Taxes and the tax return

Who pays tax in Sweden

Skatteverket separates two cases:

• Unlimited tax liability (obegränsat skattskyldig): you live in Sweden. You pay Swedish tax on all income.
• Limited tax liability (begränsat skattskyldig): you do not live in Sweden. You pay only on certain Swedish income.

For registration and residence, see the guide Folkbokföring and personnummer. Once you are registered in Sweden you are in the ordinary system described below.

SINK: the special tax if you live abroad

If you work in Sweden for less than 6 months and live abroad, you can apply for SINK (särskild inkomstskatt för utomlands bosatta), a flat-rate tax.

	SINK rate
In 2026	22.5 % (previously 25 %)
From 1 January 2027	20 %

• With a SINK decision you do not file a tax return.
• You must apply every year: in the e-service (an email address is enough) or with form SKV 4350.
• On pensions there is a tax-free amount of 3,799 kr a month in 2026.

How you pay tax as an employee

Your employer withholds preliminary tax from your pay and sends it to Skatteverket. You do not have to calculate anything.

The amount withheld follows the tax table (skattetabell), which depends on where you were folkbokförd on 1 November of the previous year. Your municipality matters because municipal tax differs from one municipality to another.

If you have more than one employer you can ask for jämkning, an adjustment of the withholding, so that what is withheld during the year is close to the tax you actually owe.

The 2026 figures

Your own municipal rate depends on your municipality: 32.38 % is the average. The jobbskatteavdrag (the tax credit for working) exists and was increased in 2026 for earned income above roughly 192,000 kr a year. There is also a new tax-free jobbpremie from 2026; see Skatteverket's 2026 news for details.

The yearly tax return

Every year you file the inkomstdeklaration 1 for the previous year. You do it in Skatteverket's e-service, logging in with an e-legitimation (see BankID and a bank account). If you need to change nothing, you can approve it from your phone or with your own codes.

2026 deadline: 4 May (for income year 2025). For later years, check the date on Skatteverket's site.

If you approve...	Refund (2026)
online by 31 March, without changes	7–10 April
by 4 May	9–12 June

• Register your bank account so the refund can be paid.
• Amounts under 100 kr are not paid.
• Dates for the final balance (restskatt), any extensions and penalties for late filing are not covered here: see Skatteverket's website.

Your own business: F-skatt and FA-skatt

If you have a sole-trader business (enskild näringsverksamhet) you normally need F-skatt: you pay tax and contributions, the customer withholds nothing. If you also have a job as an employee, you have FA-skatt.

Apply online at verksamt.se (with e-legitimation) or with form SKV 4620. For the rules on the right to work, see Residence permits.

ROT and RUT: deductions for home work and household services

The deductions apply to the labour cost (not materials) of work in your home and household services.

	Rate	Maximum per person per year
ROT (renovation, work in the home)	30 % (back to 30 % from 2026)	50,000 kr
RUT (household services)	50 %	75,000 kr
ROT + RUT together		75,000 kr

Example: for RUT work with 10,000 kr in labour cost, the deduction is 5,000 kr (50 %) and you pay 5,000 kr.

The public service fee

The public service-avgift is paid by anyone over 18 who lives and pays tax in Sweden, even without a TV. You pay it with your taxes, not on a separate bill.

Income or a pension from another country

If you still have income in another country (a pension, rent, a salary), the risk is paying twice or declaring wrongly. The rule is simple: the tax treaty (the double-taxation agreement) between Sweden and that country decides. Sweden has such treaties with many countries.

An example, only to show the principle: between Italy and Sweden there is a treaty signed in Rome on 6 March 1980, ratified in Italy by law no. 439 of 4 June 1982. Which country may tax what (pensions, public-sector pay, other income) depends on the type of income and is set by the treaty. We do not list the rules for each type of income here because we have not verified them.

If you leave Sweden, your residence and tax position change: see Leaving Sweden.

Common mistakes

• Assuming your employer does everything. The employer withholds tax, but you approve the tax return.
• Not having an e-legitimation when the time comes: without it the e-service will not open.
• Forgetting to register your bank account for the refund.
• Not asking for jämkning with several employers and getting a surprise bill.
• Using the wrong tax table because you do not know where you were folkbokförd on 1 November.
• Filing a return despite a SINK decision (you should not), or forgetting to reapply every year.
• Starting a business without F-skatt and not knowing who pays the tax.
• Forgetting the public service fee: it comes with your taxes, even without a TV.
• Trusting the pre-filled return when you have income from another country.
• Guessing how a foreign pension is taxed. The treaty decides, not intuition.