General information

Close relatives are defined as:

• Anyone who is, or is to become, a husband/wife, registered partner or common-law spouse (cohabitee)
• Children under 18 and their parents.

It is the Swedish Migration Agency that considers your right to a residence permit. For a full description of what rules apply, please check the Swedish Migration Agency website.

Migration Agency will inform you when you have a decision in your case by sending an e-mail. If you gave power of attorney to your relative in Sweden, he/she will be informed about the decision too.

Residence permit card

If you are granted a residence permit, you will receive a residence permit card. This card is proof that you have a residence permit.

EU/EEA citizens

Briefly, the following applies if you wish to move to Sweden to live with a relative, if you and/or your relative are citizens of the EU/EEA and if you intend to stay for longer than three months. It is important to note that Swedish citizens are not normally considered as EU citizens in this context.

• If you are an EU/EEA citizen, you register your right of residence with the Swedish Migration Agency in Sweden. If your relative is not an EU/EEA citizen, you yourself may need a residence permit, and you apply for one from the Swedish Migration Agency after your arrival.
• If you are not an EU/EEA citizen but your relative is (although not a Swedish citizen), it may be enough to apply for a residence card at the Swedish Migration Agency. However, check who is considered as a relative in this context. If you need a visa, you must have applied for one at the Embassy before coming to Sweden. 

Read more about the rules for EU/EEA citizens and about who is counted as a family member on the Swedish Migration Agency website.

As of 20 July 2016, a temporary act limits the possibility for close relatives of persons in need of protection with temporary residence permits to immigrate to Sweden. More detailed information about these regulations is available on the Swedish Migration Agency website.

Moreover, the general rule is that anyone living in Sweden should be able to support themselves and their family members who may be granted residence permits. The maintenance requirement will not apply, under certain conditions, to those who have been granted residence permits in Sweden as persons in need of protection. One important requirement is that close relatives must apply for residence permits within three months of the date on which the person in need of protection was granted a residence permit.