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MONEY

How to fill out your Swedish tax return

The deadline for filing your taxes is May 2nd. Don't despair: these nine tips should make the process a bit easier to understand.

Published: 21 February 2018 06:59 CET
Updated: 2 May 2024 16:22 CEST
How to fill out your Swedish tax return
Many people can declare easily online. Photo: Anders Wiklund/TT

1. The basics

First, it’s good to cover the basics of what the return entails. The standard tax return can be a scary-looking creature for newcomers to the Swedish system, but it’s relatively straightforward to deal with for most.

For lots of people it’s a simple case of checking that all of the pre-printed amounts on the tax return are correct, then submitting it for confirmation. The most simple way to submit it is online, using either Skatteverket’s app (which requires electronic identification in the form of BankID) or using their web service, which can be accessed through either BankID or the eight digit security code printed on the form itself.

If there are no changes to be made the form can also be submitted by sending a text message including your personal identity number and signature code to 71144 from within Sweden, or by calling 020 567 100 and following the instructions. It’s also possible to send the completed paper form in by following the instructions on the booklet itself, but as the deadline is midnight on May 2nd you’ll have to file online or by text message this year.

If your Swedish isn’t great, a handy English language list of all the categories on the declaration form can be found here. 

Hold your horses before you sign off on everything though: there could be deductions to take advantage of and additional information not present on the pre-printed sheet that needs to be submitted.

2. Taxes on the sale of a home

Did you sell a Swedish property in the last tax year? That needs to be declared on your income tax return. The date you sold the home should be listed, and in Skatteverket’s eyes that’s the date the contract was signed, not the date you received the money from the sale.

A 22 percent tax on profits from property sales is paid in Sweden, but if you’re using the profit to upgrade to a new house in the country or a country within the European Economic Area (EEA) it is possible to apply to defer this tax. Skatteverket’s website has details in English about how to declare the sale of property.

3. Deductions for service work on your home

If you’ve paid for services like repairs, maintenance or cleaning in your owned home, you could be eligible for ROT & RUT tax deductions, although these should already have been deducted by the company at the time when you paid for the services.

There is also a specification of exactly what kind of cleaning costs are deductible. “Simple cleaning costs” fit the criteria, by which Skatteverket means everyday household cleaning that doesn’t require a trained specialist or heavy machinery like floor buffing machines. Professional cleaning of a property before moving house can also be deducted.

4. Deductions for your journey to and from work

Some journeys to and from work are eligible for a tax deduction, but only for the part of your expenses that exceeded 11,000 kronor per year. If public transport was your method, you can deduct the applicable amount provided the distance between home and work was at least 2 kilometres. For cars or motorcycle, the distance has to be at least 5 kilometres and the time saved on your return journey must be at least two hours per day compared to making the same journey via public transport.

More details for the kind of journeys to and from work that are eligible can be found in English here.

5. Deductions for temporary employment in a different location

If you have to travel for work, deductions are available to account for the increased costs of living incurred.

You must have spent the night where the place of work is located, and that place must be more than 50 kilometres from your permanent home in order be eligible.

The cost of accommodation in the location of your temporary work can be deducted, as can meals and petty expenses.

6. Daily allowances for working abroad

A useful deduction to be aware of if you ever travel abroad from Sweden for work is the daily tax-free allowance called the utlandstraktamente. The amount, which varies between countries, is designed to account for your increased expenses while working abroad compared to home.

The daily allowance for each county can be consulted here, and it is also worth noting that the amount is different for a full day than a half day. If your journey abroad starts at noon or later then the departure day counts as a half a day, while the return day counts as half a day if it is concluded at 7pm or earlier. 

7. Other deductions to watch out for

Require books or newspapers to do your work, but your employer doesn’t provide them? It’s possible to deduct the cost. The same applies to training or studying you pay for in order to help retain your current employment – though not studying you’ve paid for as part of applying for a new job.

Some other work-related costs that are deductible include tools or instruments necessary for work, and work-related telephone calls incurred at your own expense (but not the cost of a subscription or handset).

A list of other common deductions (and some things that are not deductible) can be found here.

8. Additional information if you have your own business

If you have your own business your tax declaration form may require additional information to be submitted. Sole traders for example can be asked to submit an “NE appendix” detailing your company’s results for the relevant tax year alongside the income tax return, as well as accounts and VAT (moms) declarations for the year.

A useful checklist (in Swedish) of all of the additional information required as a sole trader can be found here. Skatteverket lists the process for other types of companies here.

Unless your level of Swedish is good and you have a solid understanding of the nuances of Sweden’s tax, it could be useful to get an accountant to help with this if it’s within budget. Better safe than sorry.

