Select the process relevant to you below
The process varies depending on what you are applying for.
Live with a partner, child, or other relative
This is the application process if you have applied for a residence permit to live with your partner, your child, or another relative who is not a member of your immediate family.
You apply
If you want to move to Sweden, fill in the application and attach the necessary documents. In your application, you indicate which Swedish embassy or consulate-general you wish to visit for your interview.
The person who lives in Sweden completes a questionnaire
When the application is submitted, the person who lives in Sweden will receive an email or a letter, depending on how the application was received. The email/letter contains a link to a questionnaire. The form includes questions about income, housing, and your relationship, and must be answered within 14 days.
Waiting time before we start examining the application
Now follows a period of waiting until the Swedish Migration Agency takes a closer look at your application.
The Swedish Migration Agency reviews your application
The Swedish Migration Agency will review your application and the information in the questionnaire. If we can immediately see that you do not meet the requirements for a residence permit, we may already make a decision to reject your application.
We will contact you if we need more information.
You book an appointment for an interview and to present your passport
Before we can make a decision about your application for a residence permit, you must be interviewed and present your passport. You will receive an email or letter from the Swedish Migration Agency asking you to book an appointment for an interview at the embassy or consulate-general specified in your application.
When you visit the embassy, you must bring your passport and the originals of the documents you sent in with your application. If several family members are applying with you, they must also accompany you to the embassy.
During the interview, you will answer questions about your relationship with the person in Sweden.
If you need an entry visa to travel to Sweden, you may also be fingerprinted and photographed during the same interview appointment. This information will later be used to produce a residence permit card for you. If you are granted a residence permit, you will need the card to enter Sweden.
The Swedish Migration Agency processes the application
After you have been interviewed and presented your passport, the Swedish Migration Agency will review all the information related to your application and determine whether you can be granted a residence permit.
We will contact you if we need more information. In some cases, we also contact the person in Sweden for an interview.
You receive our decision
If you applied in the e-service, you will receive an email as soon as we have made a decision. The email will tell you whether you have been granted a residence permit or if your application has been rejected. The decision will then be sent by post to your chosen embassy or representative. You may need to book an appointment at the embassy to pick it up.
If you have applied using a paper form, you will not receive an email from us. Instead, the embassy will contact you to inform you of the decision. If you have a representative, the decision will only be sent to your representative.
A copy of the first page of the decision, which states whether you have been granted a residence permit or your application has been rejected, will also be sent to the person in Sweden.
When you receive the decision, you can find out the reasons on which we based our decision. If you are granted a residence permit, you have the right to live and work in Sweden as long as the permit is valid. If your application is rejected and you are currently in Sweden, you must prepare to leave the country.
Children born in Sweden
You apply
You fill in the child’s application and attach necessary documents. It is the parent with a residence permit in Sweden who must fill in the application for the child.
You book an appointment to present your child’s passport
Before we can make a decision about granting your child a residence permit, we need to check their passport. You will receive an email or letter asking you to book an appointment to present the child’s passport at one of the Swedish Migration Agency’s service centres. It is a good idea for the child to accompany you on this visit, so that they can be photographed for a residence permit card – otherwise they will need to visit again later to be photographed.
The Swedish Migration Agency processes the application
The Swedish Migration Agency will review all the information in your application and determine whether your child can be granted a residence permit. If we can immediately see that the requirements for being granted a residence permit are not met, for example because you have not presented your child’s passport, we may already make a decision to reject the application.
We will contact you if we need more information.
You receive our decision
Once we have made our decision, it will be sent by post to the registered address of the child’s parent(s). When you receive the decision, you can find out the reasons on which we based our decision.
Adopted children
You apply
You fill in the child’s application and attach necessary documents. As their adoptive parent, it is you who must fill in the application for your child.
You book an appointment to present your child’s passport
Before we can make a decision about granting your child a residence permit, we need to check their passport. You will receive a letter asking you to make an appointment at an embassy or consulate-general to present your child’s passport.
Children over the age of five must always accompany their parent/legal guardian to the embassy. If your child is less than five years old, they do not need to accompany you on this visit; it is enough for their parent to bring the child’s passport. However, if your child needs an entry visa to travel to Sweden, they must accompany you to the appointment, regardless of their age. Your child will then be fingerprinted and photographed for a residence permit card.
The Swedish Migration Agency processes the application
The Swedish Migration Agency will review all the information in your application and determine whether your child can be granted a residence permit.
We will contact you if we need more information.
You receive our decision
Once we have made our decision, it will be sent to the embassy or consulate-general where you submitted the application. When you go to pick up the decision, you must bring both your own passport and your child’s passport. The decision will also be sent to the child’s adoptive parents’ address in Sweden.