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You want to apply Berry pickers

You want to apply for a work permit because you have found employment as a berry picker in Sweden.

If you are a citizen of a country outside the EU/EEA, you will in most cases need a permit to work in Sweden.

If you are employed by a temporary employment agency outside Sweden and are going to work here as a berry picker, you must apply for a work permit through a representative. Often, this representative makes a group application for you and several other people who will also be working as berry pickers. The representative also handles all contact with the Swedish Migration Agency.

If you are employed as a berry picker by an employer established in Sweden, you must instead apply for a seasonal work permit.

You want to apply – Seasonal workers

There are special requirements for employers that employ a person who will be working in the berry-picking industry. This applies regardless of whether the employee picks berries or works as an interpreter, cook, mechanic, or provides any other form of support to the berry pickers. Among other things, the business must pay the salary/wages stated in your employment contract, even if there are only a few berries or if you are not able to pick enough berries to correspond to your salary/wages.

Everyone in Sweden has the right to good working conditions

Everyone who works in Sweden has the right to good working conditions. It does not matter if you are a Swedish citizen or are only working here for a limited time – you still have the right to a good working life. That is why it is important that you know what rights you have.

The trade union must provide a statement regarding your employment

The trade union that has the right to organise and contract on your behalf as a berry picker in Sweden must be given the opportunity to comment on the terms of your employment.

In order for you to be granted a work permit, your employment must meet all the requirements. You cannot combine two or more jobs in order to meet the requirements.

These requirements must be met in order for you to be granted a work permit as a berry picker:

  • You must have a valid passport

  • You must have the right terms and conditions of employment
    Your salary/wages and other working conditions must be at least on par with Swedish collective agreements or common practice in your profession or industry.

  • Your employment must enable you to make a good living
    This means that you must have a monthly salary or wages totalling at least 80 percent of the median salary published by Statistics Sweden (SCB) that applied when you submitted your application.

  • Your employer must have, or have applied for, a comprehensive health insurance policy for you
    The comprehensive health insurance must be valid for the entire time you will be in Sweden and cover the cost of urgent and other medical care, hospitalisation, and emergency dental care. It must also cover the cost of medical repatriation, if you need to return to your country of origin for health reasons.

Even if a representative is submitting your application for a work permit on your behalf, you must still make some important preparations.

  • Find out what the terms and conditions of employment are
    It is important that you find out what terms and conditions of employment are set out in your employment contract, as well as in the form Information about the employment, which you should have been given.

  • Make sure that your representative has the correct information about you
    The representative will need information about your full name and, if applicable, your previous surname, date of birth, citizenship, any previous nationality, place of birth, and country of birth. This information must be provided by your representative in your application.

  • Make sure your passport is valid for the period for which you are applying

    You can never be granted a permit for longer than your passport is valid.
    Read more about what the passport copies must show

  • Power of attorney
    Your representative needs to have a power of attorney from you showing that you consent to have someone else submit an application on your behalf.

    Power of attorney (107011) Pdf, 1.1 MB.
    More about power of attorney

To be considered to be making a good living, you must have a monthly salary/wages of at least SEK 29,680. This corresponds to 80 percent of the current median salary that Statistics Sweden publishes in June of each year.

Read about the current median salary on Statistics Sweden’s website (in Swedish) External link.

Your monthly salary/wages must also be in line with collective agreements or with common practice in your profession or industry. This means that your salary/wages may need to be higher than 80 percent of the median salary.

Read more on the page A good living – maintenance requirement for work permits

Other rules apply if you are a citizen of the EU/EEA or Switzerland, or if you have long-term resident status in another EU country.

EU/EEA citizens with right of residence

If you are an EU/EEA citizen, you have the right to live in another EU/EEA country if you fulfil the requirements for right of residence through work, your own company, your studies, or by having sufficient funds to support yourself. If you have right of residence, you do not need to apply for a residence permit to live in Sweden.

EU/EEA citizens

Swiss citizens

If you are a citizen of Switzerland, you can move to Sweden to work, study, start your own business, or live on your own funds. If you want to remain in Sweden for longer than three months, you must apply for a residence permit for Swiss citizens.

You want to apply – Swiss citizens

If you have long-term resident status in another EU country

If you have long-term resident status in another EU country, you can move to Sweden to work, study or live on your own funds. If you plan to stay longer than three months, you need to apply for a residence permit for long-term residents.

You want to apply – Long-term residents in another EU country

In order for you to be granted a work permit, by the time you start your job, your employer must have taken out health insurance, life insurance, industrial injuries insurance, and occupational pension insurance for you.

Anyone who is in Sweden for less than a year does not have the same right to social benefits as those who live here. It is therefore very important that you have your own health insurance that can cover any costs that might arise if you fall ill or have an accident.

The employment contract or the document that shows your terms and conditions of employment during the time you will be working in Sweden must state which insurance policies your employer will take out for you. If you are applying for a work permit for less than three months, you must have insurance that covers the costs of medical care and hospitalisation for the time you are here. The insurance must also cover the cost of medical repatriation, if you need to return to your country of origin for health reasons.

You can be granted a work permit for the period of your work as a berry picker, but for a maximum of two years. You cannot be granted a permit for longer than your passport is valid.

Fee: SEK 2,200.

It is not possible to say exactly how long you will need to wait for a decision. There are many things that affect the waiting time, for example whether your application is complete to begin with or whether we need to request more information, or whether we need to check with other authorities when investigating your case.

Here we show statistics on how long it has taken for people who have applied for the same permit as you. The statistics are based on cases decided in the last 12 months.

Complete applications

There are too few decided cases for us to be able to calculate the waiting time.

Incomplete applications

75% of recently decided cases have been decided within:4 months

News

2025-05-20

What counts as a salary?

One of the requirements for being granted a work permit is that the salary must enable you to make a good living. A new ruling from the Migration Court of Appeal clarifies what counts as a salary.

2025-04-01

From 1 April, the possibility of changing tracks will end

On 1 April, the Swedish Parliament’s decision to remove the possibility of changing tracks will come into force. This affects those who have been granted, or applied for, a work permit after an asylum application has been rejected. Your co-applicant family members will also be affected.

The Swedish Migration Agency is responsible for considering applications from people who want to live in Sweden, seek protection or become Swedish citizens. Our work is based on Swedish laws and international conventions, with a focus on legal certainty and effective reception and return.