Work permits for athletes and coaches

This is information for people who are citizens of a non-EU country and who have a contract with a club or association that is affiliated with the Swedish Sports Confederation.

Requi­re­ments for work permit

To obtain a permit, you must

  • have a valid passport (if your passport is about to expire, you should extend it because you are not able to get a permit for longer than your passport is valid)
  • play at least in Division 1 (for men) or in Damallsvenskan or Elitettan (for women) if you are a football player. The same requirements apply if you are going to work as a football coach
  • play or coach in Basketligan or Basketettan (for women and men) if you are a basketball player. The same requirements apply if you are going to work as a basketball coach
  • play or coach in Svenska hockeyligan (SHL), Hockeyallsvenskan or Hockeyettan (for men) and Damhockeyligan (for women) if you are a hockey player. The same requirements apply if you are going to work as a hockey coach
  • you have a written contract with a club or association in Sweden that is affiliated with the Swedish Sports Confederation, signed by both parties
  • have been offered a monthly salary of at least SEK 14,300 before tax
  • have a health and accident insurance that is consistent with what is customary in your sport and at your level
  • The Swedish Sports Confederation must certify that your employment is of vital importance for the positive development of the sport.

Requi­re­ments for using the e-service

In order to use the e-service, you need

  • to get an email from your employer with a link that will take you to the e-service
  • copies of the pages of your passport that show your personal data, photograph, signature, passport number, issuing country, period of validity and if you have permission to stay in countries other than your home country
  • be able to pay the application fee by credit card
  • a contract with information about your salary (in Swedish crowns), insurance and the validity period of the contract. The contract must be signed by the club and yourself.
  • pay slips or statements of earnings and deductions if you have had a work permit for the last twelve-month period (you must submit details for the entire period you have had the permit).

As a professional sportsperson or sports official, you can participate in international competitions for a maximum of three months over a period of 12 months without a work permit. However, citizens in some countries need a visa to enter Sweden.

Countries whose citizens need a visa to enter Sweden External link, opens in new window.

Read more about applying for a visa

You must show your passport

The Swedish Migration Agency must check your passport before a decision can be made. You may therefore need to show your passport at a Swedish embassy or consulate-general if you are outside Sweden, or one of the Migration Agency's service centres if you are in Sweden.

Find out which embassy or consulate-general you should contact on the page Embassies responsible for migration matters

In some cases, you can have your passport checked digitally, instead of showing it in person.

Read more about the digital passport check e-service

In some cases, you will not be required to show your passport, for example, if we have already checked your passport during a previous visit.

If you need to show your passport, we will contact you with information on how and when to do so.

If you need an entry visa or residence permit card to travel to Sweden, you will in most cases have your fingerprints taken and be photographed when you show your passport at an embassy or consulate-general.

If your family also applies for a residence permit, the Swedish Migration Agency must check their passports as well. The requirement to show your passport in person does not apply to children under the age of five, it is sufficient that the parent brings the child's passport to the visit. However, if the child needs a residence permit card, they must come along to be photographed for it.

Be photo­graphed and have your fing­er­prints taken

If you are granted a permit for more than three months, you will be given a residence permit card. The card is proof that you have permission to be in Sweden and contains, among other things, your fingerprints and photograph.

If you need a visa to travel to Sweden, you must go to the Swedish embassy or consulate-general to have your photograph and fingerprints taken as soon as possible, if you did not do this in connection with showing your passport. You need to do this even if you have previously had a residence permit card, as your photo and fingerprints are not saved.

If you do not need a visa, you must book an appointment to have your fingerprints and photograph taken once you have arrived in Sweden.

Read more about residence permit cards

Swedish embassies and consulates-general External link, opens in new window.

The decision will be sent to the embassy or consulate-general you stated in your application. You must take your passport with you when you go to get your decision. You can get a permit for the same period as your contract or for maximum two years at a time but never for longer than your passport is valid. The permit applies only for work for the club that has offered you a job and within the sport specified in the contract. If you are going to continue to work in Sweden or change your club, you must apply to extend your permit.

