Social introduction for children who have applied for protection under the Temporary Protection Directive. The information is aimed both at children who have come to Sweden with parents/legal guardians and those who have come alone.
This information is for children who have come to Sweden from Ukraine together with their family to apply for protection under the Temporary Protection Directive.
Here we describe what it means to get a residence permit under the Temporary Protection Directive, as well as the support you and your family have the right to receive during your time in Sweden.
The EU has decided that people who have fled Ukraine can obtain a residence permit under the Temporary Protection Directive.
If you and your family are granted a residence permit under the EU’s Temporary Protection Directive, your permit will be valid until 4 March 2026. If the security situation in Ukraine has not gotten better by then, the Swedish Migration Agency may decide to extend the permit.
Once the Swedish Migration Agency has decided to grant you residence permits, you and your family will each receive a residence permit card (UT-card) that shows that you and your family have the right to be in Sweden. The card also shows that you and your family have the right to receive support under a law called the Act on Reception of Asylum Seekers and Others (LMA). This means, for example, that you have the right to accommodation and financial help from the Swedish Migration Agency.
The Swedish Migration Agency will send you the cards or contact you and tell them where you can pick them up.
Once you and your family have received a decision granting you residence permits, the Swedish Migration Agency will order each of you a coordination number from the Swedish Tax Agency. A coordination number is a personal identity number that makes it easier when, for example, you and your family need to have contact with the authorities or healthcare service, or when one of your parents needs to open a bank account. It is not the same as a Swedish personal identity number. You can get a personal identity number when you have lived in Sweden for one year.
If you and your family want to leave Sweden, you must notify the Swedish Migration Agency. As long as your residence permits are valid, you and your family have the right to travel in and out of Sweden. This means that as long as you have valid residence permits, you and your family can come back to Sweden if you wish. But you and your family can only get money and help with accommodation from the Swedish Migration Agency while you are in Sweden.
If you and your family decide to leave Sweden and move elsewhere, be sure to bring along
In Sweden, you are considered to be a child until you turn 18. Children who have applied for protection under the Temporary Protection Directive have the same rights as all other children in Sweden.
The fact that all children have the same rights means, for example, that you have the right to live in safety, to go to school, and to have leisure time. You have the right to the healthcare and dental care you need. You get to make decisions about your own body, and no one can force you to have sex or get married. No one is allowed to hit you or threaten you.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is the law in Sweden. It states what rights all children should have. Some of the most important rules in the Convention on the Rights of the Child are:
When adults who are responsible for you make a decision that affects you, they need to listen to what you want and think about what is best for you. You have the right to say what you think and to be heard, but that doesn’t mean that things will always turn out the way you want.
You will meet many different adults who are responsible for different things that affect you and your family.
The Swedish Migration Agency is responsible for deciding whether you and your family should be granted a residence permit in Sweden. If you and your family have nowhere to live, you will receive temporary accommodation that the Swedish Migration Agency is responsible for providing while you wait for accommodation from the municipality where you are placed. If you and your family do not have any money of your own, you will get help from the Swedish Migration Agency, so that your parents can buy food and clothes.
The municipality is responsible for making sure you can go to school and that young children can go to preschool while their parents work. There are many adults working at school to whom you can turn if you have questions about how something works in Sweden.
In the municipality, there is something called ‘social services’. Social services help children who do not feel safe at home or who do not have an adult who can take care of them.
You and your family have the right to an interpreter when you go to important meetings. This could be when you meet with someone from the Swedish Migration Agency or someone who works at the municipality, when you visit the doctor, or when your parents have an appointment to talk with your teachers.
The interpreter can speak both Swedish and the language you and your family speak. It is the interpreter’s job to translate everything that is said in the room and not say anything more. It is important that you and the interpreter understand each other and that you dare to say everything you want to say while the interpreter is there. If you do not understand the interpreter, you need to tell them. Also tell us if you and the interpreter are related or know each other in some other way. If you prefer to have a man or a woman as an interpreter, you or your parents should say so in advance.
