You want to extend Other studies and exchange studies at upper secondary school

You want to extend your residence permit for other studies or exchange studies at upper secondary school.

  • Important to know
  • How it works
  • Apply

Here you will find information about residence permits for people who want to extend their residence permit for other studies or for exchange studies at upper secondary school in Sweden.

To be able to extend your residence permit for studies, you must apply for an extension before your current residence permit expires. You can apply no more than four months before the permit will expire.

If you will be starting other types of studies than those for which you currently have a residence permit, you should not apply to extend your current permit. In that case, you should submit a first-time application instead. For example, this applies if you have a residence permit for first- or second-cycle studies and will now be starting your doctoral studies.

These requirements must be met in order for you to be granted an extended residence permit:

You must have a valid passport

You must be finally admitted to full-time studies
You must be finally admitted to full-time studies in Sweden. You cannot be granted a residence permit for distance learning as a form of study.

You must have made acceptable progress in your studies

You must have, or have applied for, a comprehensive health insurance policy
If your total time in Sweden is less than one year, you will need comprehensive health insurance. If you do not have insurance through your higher education institution, you must have or have applied for your own insurance. The insurance must be valid for the entire time you will be in Sweden and cover costs for emergency and other medical care, hospitalisation, and emergency dental care. It must also cover expenses for home transportation for medical reasons.
If your total time in Sweden is longer than one year, you should get listed in the Swedish population register. This will give you access to health and medical care and dental care.

You must be able to support yourself financially
Your means of “financial maintenance” must be sufficient for the entire period for which you are applying for a residence permit, as well as for the remaining period of your current permit.

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

Admission decision from the education provider
The admission decision must state that you will continue to pursue full-time studies. You can attach a copy of your original admission decision.

If you want to change your education programme, you must enclose a new admission decision showing that you will be studying full-time. In such a case, it is important that you can prove to the Swedish Migration Agency that you have also paid any tuition fees for your new education programme.

Official grade transcript from the education provider that shows that you have made acceptable progress in your studies

Documents showing that you have comprehensive health insurance
If you have been admitted to studies for less than one year and are not listed in Sweden’s population register.

Documents showing that you meet the maintenance requirement
You must attach different certificates depending on how you will be supporting yourself financially. The documents you send in with your application to show that your support for living expenses is secured may not be older than six months unless it concerns continuous income, such as a stipend or scholarship.

You must attach a certificate stating

  • who is providing the student grant or loan
  • that you are the recipient
  • the period for which the grant/loan applies
  • when it will be paid out
  • the monthly amount or total amount for the period of study
  • how much of the student grant/loan is intended for your living expenses.

You must attach a sponsorship letter stating

  • who is the sponsor or guarantor
  • that you are a recipient of the money
  • how much money you will receive
  • when the money will be paid out. If you will receive the money on an ongoing basis, information must be provided about when the payments will be made and how large the instalments will be, as well as the total amount
  • the period during which you are sponsored
  • how much of the money will be used for your living expenses
  • whether the sponsorship requires some form of performance on your behalf (for example, employment or that you earn a certain number of credits).

You must attach a copy of the scholarship stating

  • who is the scholarship provider
  • that you are a recipient of the scholarship
  • the period for which the scholarship applies and that it is for your studies in Sweden
  • how much money you will receive
  • when the money will be paid out. If you will receive the money on an ongoing basis, information must be provided about when the payments will be made and how large the instalments will be, as well as the total amount
  • how much of the scholarship is intended to cover your living expenses.

If the copy of the scholarship does not contain all of this information, you must supplement it with, for example, a certificate from the scholarship provider.

You must attach a recent bank statement to your application
The following information must be included on your bank statement:

  • account holder(s)
  • bank
  • date of issue
  • balance
  • currency.

If permission from a central bank or the equivalent is required to take out the money from your country, you must include such a permit.

Written consent if you are under 18 years of age
If you are under 18 years of age, you must enclose the written consent of your parent(s) or legal guardian(s) confirming you have their permission to live and study in Sweden.
Consent for a child to live and study in Sweden (123011) pdf, 821.2 kB.

Certificate of guardian and copies of the ID card of each parent/legal guardian
If you are under 18 years of age, you must also enclose a certificate showing who your parents/legal guardians are and how you are related, as well as a copy of an ID document for each of them.

Information about your accommodation if you are making private arrangements
If you are under the age of 18 and are arranging your accommodation privately, rather than through your education provider, you must include information about your accommodation.

