Recent developments on asylum and migration in Sweden | Northern Europe | bpb.de

Asylum and family reunification

In the autumn of 2015, the then government coalition of Social Democrats and Greens introduced temporary measures to make Sweden a less attractive destination for people seeking protection. In addition to enhancing border controls, including reintroduced checks at Sweden’s intra-Schengen borders and extraterritorial identity checks on people boarding buses, trains and ferries, the government implemented several restrictive measures: Refugees and other beneficiaries of international protection were granted temporary residence permits instead of permanent ones, family reunification was limited, and the granting of residence on (non-asylum) humanitarian grounds was severely restricted. Some of these measures were later relaxed again but subsequently re-introduced, with the exception of identity checks.

The current centre-right government, which is supported by the Sweden Democrats, has broadened and intensified this approach of deterrence, announcing a “paradigm shift” on migration. The cooperation agreement between the governing parties and the right-wing Sweden Democrats outlines a programme of systematically lowering reception and asylum standards. The aim is that Sweden would, upon completion of the programme, in no way position itself as being more generous than what EU law requires as absolute minimum standards. The government also reduced the annual refugee resettlement quota from 5,000 to 900 admissions.

Labour immigration

The system for the admission of workers from non-EU countries – once considered one of the most liberal in the world – has also been tightened. For example, foreign workers are no longer allowed to bring family members if they cannot financially support them, and the monthly salary threshold for admission was more than doubled – from SEK 13,000 (about 1,140 Euros) to 80 percent of the median wage, currently SEK 28,480 (about 2,500 Euros). This policy excludes many potential labour migrants with lower qualification levels from immigration. The admission of highly skilled workers is still being promoted.

Overall immigration and public debate

Over the past five years, immigration levels have been lower than during the five-year-period before, while emigration has tended to increase (see Figure 2).

When Sweden reached a population of nine million in 2004, this was widely celebrated. Today, the population is just above 10.5 million, but this is often discussed in negative terms as the growth is to a large degree a result of immigration, which is often portrayed as a problem rather than an achievement. The share of foreign-born people in the Swedish population currently stands at 20.6 percent. In public debates, immigration is often associated with crime, especially gang violence, although this is not a result of recent immigration but rooted in long-grown problems such as segregation, inequality and poverty.

Ukrainian refugees

Only a minor share of people displaced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which started in late February 2022, have come to Sweden. Like other EU member states, Sweden provides temporary protection in accordance with the EU’s Temporary Protection Directive. However, it has adopted a relatively strict interpretation of the rights granted under this status. As of June 2024, just over 41,000 people from Ukraine held temporary protection status in Sweden.

Sweden’s position in the Common European Asylum System

Unlike ten years ago, Sweden today receives – in relation to its population size – fewer asylum seekers than the EU average. Sweden supported the recent reform of the Common European Asylum System, and during its presidency of the Council of the European Union in spring 2023, it actively contributed to its adoption. Sweden once supported a system of mandatory responsibility-sharing, including relocations of asylum seekers within the EU. However, the current centre-right government opposes such relocations and has indicated that it will not take over applicants from other EU countries.

Policy changes on citizenship and integration

The government wants to make it harder for immigrants to become Swedish citizens by introducing new language and integration requirements and prolonging the required period of residence before naturalization. It is also planning to abandon a long-standing principle of the Swedish welfare state, where all legal residents have traditionally enjoyed equal welfare rights. Under a proposed “qualification” system, immigrants would be required to contribute and meet certain integration requirements before gaining access to welfare benefits. In addition, some entitlements would become dependent on Swedish citizenship, creating a system that distinguishes between citizens and non-citizens when it comes to accessing certain welfare services.