Children often learn Swedish faster than adults, but you should never have to be an interpreter for your parents. It is not your responsibility to translate when adults are talking.
Everyone who works at the Swedish Migration Agency is bound by an obligation of secrecy. This means that they are not allowed to tell anyone what they know about you and your family. Only your parents and those working on your application have the right to know what you have said.
Interpreters are also bound by an obligation of secrecy, as are staff at the municipality, in the healthcare service, or at schools.
Anyone who has an obligation of secrecy may break their obligation of secrecy so that they can talk to another responsible adult if they think you are in any sort of danger.
Your parents are not bound by an obligation of secrecy, as it is their responsibility to talk to other adults about you.
If you and your family have relatives or friends with whom you want to live, you can do so. Then your parents must tell the Swedish Migration Agency where you are living, so that we can send you letters.
If you do not have anywhere to live, you can live in one of the Swedish Migration Agency’s temporary accommodations while the Swedish Migration Agency looks for a municipality that can arrange accommodation for you. You might live in a large building together with many other people who have also applied for protection, or in an apartment in an ordinary residential area. No matter how you live, you will be able to live with your family.
If you and your family have already lived in Sweden for a while and you have started school or your parents have started working, we will try to arrange for you and your family to stay in the same municipality in which you already live, but we cannot guarantee that this will be the case.
You have the same right to healthcare and dental care as all children in Sweden. Healthcare and dental care are free for all children. If someone in your family needs to go to the doctor or dentist, you must show your residence permit card.
Everyone who applies for protection in Sweden under the Temporary Protection Directive is offered a health exam. The purpose of the health exam is to make sure that you get help as soon as possible if you need care, and that you receive information about how the healthcare system works in Sweden. Take the opportunity to ask any questions you might have, and don’t be afraid to tell healthcare staff how you are feeling. The healthcare staff are bound by an obligation of secrecy, and the health exam does not affect your case with the Swedish Migration Agency.
If you need glasses, your parents can accompany you to an optician for an eye exam. Children and young people aged 8 to 19 can receive an allowance of up to SEK 800 for eyeglasses and contact lenses from the region to which they belong. Your parents can contact an optician shop for more information about this allowance. If you need to buy eyeglasses that cost more than the eyeglass allowance, the Swedish Migration Agency can grant a special allowance to cover the cost. In this case, the optician must sign a piece of paper that your parents bring to the Swedish Migration Agency together with an application for a special allowance.
You have the right to receive both preventive dental care and the treatment that the dentist decides you need. Dental care is free for all children in Sweden.
Many people who apply for protection have been subjected to violence or sexual abuse, in their country of origin or while fleeing to Sweden. Such experiences can make you feel bad both physically and mentally, but help is available. For example, you can talk to the healthcare staff during your health exam, to staff at your youth guidance centre, or to the school nurse or counsellor at your school. They can help you get the right care.
All forms of violence and sexual assault are illegal in Sweden. It is always the person who has harmed you who is responsible, and you can never be punished for being subjected to violence or sexual abuse. This applies regardless of what relationship you have with each other. It also applies, for example, to rape within a marriage and when parents beat their own children. When an adult has sex with a child under the age of 15, it counts as rape. In Sweden, it is also illegal to force or trick someone into getting married, and children under the age of 18 are not allowed to marry.
If you are subjected to violence or sexual abuse or are afraid of being married off, call the police at Contact the police at 114 14 or talk to an adult you trust. If you are in acute danger, call the police at 112.
Genital mutilation (or ‘female circumcision’, as some people call it) is when you cut or stitch up a girl’s vulva or damage it in some other way.
Genital mutilation is completely prohibited in Sweden and is seen as a serious crime. A person who has been subjected to genital mutilation can have both physical and mental problems. If someone has done this to you and you have problems because of it, you can get help from the healthcare service. Talk to your school nurse, the staff at your youth guidance centre, or your health centre.
