Driving licence and car

Your licence: valid or not?

The authorities are Transportstyrelsen (rules and applications) and Trafikverket (photo, signature and tests). The first question is where your licence was issued and whether you are registered in Sweden. Registration (folkbokföring) is what starts the one-year clock for licences from outside the EEA: see the guide Registering in Sweden.

EU/EEA licence

Transportstyrelsen is clear: "Körkortet gäller även om du är folkbokförd i Sverige." (The licence is valid even if you are registered in Sweden.) You can drive on it.

You can also exchange it for a Swedish one, if it is valid and you live in Sweden permanently. You apply to Transportstyrelsen with the form Ansökan om utbyte av utländskt körkort, then have your photo taken and sign at a Trafikverket office. Whether the exchange is compulsory, by when and what it costs: check Transportstyrelsen's page, as we have not been able to confirm it.

Licence from outside the EEA

Two rules apply:

1. Using it: you may drive on it only until one year after you were registered in Sweden. The UK and the Faroe Islands are an exception to this limit.
2. Exchanging it: only licences issued by the UK, the Faroe Islands, Switzerland or Japan can be exchanged.

For all other countries the rule is stated bluntly: "Körkort från andra länder utanför EES kan inte bytas ut mot ett svenskt körkort." (Licences from other countries outside the EEA cannot be exchanged for a Swedish licence.) In plain terms: you have to take a Swedish licence. The steps and costs are on the pages of Transportstyrelsen and Trafikverket; check them before you start.

Your licence → what to do

Where your licence comes from	Valid in Sweden?	What to do
EU/EEA country	Yes, also after you register	Keep driving. You can exchange it (Transportstyrelsen, then Trafikverket)
United Kingdom	Yes (exception to the one-year limit)	Can be exchanged for a Swedish licence
Faroe Islands	Yes (exception to the one-year limit)	Can be exchanged for a Swedish licence
Switzerland	Up to one year after registration	Exchange it before the year ends
Japan	Up to one year after registration	Exchange it before the year ends
Any other country	Up to one year after registration	Cannot be exchanged: take a Swedish licence in time

Bringing a car to Sweden

Importing a car is a chain of steps, and each one must be done before the next:

1. Origin check (ursprungskontroll): compulsory, and valid for 5 years.
2. Customs clearance if the car comes from outside the EU.
3. Registration inspection (registreringsbesiktning).
4. Vehicle tax (fordonsskatt): it arrives once the car is in use.
5. Traffic insurance (trafikförsäkring): see below.

Traffic insurance is compulsory

Trafikförsäkring is compulsory for a car in use from the first day, unless the vehicle is deregistered (avställd). It is the only insurance that Swedish law requires. Half and full cover (halv-/helförsäkring) are optional extras. Insurance for your home is a different matter: see Home insurance.

Winter tyres

For cars, the rule works like this:

• 1 December to 31 March: winter tyres are required when there is winter road condition (vinterväglag): snow, ice, slush or frost on the road.
• Studded tyres are allowed 1 October to 15 April. Outside that period only if winter conditions apply.
• Do not mix studded and non-studded tyres.

Congestion tax

Stockholm and Göteborg have a congestion tax (trängselskatt), and it also applies to foreign cars. It works automatically: cameras read the number plate and the invoice goes to the owner of the car. We do not list amounts, as they depend on place and time: see Transportstyrelsen's page.

Alcohol and lights

Lights: while driving, the prescribed lights must be on. In daylight use dipped headlights or daytime running lights.

Moving away again

If you leave Sweden, see Leaving Sweden for what to settle before you go. For the car, ask Transportstyrelsen.

Common mistakes

• Counting the year from arrival. For licences from outside the EEA it is counted from registration.
• Assuming any licence can be exchanged. Only the UK, the Faroe Islands, Switzerland and Japan can; all others must take a Swedish licence.
• Waiting too long to start learning. Take the time needed for a Swedish licence into account.
• Driving a foreign car without checking the deadline. Ask Transportstyrelsen.
• Skipping the origin check or the inspection when importing a car.
• Forgetting the traffic insurance. It is compulsory from the first day the car is in use.
• Thinking winter tyres depend only on the date. What counts is vinterväglag between 1 December and 31 March.
• Mixing studded and non-studded tyres.
• Ignoring the congestion tax in Stockholm and Göteborg: the invoice goes to the owner.
• Driving after "just one drink". The limit is 0.2 per mille.