Sweden spouse and partner visa

You must be married, registered partners or cohabiting partners, or intend to become so, and both of you must normally be over 21; exceptions are possible on special grounds, for example if you have children together. The partner in Sweden must be a Swedish or Nordic citizen, hold permanent residence, or hold a temporary permit of at least a year with well-founded prospects of permanent residence. Since 1 October 2026 a partner with a temporary permit must as a rule have lived in Sweden with a permit for at least two years before you can be granted a permit.

The partner in Sweden must be able to support both of you and have a home large enough. On a first application in 2026 that means SEK 13,408 a month left after tax and housing costs for the couple, plus SEK 4,337 to 6,941 per child. The home must be available for at least a year and have at least one room and a kitchen or kitchenette for two adults; living with parents or as a lodger does not count. Swedish, EU/EEA and Swiss citizens with a well-established relationship are usually exempt unless children who are not theirs move too.

Apply online or on paper and choose the Swedish embassy or consulate-general that will handle your case. The partner in Sweden receives a questionnaire and must answer it within 14 days. You are then called to an interview at the mission, where you show your passport and original documents and give fingerprints for the card. Migrationsverket can reject an application without a full examination if the requirements are clearly not met.

Partner cases are among the slowest: 75 per cent of recent decisions took up to 14 months. A decision within 90 days is possible only if the partner is a Swedish citizen, you have lived together abroad for at least 12 months without interruption, you have lived together for two years (one year with a common child) and the application is complete.

The first permit is usually for up to two years. To extend it you must still live with the same partner, and since 1 October 2026 the maintenance requirement is examined again at extension. Stricter good conduct (vandel) rules apply to residence permit applications from 13 July 2026.

A refusal can be appealed in writing to Migrationsverket within the deadline stated in the decision, usually three weeks; the agency forwards it to a Migration Court if it does not change the decision. Applying from inside Sweden without meeting the exceptions usually leads to rejection and can bring a re-entry ban.