Letter from your host family, if you are arranging accommodation on your own
If you are an exchange student under the age of 18 and will be living with a host family in Sweden, you must enclose a letter from the host family with information about the accommodation.

Letter from your parent(s)/legal guardian(s) if you will be living with someone
If you are under the age of 18 and will be living with someone in Sweden, you must send a letter with information about your accommodation. The letter must be written by your parent(s)/legal guardian(s) and contain information about the person you will be living with and what relationship you have with them.

Information about your accommodation if you be living on your own in Sweden
If you are under the age of 18 and will be living on your own in Sweden, you need to send information about your planned accommodation.

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. If you are under the age of 18, the power of attorney must be signed by your legal guardian. You cannot sign the power of attorney yourself.

Power of attorney (107011) pdf, 1.1 MB.

Read more about power of attorney

The so-called “maintenance requirement” means that you must show that you have funds (money) available through your own bank assets, scholarship, student grants or loans from your country of origin, or a sponsor. You can combine different forms of financial maintenance.

The maintenance requirement is

  • at least SEK 10,656 per month, if you applied in 2026
  • at least SEK 10,584 per month, if you applied in 2025.

If you can show that you receive free housing and/or food through the higher education institution or an organisation that works for international exchange, the amount per month can be reduced. The monthly amount can be reduced by

  • SEK 2,960 per month for free food and SEK 4,736 per month for free housing, if you applied in 2026
  • SEK 2,940 per month for free food and SEK 4,704 per month for free housing, if you applied in 2025.

Read more about the rules for the different forms of financial maintenance

Having “personal bank assets” means that you have money in an account that belongs to you, and from which only you can withdraw funds. If you are under the age of 18, your guardians’ accounts may also apply as a basis for your maintenance. Credit, funds or shares are not approved as personal bank assets. Assets in a microfinance bank are also not approved.

Locked assets, i.e., bank funds that are deposited in an account for a certain period of time, cannot be a basis for financial maintenance if they will be frozen during the permit period for which you are applying.

Scholarships, for example from national authorities, higher education institutions, organisations, foundations, or companies, can be approved as a basis for financial maintenance.

A sponsor is an actor who hosts your stay in Sweden. For example, higher education institutions and other education providers, or well-established companies and organisations, may act as sponsors.

Private individuals are not accepted as sponsors. Money from private individuals, such as relatives, must be registered as personal bank assets. Such funds must then be transferred to a bank account that is in your name and to which you have access.

Student grants or loans that you have been granted to study in Sweden. If the money has already been transferred to your account, the Swedish Migration Agency will assess these funds as personal bank assets.

You can apply for an extension no more than four months before your current permit will expire. You must apply before your current permit expires.

If you apply too late
If you apply for too late, i.e. after your residence permit has expired, you will not be able to work while you wait for a decision. You also risk losing certain social benefits.

Moreover, if you apply too late, there is a risk your application will be rejected because you will have been in Sweden without a valid residence permit.

You can be granted a residence permit for a maximum of one year, but never for longer than your passport is valid.

If you are granted a residence permit for the entire duration of your studies, the Swedish Migration Agency will add an extra two weeks to your permit period, to give you enough time to complete your studies and leave the country.

Your residence permit can be extended.

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.

75% of recently decided cases have been decided within:7 months

Adults: SEK 1,500
Children under 18 years of age: SEK 750

You will not receive a refund if your application is rejected.

The following people pay no fee to apply:

  • students at the World Maritime University (WMU) in Malmö
  • Japanese citizens
  • students who have received a scholarship for studies in Sweden from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the EU, the Swedish Institute, or Uppsala University’s International Science Programme. The scholarship must be intended to be used for living expenses and not just cover tuition fees. The scholarship must be paid out during the period for which you are applying for a residence permit. The exception does not apply if you receive a salary, for example if you are employed as a doctoral student.

No. A permit for other studies does not give you the right to work in Sweden.

News

2025-12-04

More Afghans may be able to receive passports from their home country

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2025-12-03

The Migration Agency’s drop-in service closes on 1 January

On 1 January, the Swedish Migration Agency’s service centre will close for drop-in visits. If you have any questions about your case, please contact the Swedish Migration Agency by telephone or via My page. For guidance and assistance with your application, or with using the Swedish Migration Agency’s digital services, please visit the National Government Service Centre.

2025-07-23

Extended passports become invalid on 1 October

As of 1 October 2025, Swedish authorities will no longer accept passports that have had their period of validity extended by inserting a stamp or sticker into the passport. If you have such a national passport, you should apply for a new one.

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.