Supervision and detention – Swedish Migration Agency

An individual whose application for international protection (asylum) or a residence permit has been rejected must leave Sweden. If the Swedish Migration Agency considers that there is a risk that the person will abscond or otherwise fail to cooperate about leaving the country, they may receive a supervision decision. If the Swedish Migration Agency considers that supervision will be insufficient, the person can be placed in detention.

If you are 18 years of age or older, you may be supervised or placed in detention if it is necessary to investigate, for example, your identity or your right to reside in Sweden. You may also be placed under supervision or taken into detention if you have received, or if it is probable that you will receive, a decision requiring your return, or if the Swedish Migration Agency assesses that there is a risk that you will commit a crime in Sweden, abscond, go into hiding, or otherwise obstruct or impede the refusal of entry or deportation.

Supervision

Supervision is a way for the Swedish Migration Agency to make sure that you are available to leave Sweden. If you receive a supervision order, you are required to

report at designated times to either the Swedish Migration Agency or the Police Authority in a specific locality
surrender your passport or other identity documentation
reside at a specific location designated by the Swedish Migration Agency
remain within a specific area designated by the Swedish Migration Agency.

Time limitation

A supervision decision is valid for six months and may be extended.

Appeal the decision

A supervision decision may be appealed to the Migration Court at any time.

Detention

If the Swedish Migration Agency assesses that supervision is insufficient, you may be placed in detention. This can happen, for example, if you fail to appear and report as required despite being subject to a supervision decision. It could also be that you do not reside or stay at the location designated by the Swedish Migration Agency, or if you otherwise fail to cooperate with us.

Detention means that you reside in a locked facility that you are not permitted to leave. The Swedish Migration Agency is responsible for these accommodation facilities.

Those who are placed in detention have the right to receive visitors, provided that it does not hamper the detention facility’s activities. In some cases, the Swedish Migration Agency may decide to check the visit if it is deemed necessary for security. A controlled visit may involve staff supervising the visit, or require you and your visitor to sit on either side of a glass window in the visiting room. In exceptional cases, the Swedish Migration Agency may also refuse a visit if the Agency believes that it will hamper the detention activities or with reference to the security of the detention facility. You can appeal against decisions to check or refuse visits.

If your application for asylum has been rejected and you are placed in detention, you can apply for a daily allowance if you do not have your own money.

Confidentiality and security

For reasons of confidentiality, the Swedish Migration Agency’s staff are not allowed to tell anyone who is being kept in detention and where they live. This means that the Swedish Migration Agency cannot tell your family and friends where you are, but you have the opportunity to contact them yourself, from the detention centre.

The people living in the detention facility have phone and internet access. To protect the privacy of residents, no cameras or phones equipped with cameras or sound recording are allowed in the detention centre.

You can borrow a mobile phone without a camera if you need one. There are also other items that you are forbidden to take with you into detention, for safety reasons. If the Swedish Migration Agency suspects that you have an item that is not permitted (contraband), the staff has the right to visit you. The staff may confiscate of the unauthorized items, and you will get them back at the latest when you leave the detention facility.

The Swedish Migration Agency’s detention facilities house men, women and children. However, in some cases there are specific parts of the detention centre where men are not allowed to go. If it is necessary for order and security at the detention facility, or if the Swedish Migration Agency believes that you are a serious danger to yourself, the Agency may decide that you should be kept separate from the other residents at the detention facility.

If necessary, you may be required to wear restraints when being moved within the premises, or when being transported or staying outside of the detention facility.

Time limitation

How long you can be held in detention depends on the reason for your detention. The Swedish Migration Agency determines the duration of your detention based on the regulations in the Aliens Act and the specific circumstances of your case.

In certain cases, an individual may be held in detention for a maximum of 4 weeks. In matters concerning refusal of entry or deportation, an individual may normally be held in detention for up to 6 months. If there are exceptional grounds, this period may, in some instances, be extended to a total of 18 months.

Special regulations apply to individuals who are to be refused entry or deported to another EEA country, as well as for security cases.

If you wish to know which regulations apply to your case, you may consult the staff or your public counsel.

Appeal the decision

A decision on detention can be appealed to a migration court at any time. Many decisions taken during your time in detention, such as decisions to supervise visits or to keep you in isolation, can normally be appealed to an immigration court within three weeks of the date when you were informed of the decision. If you have been detained, you may be entitled to a public counsel.

What applies to children

If you are under the age of 18 and you have received a refusal of entry or expulsion decision, the Swedish Migration Agency may decide to supervise you. If you fail to fulfil the requirements of your supervision when it is time to prepare your departure from the country, the Swedish Migration Agency may decide to place you in detention instead.

The Swedish Migration Agency may also decide to supervise you if you have received, or if it is likely that you will receive, a refusal of entry decision that is to be implemented immediately and there is a clear risk that you may abscond/go into hiding. If the Swedish Migration Agency considers that supervision is not enough to prevent you from absconding/hiding from us, we can place you in detention instead.

Children may never be separated from both their parents/legal guardians. A child may be kept in detention for a maximum of 72 hours. If exceptional grounds exist, this time can be extended by another 72 hours, but never for longer than that. The exception is children detained under the Dublin Regulation, where the same rules apply to children as to adults.

Placement at a location other than the Swedish Migration Agency's detention facilities

When you are held in detention, you will normally reside at one of the Swedish Migration Agency's detention facilities. In certain cases, we may decide that you are to be placed in one of the detention facility's secure units.

This may, for example, become necessary if

you have been expelled due to a criminal offense
there are order or security reasons that prevent you from staying in a regular detention unit
your case is being processed as a security case.

The Swedish Migration Agency may also decide to place you in premises managed by the Swedish Prison and Probation Service or the Police Authority. This applies only to individuals who are 18 years of age or older.

Such a placement may become necessary if

it is necessary to maintain order or security at the detention facility
your case is being processed as a security case and the circumstances of the case require it
it is necessary for logistical transport reasons, for example, while awaiting transport to or from a detention facility
there are exceptional circumstances.

Placement in police custody (a police cell) must only be temporary. The Swedish Migration Agency must always select the form of placement that entails the least possible supervision and control, with due regard to order and security.

Decisions regarding placement in a secure unit, a correctional institution, a remand prison, or police custody may be appealed. You must submit your appeal to the Swedish Migration Agency no later than three weeks from the day you were notified of the decision.

If you are going to visit someone in a Swedish Migration Agency detention centre

All visits must be booked in advance. You must contact the person you are going to visit at the detention centre, as only they can book an appointment for the visit. The Swedish Migration Agency normally allows a maximum of two adult visitors at a time. In some cases, we may decide that the visit should be monitored. This means that the Swedish Migration Agency's staff will be present during the visit. The Swedish Migration Agency may also decide that the visit should take place in a visiting room where you and the person you are visiting sit on either side of a glass window. In some cases, we may refuse to allow the person to receive visits.

At the detention centre, there are lockable lockers in which visitors must leave any outerwear, bags or other items before your visit can begin. You will receive information about the detention centre’s local rules and procedures.

Everything you bring with you must be approved

Everything you take with you to give to someone who is being kept in detention must be approved by the Swedish Migration Agency. A person who is being kept in detention is not allowed to have alcoholic beverages, other intoxicants, or objects that can be used to harm someone else or injure themselves.