How to apply for a residence permit if you are a long-term resident of the EU

If you have long-term resident status in another EU country and want to stay longer than three months in Sweden, you must apply for a residence permit.

You may begin working or studying as soon as you arrive in Sweden. You do not need to wait for your application to be processed. However, you must register for taxes and contributions with the Swedish Tax Agency, and you may need to register your business with the Swedish Companies Registration Office, before you start running your own business. If you are a student, you may work as well as study without having to apply for a specific work permit.

How to apply

You fill in the form Application for a residence permit for persons who have long-term resident status in another EU state and their family members, 137011, and send this or hand it in to one of the Swedish Migration Agency's permit units.

To have your application assessed you need to pay an application fee.

Application for a residence permit for persons who have long-term resident status in another EU state and their family members, form 137011 Pdf, 1.4 MB, opens in new window.

The Migration Agency's visiting addresses and opening hours

Postal addresses to the Migration Agency's Permit Units

Application fees for long-term residents

When you apply you must always enclose

copies of the pages in your passport which show your personal information, photograph, signature, passport number, passport issuing country, the period of the passport's validity and whether you have permission to live in countries other than your country of origin.
a copy of your residence permit card which shows that you have an EC/EU residence permit for long-term residents in another EU country.

If you are an employee, you must also enclose

a certificate of employment from your employer, form 227021
your latest salary specification
compiled income information from the Swedish Tax Agency (order your income information by logging into the Swedish Tax Agency's My pages, External link, opens in new window. calling the Swedish Tax Agency or visiting one of their service offices).

Anställningsintyg för personer med ställning som varaktigt bosatta i annan EU-stat, form 227021 (to be filled out by employers in Sweden. In Swedish only) Pdf, 1.1 MB, opens in new window.

If you have your own business, you must also enclose

F-tax card and certificate of registration from the Swedish Companies Registration Office
the most recent VAT report (if your business is obliged to report VAT)
evidence that you run the business, for example, customer invoices, receipts for materials that you have purchased and rental contracts for the business' premises.

If you have bought a business in Sweden, you must also include

the transfer agreement
the most recent annual report.

If you are a student, you must also enclose

certificate of admission to a course which is at upper-secondary school level (gymnasium) or higher. Please note that you cannot be granted a residence permit to study Swedish for Immigrants (SFI)
certificate which proves that you are covered by the social insurance system in your country of origin. The certificate should be issued by the authorities in your country of origin and it should indicate that you are covered by another EU country's social insurance system. If you cannot get a certificate like this, you must sign up for comprehensive private health insurance which will be valid during your stay in Sweden
an assurance that you have enough money to support yourself.

If you are a pensioner or have sufficient means you must also enclose

documents which show how you support yourself, for example, pension statements or bank statements showing your assets
document showing your housing cost.

If you are a provider or recipient of services you must also enclose

a certificate, contract or something similar showing what sort of services these are and how long you will offer or be in receipt of these. The document should be written and signed by whoever is in receipt of or offers these services.

Shorter processing times for complete applications

For the Swedish Migration Agency to make a decision about your application, all the details need to be filled in and all necessary documents enclosed. This means that the processing time will be shorter if all the necessary information is included from the start than if information is added afterwards.

Note that the Migration Agency may in some cases need to further examine your application even if you have included all the required information and documents.

When we have received your application

You must show your passport

The Swedish Migration Agency must check your passport before a decision can be made. You may therefore need to show your passport at a Swedish embassy or consulate-general if you are outside Sweden, or one of the Migration Agency's service centres if you are in Sweden.

In some cases, you will not be required to show your passport, for example, if we have already checked your passport during a previous visit.

If you need to show your passport, we will contact you with information on how and when to do so.

Residence permit card

If you are granted a permit which is valid for more than three months, you will receive a residence permit card. The card is proof that you have permission to be in Sweden and contains a photograph of you and your fingerprints. You will be photographed and have your fingerprints taken when you visit us to show your passport. You need to do this, even if you have previously had a residence permit card. This is because the Swedish Migration Agency does not save your photograph or fingerprints.