Read more about genital mutilation
You have the right to knowledge about how to protect yourself from sexually transmitted diseases and how to avoid infecting others. Examples of sexually transmitted diseases include chlamydia, hepatitis, gonorrhoea and HIV. If you know that you have such a disease, you must inform the healthcare staff during your health exam, so that you can receive care and avoid infecting someone else. If you are unsure whether you are infected, the healthcare staff can take samples.
In Sweden, maternity and obstetric care are free of charge for people who have applied for protection under the Temporary Protection Directive. You also have the right to free contraceptive advice, so that you can choose whether you want to become a parent. Both girls and boys have the right to information on how to protect themselves and others from pregnancy. Girls who have become pregnant and do not want to have the child have the right to terminate the pregnancy through an abortion.
When you have been forced to flee your home to a new country, it is common to feel worried about what your future will bring. Some people may also feel bad because they have experienced frightening things or because they miss their family. Examples of symptoms of poor mental health include anxiety, difficulty sleeping or feeling sad and depressed.
You can get help and support from the healthcare service where you live. You can also talk to the counsellor or school nurse at your school.
A disability is when you have an injury or an illness that makes it difficult, for example, to move, hear, speak or understand things. If you have a disability, you have the right to receive practical support in your everyday life, at school or when you talk to the Swedish Migration Agency. Having a disability does not affect your application for protection in Sweden. If you have (or if you think you have) a disability, you can tell the healthcare staff during your health exam.
On www.1177.se/other-languages
External link., there is information in several languages about various diseases and how the healthcare system in Sweden works. You or an adult you trust can also call the healthcare information hotline at telephone number 1177. Then you can talk to a nurse who can answer questions and give advice on where to turn to get the right care.
The website www.youmo.se External link. provides information for young people about health, relationships, sex and much more, in several languages.
The website www.mybody.rfsu.se External link. has short informational films for those who want to know more about their body, sexuality and health. The films are available in many different languages. Here you can find, among other things, films about contraception, childbirth and pregnancy.
Kvinnofridslinjen (Sweden’s National Women’s Helpline) offers advice and support to women subjected to threats and/or physical, psychological and sexual violence. Call 020‑50 50 50. They can arrange for an interpreter in just a few minutes. You can also read more at kvinnofridslinjen.se External link.. The information is available in several languages.
In Sweden, school is free and all children must go to school. You have the right to go to school just like all other children who live in Sweden.
Compulsory school consists of primary and lower secondary school. It lasts ten years, and you usually start the year you turn six. The first year of school is called preschool. It involves a lot of play and creative activities to prepare young children for their future schooling. In compulsory school, all students study approximately the same subjects.
Upper secondary school is a voluntary education where students have the opportunity to choose a specialisation to prepare for professional life or continued studies at a university or college. In order to study at an upper secondary school, you must have completed your compulsory school studies.
If your family does not have any money of your own, you have the right to apply for financial aid from the Swedish Migration Agency. There are two forms of financial aid: daily allowances and special allowances.
Anyone who has applied for protection under the Temporary Protection Directive and who has no money of their own can apply for a daily allowance. Among other things, the daily allowance should be cover food, clothes, shoes, shampoo, medicine and things that you want to do in your leisure time. It is called a daily allowance because you receive a certain amount of money for each day, but the money is paid out once a month. Your parents will receive a bank card to which the money will be deposited.
If you need to buy something that the daily allowance does not cover, you can apply for a special allowance. For example, this could include eyeglasses, winter clothes, or a pram. When you and your family apply for a special allowance, it is important that you explain why you need the money. The application is submitted to the Swedish Migration Agency, which decides whether you will receive the money. It may be that you get less money than you asked for. If you are dissatisfied with the decision about the special allowance, you can lodge an appeal.
Children who apply for protection have the same rights as all other children in Sweden. For example, all children have the right to go to school, to receive care when they need it, to live in safety, and to say what they think. Here you can read about the rights and special rules that exist to protect children.
