but I’m not a citizen?

If you ever want to move back to India or would like to be able to visit family without needing a visa, you can apply for an OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) card.

This card allows a foreign citizen of Indian origin to work and live in India indefinitely, and is the closest Indian citizens can get to holding dual citizenship.

You can apply for an OCI card online via the Indian Embassy in Sweden at a cost of 2,868 kronor.