Once the residence permit card is ready, the embassy or consulate-general will issue or send it to you. Please note that it may take up to four weeks to manufacture and deliver the card to the embassy or consulate-general after you have received your decision. When you enter Sweden, you must present the residence permit card along with a valid passport.

If you have a permit for less than three months, you must present the decision together with your passport when you travel to Sweden.

If you can travel to Sweden without a visa, you should be able to present a copy of the decision when you enter the country. You must book an appointment to have your fingerprints and photograph taken as soon as possible after coming to Sweden. Once your residence permit card is ready, it will be sent to your address in Sweden.

Swedish embassies and consulates-general External link, opens in new window.

The Swedish Institute's website about Sweden External link, opens in new window.

Information for people with a residence permit who have just moved to Sweden

Book an appointment at the Swedish Migration Agency to have your fingerprints and photograph taken if you can travel to Sweden without a visa

If the Swedish Migration Agency rejects your application

If the Swedish Migration Agency rejects your application, it means you are not entitled to a residence permit for Sweden. You may lodge an appeal against the decision within three weeks of the date when you received notification of the decision. Information on how to lodge an appeal can be found in your decision. If you have given someone a power of attorney document that authorises him/her to represent you, this person is able to lodge an appeal on your behalf.

Read more about how to appeal

If you are still in Sweden when your application is rejected, you must leave the country within the timescale given in the decision.

Read more about what you need to know if you have had your application rejected and are still in Sweden

Your family members can get a permit for the same period of time as you. The following count as family members

  • your partner (cohabitant, spouse or registered partner)
  • your or your partner's unmarried children under the age of 21.

in some cases, unmarried children aged 21 years or older can be given a permit. To do so, they must be dependent on you or your partner for their livelihood.

If you are given a permit for at least six months, your partner can also get a work permit.

Maintenance requirement

In order for your family to receive a residence permit, you must be able to support yourself and your family.

Read more about the maintenance requirement for employees

How family members apply

If you apply together, you include your family members in your own online application.

If they are going to apply after you, they can make their own application online.

Read more about how family members make their own online application

If your contract with the club is extended, you must apply to extend your work permit. If you want to change club, you must apply for a new permit. It is important that you submit your application before your current permit expires. If you have had a work permit for at least six months and if you have applied before the current permit expires, you have the right to continue working while you are waiting for a decision.

It is the employer who initiates the application to extend the permit.

You can get a permit for the same period as your contract is valid but never for longer than your passport is valid. A work permit for a sportsperson or coach can be granted for a maximum of two years at a time for a total of four years.

Perma­nent resi­dence permit

When you apply for an extension of your work permit, you can apply at the same time for a permanent residence permit. A permanent residence permit is valid for as long as you are living in Sweden.

To be granted a permanent residence permit, you must meet the requirements for an extended work permit, and you must also

  • have had a work permit as an athlete or a coach and have worked in Sweden for four years over the past seven years
  • be able to support yourself financially
  • be living an orderly life.

There are additional new requirements if your family applies to extend their permits at the same time as you apply for a permanent residence permit.

Read more about what applies when you have or you intend to apply for a permanent residence permit and your family applies at the same time as you do

How to apply to extend your permit

You apply for an extension of your permit online. Apply no earlier than 30 days before your current permit expires.

In most cases, you will pay a fee.

Application fees for work permits

If you have family members living with you in Sweden, who also need to extend their permits, apply for them in the same online application.

Together with your application for extension you must submit

  • copies of the pages in your passport that show personal data, photo, signature, passport number, issuing country, validity period and if you have a permit to live in countries other than your home country.
  • a contract stating your salary (in Swedish crowns), insurance and the period for which the contract is valid (the contract must be signed by the club and yourself)
  • certificates of employment from all your employers, stating the periods you have worked in Sweden if you have had a work permit in Sweden for almost four years and if you want to apply for a permanent residence permit.