Children are particularly vulnerable and need extra protection. The age limit for being considered a child or an adult can differ between different countries. In Sweden, you are considered to be a child until you turn 18.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is the law in Sweden. The Convention on the Rights of the Child states what rights all children should have. There are also other laws in Sweden that exist to protect children.
All children have the right to be free from violence. No adult is allowed to strike, kick, push, pull your hair, or threaten you.
Contact the police by calling 114 14 if you are being subjected to violence. If you are in acute danger, call the police at the number 112.
Different countries have different age limits for when you are considered an adult and when you are considered a child. The rules for getting married also differ from country to country.
In Sweden, you are a child until the day you turn 18, and before that you cannot get married.
This is because it is believed that children should not bear the responsibility of a marriage. Early marriages can make children feel bad both physically and psychologically, because a child can be prevented from developing into their own, independent person and living the life to which they have a right.
Once you have reached the age of 18, you decide for yourself whether you want to get married and, if so, to whom. No one is allowed to force or trick someone into marriage. It is illegal to try to force or trick a child into travelling to another country to get married. This is a crime that can lead to imprisonment. It is also illegal to force a child to live in a relationship similar to a marriage. When an adult has sex with a child under the age of 15, it counts as rape.
If either of the people in a marriage were under the age of 18 when they married, the marriage will not be valid in Sweden.
If you are under the age of 18 and apply for asylum together with the person that you are married to instead of with your parents, you are considered an unaccompanied minor. You will then be appointed a guardian who will help you in your contact with the authorities.
Read more this and watch videos about what a guardian does (in Swedish) External link.
If you have questions or need help, you can talk to a teacher, counsellor or healthcare professional. You can also contact the Swedish Migration Agency or social services. If you have a guardian, you can also turn to them.
If you are afraid that you or someone you know will be married off, you can call the police at 114 14.
In some families and extended families, it is important that the family maintain a good reputation. There may be rules about what clothes you can wear, who you can hang out with, that you cannot be together with and marry whomever you want, study what you want, or pursue the profession you want.
These rules tend to be the strictest for girls, but there are also rules that apply to boys. If the rules cause you to be poorly treated or punished, this is known as “honour-related violence and oppression”. The poor treatment or punishment may include beatings, threats, or being called mean names. Exposing a child to honour-related violence and oppression is a violation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and Swedish law.
Sometimes children are forced to control their siblings because the family is worried that rumours about them will spread. But all people have the right to live their own life, the way they want to live it. This applies regardless of your religion or cultural background, what country you come from, or who your family is. All children have the right to live their own lives, and should not have to control anyone else.
If you or someone you know is being subjected to honour-related violence or oppression, you can turn to a teacher at your school, the social services in your municipality, or the Swedish Migration Agency for help. There are also various organisations that can provide support and information about honour-related violence and oppression.
GAPF – National Organisation against Honour-Related Violence (In Swedish) External link.: Here you can get support if you or someone you know are being subjected to honour-related violence or oppression. You can call 08‑711 60 32, send an email, or use the chat function.
Love is Free (In Swedish) External link.: Here you can get support via chat and email if you have questions about honour-related violence or oppression, your rights, love, forced marriage or genital mutilation.
Tris – Girls’ Rights in Society (In Swedish) External link.: Here you can get support if you feel limited by your family or relatives or are subjected to threats or violence when you try to make your own choices. Call 010‑255 91 91.
In Sweden, there are many laws that state that all people are equal and have the same rights. We are entitled to have the same rights and opportunities in life no matter who we are, what we look like, where we come from, what we believe in, who we fall in love with, or how we function.
There are laws to prevent someone from being discriminated against or having their rights violated. As human beings, we are allowed to feel, think and believe as we please, but we are not allowed to do whatever we want. The Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression states that all people have the right to express their thoughts, opinions and feelings, as long as they do not infringe on the rights of someone else. We must all respect the right of our fellow human beings to their own identity and their own life choices.
Gender equality means that boys and girls are equal and should have the same opportunities in life. It also means that adult men and women should have the same rights and obligations. They should have equal power to influence society and their own lives.
