DoubleTaxationTaxes on salary: Sweden
How much tax and social security is paid on a salary in Sweden, what is left as take-home pay, and which special tax regimes exist.
Calculation for a gross salary of €60,000 per year
| Gross salary | SEK 648,510 ≈ €60,000 |
|---|---|
| Income tax | |
| Kommunal inkomstskatt (efter skattereduktioner) | SEK 105,063 ≈ €9,720 |
| Begravningsavgift | SEK 1,842 ≈ €170 |
| Public service-avgift | SEK 1,184 ≈ €110 |
| Employee contributions | |
| Allmän pensionsavgift | SEK 45,400 ≈ €4,200 |
| Take-home pay | SEK 495,021 ≈ €45,799 |
| Employer contributions and payroll taxes | |
| Arbetsgivaravgifter | SEK 121,920 ≈ €11,280 |
| Allmän löneavgift | SEK 81,842 ≈ €7,572 |
| Employer's labour cost | SEK 852,272 ≈ €78,852 |
Only some of the country's direct taxes and levies are counted: income tax on wages and compulsory contributions. Not counted: property and real-estate taxes; taxes on dividends, interest and other investment income; inheritance and gift taxes; indirect taxes such as VAT, excise and customs duties.
Official OECD figures for the average wage (Taxing Wages 2026, 2025 data): tax burden on the employee 22.6 %, including employer contributions 41.1 %. OECD
Special tax regimes
These regimes are not included in the calculation above: each has its own conditions.
Skattelättnader för utländska experter, forskare eller andra nyckelpersoner (expertskatt)
Who: Foreign nationals (not Swedish citizens) who were not resident or habitually present in Sweden in the 5 calendar years before starting work, work for a Swedish employer or a foreign company's permanent establishment and intend to stay no more than 7 years: specialists, researchers, executives or key staff who are hard to recruit in Sweden — or anyone paid more than 1.5 price base amounts a month (SEK 88,800 for 2026).
25% of salary and other pay for the work is exempt from income tax; employer reimbursements for moving, up to two trips a year to the former home country per family member and children's school fees are also exempt. The exempt part is also free of employer contributions. The relief lasts up to 7 years from the start of the stay in Sweden; Forskarskattenämnden (the Taxation Board for Foreign Experts) decides.
Särskild inkomstskatt för utomlands bosatta (SINK)
Who: Individuals with limited tax liability in Sweden (non-residents) — including those coming to work for less than 6 months — receiving Swedish-source salary, board fees, pensions and other payments listed in the SINK Act.
Final withholding tax of 22.5% of the payment in 2026 (20% from 1 January 2027; 15% for seafarers' income on Swedish merchant ships) with no deductions and no return; for pensions under the Social Insurance Code 1/12 of 0.77 price base amounts a month (SEK 3,799 in 2026) is exempt. Instead of SINK one may elect ordinary taxation under the Income Tax Act each year.
Sexmånadersregeln och ettårsregeln
Who: Swedish residents employed abroad for at least 6 months (six-month rule) or at least one year in the same country (one-year rule).
Pay for work abroad is exempt in Sweden if the stay abroad lasts at least 6 months and the income is taxed in the work state; if the stay in one country lasts at least a year, even when that state does not tax it under its own law or practice. Short visits to Sweden are allowed: up to 6 days per full month or 72 days per employment year.
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 3 kap. 9–13 §§
Expansionsfond
Who: Sole traders (enskild näringsidkare) and individuals who are partners in Swedish trading partnerships (handelsbolag).
Profit kept in the business can be deducted from business income by paying a 20.6% expansion fund tax instead of progressive income tax and self-employment contributions. When the fund is reduced (reversed into income), the amount is taxed normally and the 20.6% already paid is credited.
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 34 kap.; 65 kap. 8 §
Räntefördelning
Who: Sole traders and partners in Swedish trading partnerships with positive capital in the business.
A part of profit equal to the business capital at the start of the year times the government borrowing rate at the end of the previous November plus 6 pp (8.55% for 2026) may be moved from business income to capital income, taxed at 30% with no self-employment contributions. If capital is negative by more than SEK 500,000, negative allocation is mandatory (rate + 1 pp, 3.55% for 2026).
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 33 kap. 2–5 §§
Periodiseringsfond
Who: Sole traders and individuals who are partners in Swedish trading partnerships.
Up to 30% of the year's adjusted profit may be deducted as an allocation to a tax allocation reserve; it must be reversed into income no later than the sixth year after the deduction (2026 allocations by 2032). This smooths income between years and reduces state tax in high-profit years.
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 30 kap. 6–7 §§
Utdelning och kapitalvinst på kvalificerade andelar i fåmansföretag (3:12-reglerna)
Who: Holders of qualified shares in close companies (fåmansföretag, usually limited companies) who, themselves or through relatives, work actively in the company.
