Maintenance Requirment
This first section will cover the maintenance requirement as this is the first thing that immigration generally looks at, but also is one of the most asked about subjects.
When your partner moves to Sweden you need to be able to prove that you have sufficient housing and finances to support him/her/they.
Starting with finances, and income from immigrations point of view is:
salary/wages from work
unemployment benefits
sickness benefits
income-based old-age pensions
*Worth mentioning is that CSN is unfortunately not seen as income.
You can also be seen as able to support your partner, if your wealth (savings in money, stocks, mutual funds etc) is enough to support you and your partner for the next two years.
For 2024 the amount you must have left after the accommodation costs are paid is
SEK 6,090 for a single adult
SEK 10,061 for cohabiting spouses or cohabiting partners
SEK 3,255 for children 0–6 years of age
SEK 3,906 for children 7–10 years of age
SEK 4,558 for children 11–14 years of age
SEK 5,208 for children 15 years of age or older.
Examples to show how the finances work:
By income: Marta who wants to bring her partner George to Sweden has an income as a nurse that gives her 18,420 kr per month after tax. Her rent for her apartment that she lives in is 8,100 kr, which leaves her with 10,320 kr each month. According to immigrations amounts for 2024 she would need 10,061 kr after rent, which she has. She therefore fulfills the maintenance requirements financial part.
By wealth: Jim has saved all his life for a downpayment for an apartment and has almost 400,000 kr in his bank account. Jim wants to bring his partner Charlie to Sweden, but as he is currently studying and has no current income, he has to apply with savings. Jims student apartment has a monthly rent of 3,800 kr. Together with the set amount for 2024 (10,061) that equals a total of 13,861 kr per month. Now Jim has to multiple that with 24 (two years worth of the monthly cost), which gives a total of 332 664 kr. So for Jim, as long as he is able to maintain that same amount (or as we would advise a little above) he fulfills the maintenance requirements.
The second part of the maintenance requirement is the housing situation.
According to immigration you need to prove that you have sufficient housing for you and your partner for at least 1 year from a granted application. This can be:
a first hand apartment contract
a second hand apartment contract
a student flat
a house or condo
The size/room requirements differ depending on if you have children or not, as most people we connect with are couples without children our examples will generally be based on that kind of situation. However the main difference if you would have children is that you would need more rooms.
Couples without children only need a one room apartment with a sufficient kitchen.
Couples with with 1-2 children require an additional bedroom (kids may share a bedroom). A number of people have been accepted where a child has been in the picture with a Swedish "tvåa", as immigration believes the parents technically could live in the "living room" as a bedroom.
Regarding the question "what kind of apartment do you need?" You need sufficient space, which to our knowledge is not stated anywhere on immigrations website or in the law. However, this has been discussed in forums and between people to be anything from 28-35 square meter, which is a general number that could cover a one room apartment. The main thing is that it has a fully equipped kitchen or kitchenette (kokvrå). We’ve helped a lot of students and unfortunately a dorm room with a kokskåp or shared kitchen is not enough for the requirements. As we stated in our FAQ section above you can not live with your parents while applying.
Examples to show how the housing works:
In an apartment: Peter lives by himself in a two bedroom apartment in Stockholm (second hand contract). He wants to bring his partner Lena to Sweden, and wants to apply. To do so he needs to provide proof of him legally renting it from the owner, in accordance with the housing committee, an invoice for last months rent and a contract that states: monthly rent, number of rooms, name of tenant, name of landlord, period of tenancy and signature of landlord.
In a student apartment: Lisa lives in a student apartment and wants to bring her girlfriend Jenny to Sweden. To do so Lisa need to provide a contract stating the same things as Peter above, (last months invoice, in some cases immigration asks for confirmation from the student housing that it will be allowed for the partner to move in if the case is granted.) There has also been cases where students needed to provide a course plan, as you need to show that you are able to keep the flat for at least one year after the application has been granted. Lisa is a student on the physical therapy program, and is doing her second semester, which means that for at least 2 years she will be able to stay in the apartment, as long as she continues to study.
*This is general information and neither can nor should replace legal advice in the individual case,
but supposed to be an exchange of ideas/thoughts on how to structure, shape and proceed with your application
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