100 years ago, this was not the case in Sweden. Back then, women didn’t have much power to make decisions about their own lives. It was mostly men who got an education and worked while women stayed at home, taking care of the children, cleaning and doing laundry. A lot has changed since then.
In most families in Sweden today, both parents go to work or study and the children go to preschool, kindergarten, school and after-school care during the day. In the home, both parents often help each other to clean, do laundry, shop and cook, and they take care of the children together.
In order for society to be as fair as possible and give women and men equal power to influence society and their own lives, the Swedish Parliament has decided on various gender equality goals.
The goals state that
In Sweden, everyone has the right to their own gender identity and sexual orientation. Your gender identity is the gender(s) you feel you are, regardless of what others expect. Your sexual orientation describes the gender(s) of the people to whom you are attracted and fall in love. You have the right to love and be with whomever you want, regardless of whether the person is the same gender or a different gender than yourself.
You don’t have tell other people about your sexual orientation or gender identity unless you want to. There is no sexual orientation or gender identity that violates the law. On the contrary, it is illegal to treat someone unfairly or inferiorly, for example in school or in an organisation, because of the person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
There are several different organisations and youth guidance centres to which you can turn if you want to know more or if you need support.
Through this organisation, you can connect with other LGBTQI+ people, participate in activities and get support. They also have a network for people who are new to Sweden, RFSL Newcomers External link..
UMO – about sex, health and relationships External link.
UMO is a website for everyone aged 13–25 years where you can read more about sexual orientation and gender identity.
It is sometimes said that people who apply for protection, and especially unaccompanied minors, are strong. That if they can get to the other side of the world on their own, they can probably do anything. But even the strongest and most hardened children need safe adults around them, so that they can just be kids. Refugee children are no exception, and when they don’t have their parents with them, or if their parents are exhausted, confused or perhaps traumatised, other important adults are needed to offer these children some security and calmness in an uncertain situation.
Every child is different, and every person who applies for protection has a unique story. Some children have been refugees for a long time and may not have seen their relatives for years. Others have been separated from their parents recently. Some have contact with their close relatives, while others do not know where to start looking. All children who have applied for protection are full of questions and concerns. Some have questions about their situation and ask for help. Others bottle up their worries and dare not ask about them.
As an adult, you play an important role. You are a person who can guide and support the child in their current situation. You can read these pages together with the child. Together, you can review the various stages that you go through when you have applied for protection under the Temporary Protection Directive.
An important adult can be
BRIS, Children’s Rights in Society, is an organisation that works for children’s rights. You can contact BRIS if you need an adult to talk to.
Call the BRIS helpline for young people: 116 111
www.bris.se/for-barn-och-unga (In Swedish) External link.
Save the Children is another organisation that works for children’s rights.
www.raddabarnen.se/rad-och-kunskap/barn-och-unga (In Swedish) External link.
The Swedish Red Cross is an organisation that works to protect and help people in need. The Swedish Red Cross can help you look for your relatives.
www.rodakorset.se/en/get-help/ External link.
The Ombudsman for Children is an authority that ensures that other Swedish authorities comply with the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Here you can learn more about your rights.
Youmo is your online youth guidance centre online. Here you can read about sex, health and relationships in several different languages.
www.youmo.se/sprakvalsida External link.
RFSL works to promote the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex people. RFSL Newcomers works with asylum seekers and new arrivals.
www.rfsl.se/newcomers/asyl/ External link.
Kärleken är fri (Love is Free) is a chat-based support service for young people subjected to honour related violence and oppression.
www.raddabarnen.se/rad-och-kunskap/karleken-ar-fri/ (in Swedish) External link.
Kvinnofridslinjen (Sweden’s National Women’s Helpline) offers advice and support to women who have been subjected to threats and physical, psychological and sexual violence. The information is available in several languages. You can also call 020‑50 50 50. They can arrange for an interpreter in just a few minutes.
www.kvinnofridslinjen.se/en/home/ External link.
