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WHAT CHANGES IN SWEDEN

What changes in Sweden in August 2022?

Swedes go back to work and school, travel chaos looks set to continue and a possible Covid peak. Here's what changes in Sweden in August 2022.

What changes in Sweden in August 2022?
No crayfish party is complete without crayfish-themed decorations, hats and bibs. Photo: Carolina Romare/imagebank.sweden.se

THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR

Swedes return to work – and the school year starts

In August, Swedes start heading back to the office after their summer holidays, where the majority of workers take at least a couple of weeks off during July. This means that replies to all those unanswered emails you’ve sent over the last few weeks will start ticking into your inbox as Sweden’s workers return to their desks.

In a similar vein, kids will go back to school in August, although the exact date when schools go back varies depending on where you live in the country.

Travel chaos in Europe

The chaotic travel situation seen during the past few months looks set to continue, with airports throughout Europe likely to remain busy during August. Airlines across the continent have cancelled more than 25,000 flights from their August schedule, and strikes affecting several airlines and airports in other European countries will also affect Swedish travellers planning on taking a late summer holiday.

READ ALSO: Airport chaos in Europe: Airlines cancel 15,000 flights in August

Risk of Covid-19 peak hitting Sweden in August

According to Sweden’s Public Health Agency, the amount of people infected with Covid-19 in the country could peak in mid-August. During the summer, infection rates have increased week-on-week, with more than half of Sweden’s regions reporting an increase in cases.

This is in part due to the high number of Swedes about to return to work following their summer holidays in July.

“It usually takes around two weeks from returning to work for there to be a noticeable increase,” Karin Tegmark Wisell, the Agency’s general director, told TT news wire.

Having said that, Tegmark Wisell believes the risk of having to introduce new restrictions or close schools is low.

“We can’t rule local outbreaks out,” she told TT. “In a situation where teaching can’t be carried out, the school could decide to close independently of Covid-19 legislation.”

 

NEW LAWS AND REGULATIONS

Hike in pay-outs to poorest pensioners 

Pensioners in Sweden will receive an extra 1,000 kronor per month from August, and will also receive an extra housing bonus, under changes driven negotiated by the Left Party in exchange for backing Magdalena Andersson as Prime Minister. 
 
Teachers can ban mobile phones in the classroom 
 
A change in Sweden’s school law means that pupils can only use their mobile phones during lessons if their teacher gives them instructions to do so. Teachers have also been given increased powers to seize pupils’ mobile phones and to bring in mobile phone free school days. 
 

A ban on unregistered pre-paid mobile phones

Pre-paid SIM cards, known in Swedish as kontantkort or cash cards, will require registration with information including the owner’s name and personal identity number (personnummer) from August 1st. 

The new rules could present difficulties for people without a personnummer, such as foreign nationals who have recently moved to Sweden, since a personal identity number is needed to set up a phone contract.

Existing pre-paid sims will continue to work without registration until February next year. 

Tougher penalties for rape and buying sex 

From August 1st, Sweden is bringing in tougher penalties for a range of sexual crimes. The minimum jail sentence for rape and child rape rises from two years to three. Being caught buying sex will always come with a jail sentence, rather than just a fine.

The minimum sentence for child sex abuse rises from the shortest possible prison sentence to six months behind bars, as does the minimum for ‘exploiting children through the purchase of sexual acts’. The minimum sentence for making children pose sexually rises from a fine to imprisonment. 

Lower threshold for deporting criminals 

From August 1st, Sweden’s government is making it easier for criminals who are foreign citizens to be deported from Sweden after serving their sentence. Criminals can now be deported for less serious crimes than previously, and they will need to give a higher level of evidence that they are established in Sweden for this to be a defence. There will also no longer be a ban on deporting criminals who came to Sweden as children. Read the full list of changes here (in Swedish). 

Better rules for international female same-sex parents  

A woman who is or has been married to another woman who has a child in Sweden will now automatically be considered the child’s parent, under a change designed to make Sweden’s parenting laws more equal. The change will mean that international female same-sex couples who come to Sweden will enjoy a similar status as parents under Swedish law as couples consisting of a man and a woman. The new law comes into force on August 1st. 

New EU regulations to protect children caught in cross-border parental disputes

On August 1st, the EU’s new Brussels II regulation, which is designed to protect children caught in cross-border parental disputes, comes into force in Sweden. Among other changes, the new regulation imposes deadlines on courts in all EU countries when handling international child abduction cases. All courts must decide on returning a child to the parent with the right of custody within six weeks, with a further six weeks allowed for appeal. The regulations also require that the opinions of children who can express themselves play a role in proceedings. Read about the rules here

You can see a full list of new laws coming into force on August 1st here.

Municipalities required to offer ‘cohesive adult education’ to adult immigrants 

From August 1st, all municipalities are required to offer a ‘cohesive adult education’ to all adults arriving in Sweden who are covered by the Swedish Public Employment Service’s Establishment Programme.  Under the new rule municipalities must offer an average of 23 hours of education a week over a four-week period, which will include parts of the Swedish For Immigrants (SFI) course, a ‘civic orientation’ course, and other education within the municipal adult education departments. 

 

FESTIVALS

Crayfish parties

Unfortunately there are no public holidays in August, although this doesn’t mean there’s nothing to celebrate. Crayfish season traditionally starts on August 7th in Sweden, so be prepared for crayfish-themed decorations to start popping up in your local supermarket, and find some friends (preferably with access to a summer house) to hold your very own kräftskiva (crayfish party).

As with most Swedish celebrations, expect drinking songs, lots of snaps, crispbread, cheese, and most likely some sort of västerbottenpaj – a quiche featuring Sweden’s favourite cheese, västerbottensost.