9. When you’ll get some money back

People who used the SMS, app, telephone or online service methods, who did not need to make any changes to their tax form (such as adding deductions or additional income), and declared by April 3rd (and have a bank account registered with Skatteverket by then), got any money they were owed back in early April.

Everyone else who files their declaration digitally before the final deadline on May 2nd will get any money back by a still not too shabby June 7th.

This article was originally published in 2018 and updated in 2024.

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For members

WORKING IN SWEDEN

‘Reassess your cultural background’: Key tips for foreign job hunters in Sweden

Many foreigners living in Sweden want to stay in the country but struggle to find a job, despite having relevant qualifications. The Local spoke to three experts for their advice.

Published: 7 May 2024 09:00 CEST
'Reassess your cultural background': Key tips for foreign job hunters in Sweden

One international worker who found it hard to land her first job in Sweden is Amanda Herzog, who eventually founded Intertalents in Sweden with the aim of helping other immigrants find work in the country.

Herzog originally came to Sweden to study at Jönköping University and decided to stay after graduating.

“I thought it would take three months, maybe six months to find a job, I was prepared for that,” she told The Local during a live recording of our Sweden in Focus podcast held as part of Talent Talks, an afternoon of discussions at the Stockholm Business Region offices on how to attract and retain foreign workers in Sweden.

“What happened was it took over 13 months and 800 applications to actually get a job in my industry, within marketing.”

During this time, Herzog was getting multiple interviews a month, but was not getting any further in the process, despite showing her CV to Swedish recruiters for feedback.

“They were baffled as well,” she said. “By the time I landed my dream job, I had to go outside of the typical advice and experiment, and figure out how I actually can get hired. By the time I got hired, I realised what actually works isn’t really being taught.”

‘Reassess your cultural background’

Often, those who come to Herzog for help have sent out hundreds of CVs and are unsure what their next steps should be.

“My first piece of advice is to stop for a second,” she said. “Reassess your cultural background and how it fits into Sweden.”

Herzog, for example, discovered she was interviewing in “the American way”.

In the US, when asked to tell an interviewer about yourself, you’d be expected to discuss your career history – how many people have you managed? Did sales improve while you were working there? – while Swedes are more likely to want to know about you as a person and why you want to work in a specific role for their company in particular.

“A lot of people don’t know this, so imagine all of the other cultural things that they’re doing differently that they learned in their country is normal,” Herzog adds.

“Just start with learning, because it could be that you don’t need to change very much, you are qualified, you just need to connect with the Swedish way of doing things.”

 
 
 
 
 
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Networking is important

“Don’t hesitate to reach out for help and guidance,” said Laureline Vallée, an environmental engineer from France who recently found a job in Sweden after moving here nine months ago with her partner, who got a job as a postdoc at KTH Royal Institute of Technology.

“You tend to insulate yourself and consider yourself not capable, but you’re not less capable than you were in your home country, you just need to explain it to the employers.”

Another tip is to network as much as you can, Vallée said.

“Networking is really important here in Sweden, so just go for it, connect with people in the same field.”

This could be through networks like Stockholm Akademiska Forum’s Dual Career Network, which helps the accompanying partners or spouses of foreign workers find a job in Sweden, or through other connections, like neighbours, friends, or people you meet through hobbies, for example.

Make a clear profile for yourself

Another common issue is that applicants are not presenting themselves clearly to recruiters, Stockholm Akademiska Forum’s CEO, Maria Fogelström Kylberg, told The Local.

“If you’re sending 600 applications without an answer, something is wrong. We have seen many people looking for jobs working in a supermarket, and the next application is a managing director post,” she said. “You have to decide ‘who am I? What do I want to do?’, you have to profile yourself in a clear way.”

This could be editing down your CV so you’re not rejected for being overqualified, or just thinking more closely about how you present yourself to a prospective employer.

“Which of my skills are transferable? How can I be of use to this company? Not what they can do for me, but what problem can I solve with my competence?”

Job hunters should also not be afraid of applying for a job which lists Swedish as a requirement in the job description, Fogelström Kylberg said.

“Sometimes if I see an ad for a job and I have a perfect candidate in front of me, I call the company and say ‘I have a perfect candidate, but you need them to speak Swedish’, they then say ‘no, that’s not so important’. This is not so unusual at all so don’t be afraid of calling them to say ‘do I really need perfect Swedish?’”

Listen to the full interview with Maria Fogelström Kylberg, Amanda Herzog and Laureline Vallée in The Local’s Sweden in Focus Extra podcast for Membership+ subscribers.

Interview by Paul O’Mahony, article by Becky Waterton

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