Important to know

If you are a citizen of a country outside the EU/EEA, you will in most cases need a permit to work in Sweden.

The rules for traineeships/internships conducted via an international exchange programme apply to applicants who have been granted a traineeship/internship through

  • an international exchange programme within organisations such as AIESEC, IAESTE, JUF or SACCUSA
  • a traineeship/internship exchange agreement between countries. Sweden has agreements with, for example, the United States and Canada.

There is also an exchange agreement for young managers between the EU and China.

De här kraven ska vara uppfyllda för att du ska få uppehållstillstånd:

You must have a valid passport

You must be at least 18 years old

You must have a written offer of a traineeship/internship

You must receive a salary/wages from your employer

You must be able to support yourself

Translate documents
All submitted documents should be in Swedish or English. If you have translated your documents, the translation should be certified. You must also include a copy of the document in its original language.

Plan which embassy to visit if you need to present your passport

You may need to present your passport at an embassy or a consulate-general before you can receive a decision. In the application, you must therefore state which embassy you want to visit. Not all Swedish embassies and consulates-general handle migration cases. In some locations, you can have your passport checked, but a different embassy will be responsible for your application and can answer your questions. Here, you can find out where to turn:

You must attach copies of these documents to your application

Make sure that the information on your submitted documents is clearly visible.

Correctly made copies of your passport

You can never be granted a permit for longer than your passport is valid.

Read more about what the passport copies must show

Written offer of a traineeship/internship
The offer must state the terms and conditions of your traineeship/internship or assignment.

Statement from the organisation that mediates the traineeship/internship

Documents showing that you can support yourself

A representative can apply for you, if you grant them power of attorney. In that case, the person who applies for you must attach a copy of the power of attorney to your application.

Power of attorney (107011) pdf, 535.3 kB.

Read more about power of attorney

If you have been granted a traineeship/internship related to higher education, you must instead apply for a residence permit for a traineeship/internship within the context of higher education, even if your traineeship/internship is arranged through a traineeship/internship organisation.

You want to apply – Traineeships/internships within the context of higher education

If you have been awarded a traineeship/internship that is not covered by an international agreement or related to higher education, you must instead apply for a work permit. In that case, you must be able to show that you have been offered a salary/wages and terms of employment that correspond to Swedish rules for trainees/interns.

You want to apply – Employees

You can be granted a residence permit for the time you are being offered a traineeship/internship, but never for longer than the validity of your passport. You can be granted a residence permit as a trainee for one or more periods for a maximum of 18 months.

The fee is SEK 1,500.

It is not possible to say exactly how long you will need to wait for a decision. There are many things that affect the waiting time, for example whether your application is complete to begin with or whether we need to request more information, or whether we need to check with other authorities when investigating your case.

Here we show statistics on how long it has taken for people who have applied for the same permit as you. The statistics are based on cases decided in the last 12 months.

Complete applications

75% of recently decided cases have been decided within:4 months

Incomplete applications

75% of recently decided cases have been decided within:4 months

Are you an employer?

You can find information on our pages for employers.

The Swedish Migration Agency is responsible for considering applications from people who want to live in Sweden, seek protection or become Swedish citizens. Our work is based on Swedish laws and international conventions, with a focus on legal certainty and effective reception and return.