Here’s our guide to six essential Swedish drinking songs for crayfish party season.

Stockholm Pride

Pride is also kicking off in Stockholm next month. Celebrations will begin on August 1st and carry on until August 7th. This year’s theme is Dags att bekänna färg (Time to profess colour) and will feature a parade on Saturday August 6th, as well as events, music and parties in Pride Park (Östermalms IP) between Wednesday August 3rd and Saturday August 6th.

Here’s a link to the programme (in Swedish).

Malmöfestivalen

For those based in the south of the country, Malmöfestivalen will be taking place from August 12th-19th. The festival will include music, activities for children, dance and art, as well as food stalls.

Way Out West

Not to leave Gothenburg off the list, Way Out West music festival will also be taking place in August, between the 11th and 19th. Unlike Pride and Malmöfestivalen, this festival isn’t free, but at the time of writing there are still tickets available.

Artists performing at the festival this year include Tame Impala, Chance the Rapper, Jamie XX, First Aid Kit and Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds.

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WHAT CHANGES IN SWEDEN

New laws, events and a ministerial pay rise: What changes in Sweden in July

New Swedish laws often come into force at six month intervals in January or July, so there are more changes than usual this month.

New laws, events and a ministerial pay rise: What changes in Sweden in July

NEW LAWS:

Increased powers to locate people evading prosecution

This new law, due to come into force on July 1st, will make it possible for authorities to secretly monitor electronic communication and data if it is deemed necessary in order to find a wanted individual, as well as making it easier for authorities to find foreigners who they deem to be a risk to Swedish security.

It can only be used to aid the enforcement of sentences for people who have been sentenced to prison, forensic psychiatric care or closed youth care.

Better support for students with special needs

Schools who teach students with special educational needs are currently eligible for a so-called tilläggsbelopp or supplementary amount, an extra subsidy on top of the basic funds paid by the municipality to the school, which varies depending on the need of the pupil.

Currently, the application process is often complicated and many students in need of support have to fight to be granted it. 

This new law aims to make the application process more streamlined and equal, cutting down on admin for schools, pupils and municipalities.

It’s due to come into force on July 1st, but it won’t be applied in schools until the autumn term.

Abolishing requirement for business owners to keep original accounting records

Another law due to come into force on July 1st will abolish the requirement for businesses to keep the originals of any paper accounting documents. From next month, businesses will no longer need to do this if documents have been digitalised.

It will also remove the rule stipulating that a company must hire the same auditing form to carry out both accounting and auditing tasks, instead allowing companies to hire auditors while using separate technical solutions for their own accounting.

Temporary increase in the ROT deduction

Sweden’s so-called ROT deduction offers tax reductions for the labour cost of repairs, conversion or extension work. It is closely linked to the RUT deduction, which offers similar discounts for domestic work, like cleaning, garden work, childminding or laundry services.

Currently, the ROT deduction capped at 50,000 kronor, with a combined cap of 75,000 kronor for both RUT and ROT combined.

From July 1st until December 31st, this cap will be temporarily raised and instead of a combined cap of 75,000 kronor for RUT and ROT together, individual caps will be introduced. This means that taxpayers will be able to deduct a maximum of 75,000 kronor for RUT and a further 75,000 kronor for ROT work for 2024 as a whole.

Changes to school law to provide better access to paper textbooks

Another law due to come into force on July 1st will change the school law to require that students have free access to textbooks, as well as any other learning materials and tools they need for their studies.

This is part of a larger government goal to reduce the use of screens in schools, invest in school librarians and give schools more funding to buy physical books.

OTHER NEWS:

Pay rise for Swedish ministers

Swedish government ministers are getting paid more from the start of July. Their monthly salaries have been raised 3.7 percent, according to a decision by parliament’s Ministerial Remunerations Board.

The pay review, which happens every year, means that Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson gets a 7,000 kronor pay rise, with his monthly salary going up to 198,000 kronor. The other ministers’ salaries have been raised by 5,500 kronor to 156,000 kronor.

Schoolchildren (and most adults) on holiday throughout Sweden 

With schools across Sweden finishing the school year in the last two weeks of June, almost all children in Sweden are on holiday throughout July. Most adults in Sweden also take at least three weeks off in the summer, starting either in the first or second week of July.

So if you’re not taking time off, be warned: it can be difficult to get any responses from people you work with, either inside your own company, or in other companies in July. 

EVENTS THIS MONTH:

Sthlm Fields

Sthlm Fields festival will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year. The event will see top artists, both national and international, play at Gärdet in Stockholm. The performers will include Toto, Doja Cat and Molly Sandén. Bars, food stalls and merchandise stands will be located within the grounds, too.

There are no spaces for camping on the festival grounds, so you’ll have to find somewhere to stay in Stockholm during the festival.

Daily tickets start from 795 kronor and the full access ticket starts at 2,595 kronor.

Where: Central Stockholm

When: June 28th-July 7th

Dansbandsveckan

If you want to really experience Swedish culture, consider visiting Dansbandsveckan. This festival of the hugely popular Dansband genre attracts nearly 100,000 visitors over seven evenings, with six dance floors and 82 dance bands.

The festival will include dance classes, a musical summer evening, a fairground, axe throwing, a car exhibition and much more.

Evening tickets are priced at 350 kronor and a weekly ticket costs 2,300 kronor.

Where: Malung, Dalarna County

When: July 14th- 20th

Classic Car Week

The long-running Classic Car Week event will take place in Rättvik. The week will include music, events for children, a vintage market, a demolition derby, classic car parade and much more.

Tickets for the event cost 900 kronor if booked before April 30th, or 1,000 kronor after May 1st.

Where: Rättvik, Dalarna County

When: July 26th-August 1st

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