Dividends within the threshold amount (gränsbelopp) are taxed as capital income on 2/3 of the amount, i.e. effectively at 20%; above it, as salary (progressive, up to 90 income base amounts a year). From 2026 the threshold = a basic amount of 4 income base amounts of the previous year (SEK 322,400, one per person) + 50% of the company's wages above 8 income base amounts + interest on invested capital above SEK 100,000; unused room is carried forward.
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 57 kap. 9–11 a, 16, 20, 20 a §§ (i lydelse SFS 2025:1361)
Investeringssparkonto (ISK)
Who: Individuals holding an investment savings account with a bank or investment firm (for listed shares, funds and other permitted assets).
Gains and dividends on the account are not taxed. Instead, a notional return (schablonintäkt) is taxed each year at 30%: average account capital × (government borrowing rate at the end of the previous November + 1 pp, minimum 1.25%). For 2026 it is 3.55%, i.e. tax of 1.065% of capital; from 2026 the first SEK 300,000 in total across ISK, capital insurance and PEPP is exempt.
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 42 kap. 35–41, 45–48 §§; lag (2011:1268) om investeringssparkonto
Investeraravdrag
Who: Individuals who acquire shares for cash on the formation or a new share issue of a small company (fewer than 50 staff, turnover or balance sheet up to SEK 80 million, payroll of at least SEK 300,000) and are taxable in Sweden on gains on those shares.
Half of the amount paid is deducted from capital income, up to SEK 650,000 a year; a capital-income deficit arising from it always gives a 30% tax reduction, so effectively up to 15% of the investment is returned (max SEK 195,000 a year).
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 43 kap. 4, 13–15, 20–22 §§; 67 kap. 10 §
Förhöjt grundavdrag och förhöjt jobbskatteavdrag för personer som fyllt 66 år
Who: People who were 66 on 1 January of the tax year (67 from 2027) — pensioners and workers of that age.
The basic allowance is raised by an extra amount depending on income: SEK 65,800–179,100 in total for 2026 (instead of SEK 17,400–45,600). A separate earned-income reduction applies to work income: 22% up to 1.75 price base amounts, max 0.6293 price base amounts (≈ SEK 37,254). For employees aged 67+ the employer pays only the old-age pension contribution of 10.21% instead of 31.42%.
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 63 kap. 3 a §; 67 kap. 8 §; socialavgiftslag (2000:980) 2 kap. 27 §
Regional skattereduktion
Who: Individuals registered (folkbokförda) on 1 November of the previous year in one of the municipalities listed in Annex 67 to the Income Tax Act (mainly in Norrland, Dalarna, Värmland, etc.).
A fixed reduction of municipal income tax by SEK 1,675 a year.
Legal basis: Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229) 67 kap. 34–35 §§, bilaga 67
Tax residence
When Sweden treats you as a tax resident
- Sweden is where you actually live (bosatt), so you are subject to unlimited tax liability in Sweden (3 kap. 3 § point 1 IL) and pay tax on your worldwide income (3 kap. 8 § IL) whatever the number of days. In the year you move, unlimited liability runs from the day you settled in Sweden or began a permanent stay; before that, and after you leave (unless an essential connection remains), liability is limited.
- You stay in Sweden for at least six months in a row (short trips away do not interrupt the stay) — this is a permanent stay (stadigvarande vistelse), and you are subject to unlimited tax liability in Sweden (3 kap. 3 § point 2 IL), on worldwide income. In the year you move, unlimited liability runs from the day you settled in Sweden or began a permanent stay; before that, and after you leave (unless an essential connection remains), liability is limited.
- Every year you regularly stay in Sweden for five months in a row or more. The Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden held such a stay to be permanent (HFD 2018 ref. 30 I), even where the person lives abroad most of the year — so you are probably subject to unlimited tax liability in Sweden (3 kap. 3 § point 2 IL).
- Every year you regularly stay in Sweden for about four months in a row and also make other visits. The court held a stay of four months every summer together with other visits of up to three weeks to be permanent (HFD 2019 not. 26), but not three months together with other visits of three to five weeks (HFD 2018 ref. 30 II, HFD 2019 not. 27). The outcome depends on the total extent of your stays: Sweden may treat you as subject to unlimited tax liability.
- You left Sweden less than five years ago and the presumption of an essential connection applies to you (Swedish citizenship or at least ten years of residence there). With the ties you have kept, you remain subject to unlimited tax liability in Sweden (3 kap. 3 § point 3, 7 § IL) — on worldwide income.
- You left Sweden less than five years ago and the presumption of an essential connection applies to you (3 kap. 7 § IL): until you show that there is no connection, Sweden treats you as subject to unlimited tax liability (3 kap. 3 § point 3 IL).