Kollpåsoc.se is a website with information about your rights and opportunities for support from social services.
www.kollpasoc.se/en/ External link.
Min rätt – Din roll (My right – Your role) is aimed at unaccompanied minors, their guardians, and other actors who play different roles in helping these minors. Here you can get more information about these various roles and what rights you have. For example, you can watch short videos about what a guardian should help you with.
rfs.se/om-rfs/projekt/min-ratt-din-roll (In Swedish) External link.
The videos What happens now? is for unaccompanied minors in Sweden and who live in an accommodation or in a family home. In the videos you will find out what will happen during the first time in Sweden, who you can meet and how the asylum process works. You can watch the videos alone or together with an adult. The videos are available in several languages.
Informationsverige.se is a portal for new arrivals in Sweden. Here you can get information about how Swedish society works - for example, in terms of accommodation, education and healthcare.
www.informationsverige.se/en External link.
Lära svenska is a page on informationsverige.se about how you can learn Swedish on your own.
www.informationsverige.se/en/jag-ar-asylsokande/lara-svenska External link.
A person in need of subsidiary protection is someone who has applied for asylum in Sweden and been granted subsidiary protection status. These people are usually granted a residence permit for 13 months.
Asylum means sanctuary. When a person applies for asylum, he or she seeks protection in a country other than his or her country of origin.
The asylum process is the various steps that an asylum seeker goes through – from application to decision.
An asylum seeker is a person who has arrived in Sweden and applied for asylum, but who has not yet received a final answer to their application.
An asylum investigation is an interview where you can say why you want protection in Sweden.
Rejection of an asylum application means that the Swedish Migration Agency has said ‘no’ to granting a person’s application for asylum.
Children are all people under the age of 18.
A decision in an asylum case is when the Swedish Migration Agency has decided whether or not an asylum seeker can stay in Sweden.
Daily allowance is an allowance from the Swedish Migration Agency that an asylum seeker can apply for if they do not have their own money.
Judgement. Most of the Swedish Migration Agency’s decisions can be appealed in the courts. When a court makes a decision, this is called a judgement.
A refugee is a person who has applied for asylum and been granted refugee status. This means that you meet the requirements of the UN Convention on the Rights of Refugees, the so-called ‘Geneva Convention’. These people are usually granted a residence permit for 3 years.
A guardian is a person who must look after the interests of asylum-seeking children when their parents are unable to do so. It can be a man or a woman.
Identity means who a person is. When the Swedish Migration Agency asks about your identity, we mean your name, how old you are and where you come from.
Legal force means that the decision can no longer be appealed.
The Swedish Migration Agency is the authority in Sweden that examines applications from people seeking asylum. The Swedish Migration Agency also examines applications from people who want to visit or move to Sweden, or who want to become Swedish citizens.
Authorities ensure that society functions as it should according to the laws decided by the Parliament.
Public counsel is a person who knows Swedish laws. This counsel will help you with your asylum application. A public counsel is a lawyer or law graduate and does not work at the Swedish Migration Agency.
Social services are available in every municipality. They work according to a law called the Social Services Act. The Social Services Act deals with the right to health and social care that everyone in the municipality has. It contains rules for how society should assist people who need help but who cannot get it from anyone else.
Obligation of secrecy means that people who work at, for example, the Swedish Migration Agency are not allowed to tell share what you have said with anyone who does not have the right to know.
A residence permit means that a person has received a ‘yes’ to their application to live in Sweden.
When someone lodges an appeal, this means that they write to an authority or court and inform them that he or she does not agree with what the authority or court has decided. The person says they want the authority or court to change the decision.
2025-03-05
The Swedish Migration Agency's new website has now been launched
On 5 March, the Swedish Migration Agency launched a completely new version of migrationsverket.se, with a new structure and a more user-friendly navigation. The purpose of the new website is primarily to make it easier for visitors to find the information they need.
2025-01-29
Apply for extended protection between January 29 and March 4
The e-service to apply for extended protection under the Temporary Protection Directive is now open.
