Adoption

A residence permit is not needed if the child is a Nordic citizen or becomes a Swedish citizen by adoption. Other children who are adopted need a permit to enter and reside in Sweden.

Requirements to be granted a residence permit

For the child to be granted a residence permit the child has to be unmarried and the adoption needs to be valid in Sweden

under the Act (1971:796) on International Legal Relationships relating to adoptions

under the Act (1997:191) consequent upon Sweden´s accession to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption.

The child's adoptive parent must reside in Sweden or have been granted a residence permit in Sweden. If the child's parent/parents are applying for a residence permit in Sweden, the child can get a residence permit on the same basis as the parent. A foreign child who is adopted is equivalent to a natural child.
A child who is going to be adopted can get a temporary residence permit.

Applying for a residence permit

If the adoption is done in accordance with the Hague Convention an application for a residence permit can be submitted directly to the Embassy Unit in Norrköping.
Other applications for residence permits for adoptees must be submitted at a Swedish embassy or consulate.

Make sure the application is complete

If the adoption is negotiated by a Swedish adoption organisation you must use the form number 1744 (only available in Swedish). If the adoption is not negotiated by a Swedish adoption organisation you should use the form number 171011 (or form number 170011 in Swedish).

Also enclose:

Passport in original.
Consent from guardian who is not moving to Sweden with the child.

A person who does not have custody of the child needs authorization from the child's natural parents, or from an orphanage or an institution, to submit an application for a residence permit.

Application fee

Most people must pay an application fee, with the first application as well as in the event that the residence permit needs to be extended. Information about fees can be found on a separate page.

This will happen with the application

If the application is made at a Swedish embassy or consulate abroad, the embassy or consulate will submit the application to the Migration Board in Sweden for a decision. It is the Embassy Unit in Norrköping that handles the application. The decision will then be sent to the embassy or consulate. If the application is submitted directly to the Embassy Unit in Norrköping the decision will be submitted directly to the adoptive parent/parents.

Custodian

If the child is in Sweden and the custody issue is not resolved, the Migration Board may apply for a custodian for the child, provided that the child does not already have a residence permit.

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