- You used to live in Sweden and have kept an essential connection with it (a home, family, a business or a significant influence over a Swedish company, etc.) — Sweden probably treats you as subject to unlimited tax liability (3 kap. 3 § point 3, 7 § IL). The assessment looks at all the circumstances together, and a long stay abroad weakens the connection.
Assumptions
- Calculated with the OECD Taxing Wages methodology: income tax including local taxes plus employee social security; single person without children, tax year 2026, ECB rate of 2 January 2026.
- Employee with unlimited tax liability for the whole of 2026, registered (folkbokförd) in Sweden on 1 November 2025; under 66 on 1 January 2026 and born 1960–2002 (full employer contributions of 31.42%; the temporary reduction for employees aged 19–23 from 1 April 2026 is not applied). Gross is the annual salary including bonuses.
- Basic allowance (grundavdrag) applied automatically, SEK 17,400–45,600 depending on income (IL ch. 63 s. 3, price base amount SEK 59,200). Municipal tax 32.38% of income after the basic allowance; state tax 20% above the SEK 643,000 threshold (i.e. above SEK 660,400 gross). No other deductions (commuting, union fees, etc.).
- The general pension contribution of 7% of pay (max SEK 47,100: income up to 8.07 income base amounts = SEK 673,038) is fully refunded through a tax reduction, so it does not raise the net rate. The earned-income tax reduction (jobbskatteavdrag: up to 3.027 price base amounts minus the basic allowance, times the municipal rate) and the general earned-income reduction (up to SEK 1,500) reduce municipal tax only; the page shows municipal tax after all tax reductions.
- Mandatory income-based fees not offset by tax reductions are included: burial fee 0.292% and public service fee 1% (max SEK 1,184 — base capped at 1.42 income base amounts). The OECD excludes them, so our figure for Sweden is about 0.5 pp higher than the OECD's. The church fee (kyrkoavgift) applies only to members of the Church of Sweden and is not included.
- Employer: social contributions of 18.80% (sickness, parental, old-age pension, survivors' pension, labour market and work injury) plus the general payroll tax of 12.62% — 31.42% of total pay with no ceiling. Occupational pensions under collective agreements (ITP etc.) and the special payroll tax on them are excluded (not statutory).
- Annual calculation with roundings as in Skatteverket's technical description of the 2026 withholding tables (SKV 433): earned income down to SEK 100, basic allowance up to SEK 100, pension contribution to the nearest SEK 100, taxes to whole kronor. Income itself is not rounded down to SEK 100 (IL ch. 1 s. 5) so that the 'next EUR 100' figure does not jump; the difference is at most SEK 35 a year. Actual monthly withholding under the tax tables differs slightly.
- Local taxes — location: Sweden — national average municipal income tax rate (municipal + regional) of 32.38% for 2026 per Statistics Sweden (SCB), as used by the OECD; burial fee 0.292% (rate outside Stockholm and Tranås); no church fee
- Tax period: 2026-01-01 – 2026-12-31
- Exchange rate: 1 EUR = 10.8085 SEK (ECB euro foreign exchange reference rate (SEK), 02/01/2026)
Sources
- Inkomstskattelag (1999:1229), t.o.m. SFS 2026:1393: 63 kap. 3 § (grundavdrag), 65 kap. 2–5 §§ (kommunal och statlig inkomstskatt, skiktgräns), 67 kap. 2, 4–7, 46–47 §§ (skattereduktion för allmän pensionsavgift, jobbskatteavdrag, skattereduktion för förvärvsinkomster)
- Lag (1994:1744) om allmän pensionsavgift, 2–4 §§
- Lag (2025:986) om public service, 5 kap. 3–5 §§ (i lydelse SFS 2025:1448: högst 1,42 inkomstbasbelopp)
- Begravningslag (1990:1144), 9 kap. 1–4 §§ (begravningsavgift)
- Socialavgiftslag (2000:980), 2 kap. 26 § (arbetsgivaravgifter 18,80 %)
- Lag (1994:1920) om allmän löneavgift, 3 § (12,62 %)
- Förordning (2025:1002) om inkomstbasbelopp för år 2026 (83 400 kr)
- Skatteverket: Belopp och procentsatser för inkomstår 2026 (prisbasbelopp 59 200 kr, skiktgräns 643 000 kr, begravningsavgift 0,292 %, public service-avgift max 1 184 kr, allmän pensionsavgift max 47 100 kr, arbetsgivaravgifter 31,42 %)
- Skatteverket: Teknisk beskrivning för skattetabeller 2026 (SKV 433, utgåva 36, 2025-12-10)
- SCB: Kommunalskatterna 2026 — genomsnittlig total kommunal skattesats 32,38 % (statistiknyhet 2025-12-15)
- OECD Taxing Wages 2026, Sweden (2025 average wage, tax equations and parameters)
Data checked: 10/11/2026. An indicative calculation for a typical case. Not tax advice.