Once we have received your appli­ca­tion for exten­sion

If you have submitted an application for an extension before your previous permit has expired, you have the right to remain in Sweden until the Swedish Migration Agency has taken its decision.

If you travel abroad at the time when your permit will expire, it may be difficult for you to re-enter Sweden before you have received your new permit. You may then have to wait for your new decision outside Sweden.

You may need to show your passport

The Swedish Migration Agency may need to check your passport before a decision can be made. You will then need to visit one of the Swedish Migration Agency's service centres to present your passport.

In some cases, you will not be required to present your passport, for example, if we have already checked your passport during a previous visit.

If you need to show your passport, we will contact you with information on how and when to do so.

If your family also applies for a residence permit, the Swedish Migration Agency may need to check their passports as well.

Resi­dence permit card

If you are granted a permit, you will receive a residence permit card. The card is proof that you have permission to be in Sweden and contains, among other things, your fingerprints and photograph. You must therefore book an appointment to have your photograph and fingerprints taken as soon as possible. You will need to do this even if you have had a residence permit card before because your photo and fingerprints cannot be saved.

Book an appointment at the Swedish Migration Agency for a residence permit card

Read more about residence permit cards

After a deci­sion has been made

The decision and the residence permit card will be sent to your home address in Sweden. The permit applies only for work for the club that has offered you a job and within the sport specified in the offer of employment.

Appe­aling a deci­sion about a work permit

If the Swedish Migration Agency rejects your application for an extended work permit, you can appeal against the decision within three weeks of the date on which you were notified of the decision. Your decision will contain information about how to do this.

If the Swedish Migration Agency rejects your application for a permanent residence permit on the grounds that you do not meet the maintenance requirement or orderliness requirement, you can appeal within three weeks of the date on which you were notified of the decision.

Impor­tant infor­ma­tion about insu­rance

If you need to seek medical care in Sweden, you may need to pay for the care yourself if you are not registered in Sweden in the Population Register, and do not have a Swedish Personal Identity Number. If you register in the Swedish Population Register, you can also be registered with the Swedish Social Insurance Agency, and covered by the country’s social insurance.

To be registered in the Swedish Population Register and receive a Swedish Personal Identity Number, you generally need to have been granted at least a one-year residence permit in Sweden, and you generally need to be planning to live here for one year or longer. Therefore, you should register in the Population Register as soon as possible after moving to Sweden.

Information about how to register at the Swedish Tax Agency External link, opens in new window.

If you are not able to apply online, fill in the form Application for Swedish work permit, 149011, and submit it to a Swedish embassy or consulate-general in the country where you live. The application form states which documents you must enclose. Contact the embassy or consulate-general before submitting your application.

Application for Swedish work permit, form 149011 Pdf, 851.7 kB, opens in new window.

Application for a permit for family members of workers, researchers, athletes or coaches and self-employed persons, form 133011 Pdf, 847.4 kB, opens in new window.

Swedish embassies and consulates-general External link, opens in new window.

If it is not possible for you to apply in your home country, you must apply to the embassy or consulate-general that is closest to the country where you live. Before submitting your application, you must contact the embassy or consulate-general for more information.

If you apply at an embassy or consulate-general, you pay the fee when you submit your application. For information about the fee, contact the embassy or consulate in question since they do not follow the same fee regulations as the Swedish Migration Agency.

If want to extend your permit

If you are going to apply to extend your permit, fill in the form Application for Swedish work permit, 148011 (in Swedish). The application form states which documents you must enclose.

Send the application to

Migrationsverket
Box 3100
903 03 Umeå

Application for Swedish work permit, form 148011 (in Swedish) Pdf, 855.2 kB, opens in new window.

Application for a permit for family members of workers, researchers, athletes or coaches and self-employed persons, form 133011 Pdf, 847.4 kB, opens in new window.

In most cases, you will pay a fee.

Application fees for work permits

EU-flagga - Medfinansieras av Europeiska unionen

Last updated: