You want to apply for a residence permit to conduct research in Sweden. If your family will be accompanying you, they can apply at the same time.
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 invited by an approved research principal to conduct research in Sweden for a lengthy period, you must apply for a residence permit for research. You must also do so if you have a residence permit for research in another EU member state and are going to conduct part of your research in Sweden.
These requirements must be met in order for you to be granted a residence permit:
You must have a valid passport
You must have a hosting agreement with a research principal
The research principal (the organisation that receives the research work) must be approved by the Swedish Research Council
External link..
You must devote at least 50 percent of your working hours to research
You must have enough money for your stay
These funds must be sufficient both for your stay in Sweden and to pay for your return journey (at least SEK 9,700 per month).
You must have, or have applied for, a comprehensive health insurance policy
If you will be staying in Sweden for less than one year, you will need comprehensive health insurance. The 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.
If you are granted a permit for at least one year, you should register in Sweden’s population register. This will give you access to health and medical care and dental care.
Plan which embassy to visit to present your passport
You may need to present your passport at an embassy before you can receive a decision. In the application, you must therefore state which embassy you want to visit.
Not all Swedish embassies and consulates-general handle migration cases, so it is important to check which one you should contact:
Make sure that the information on your submitted documents is clearly visible.
Correctly made copies of your passport
You can never be granted a permit for longer than your passport is valid.
Hosting agreement
This document must be sent to you by your research principal. It must be signed by both you and the research principal.
Hosting agreement for researchers in Sweden (231011)
Pdf, 736 kB.
Documents showing that you have or have applied for comprehensive health insurance
If you will be in Sweden for less than a year.
A copy of your residence permit card from another EU country
If you have been granted a residence permit to conduct research in another EU country.
A representative can apply for you, if you grant them power of attorney. In that case, the person who applies for you must attach a copy of the power of attorney to your application.
Power of attorney (107011) Pdf, 1.1 MB.
Read more about power of attorney
Correctly made copies of each family member’s passport
Your family member can never be granted a residence permit for longer than their passport is valid.
Documents showing your relationship
If you are married: marriage certificate, marriage record, or similar document.
If you are cohabiting partners: documents showing that you have lived together, such as population registration certificates, a joint rental contract, or proof of the joint purchase of a home.
Birth record or birth certificate stating the names of the child’s parents
Sole custody decision
If you have sole custody of your child, you must attach a court decision to this effect. If the other parent is deceased, you must submit a death certificate.
Consent that the child may move to Sweden
If a child has two parents/legal guardians and the child’s other parent/legal guardian will be remaining in their country of origin, you must attach a statement of consent from the other parent/legal guardian to the application. You must also attach a copy of the other parent or legal guardian’s passport or other identity document.
Consent for a child to settle in Sweden (217011) Pdf, 1.1 MB.
Adoption documents, if your child is adopted
You can be granted a residence permit as a researcher if you have a doctorate or are eligible to start a doctoral programme and are invited here by a research principal that has been approved by the Swedish Research Council. External link. A research principal can be a Swedish higher education institution, some other type of research institution, or a business.
As a researcher, you can also be granted a residence permit if you have a residence permit for research in another EU country and are going to conduct part of your research in Sweden over a lengthy period of time.
In order for you to be granted a residence permit as a researcher, more than half of your working hours must be devoted to research. Teaching or administrative work in the research group is not counted as research.
People who are going to conduct research for less than three months
If you are going to conduct research in Sweden for less than three months, you do not need a residence permit. However, citizens of certain countries need an entry visa in order to travel to Sweden.
Countries whose citizens need an entry visa to travel to Sweden External link.
People who have a permit in another EU country and are going to conduct research in Sweden for a short period of time
If you have a residence permit to conduct research in another EU country, you do not need a residence permit if you will only conduct part of your research in Sweden, for a maximum of 180 days in a 360-day period.
If you have been admitted to a doctoral programme in Sweden
If you have been admitted to a doctoral (third-cycle) programme in Sweden, you must instead apply for a residence permit as a student.
If you have been admitted to a doctoral programme/third-cycle programme in another country and are going to complete part of your education in Sweden
If you are admitted to a doctoral/third-cycle programme in another country and will complete part of your education in Sweden, you must apply for a visitor’s residence permit instead.
2025-03-06
Changes for those residing in Cyprus who wish to apply for residence and work permit
From 17 March 2025 the Swedish embassy in Nicosia will no longer handle migration matters. If you are a citizen of Cyprus, you should instead contact the Swedish embassy in Athens, Greece. The same applies for non-Cypriot legal residents of Cyprus.
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.
2025-02-07
Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania are now part of the Schengen area. Legal residents of these countries shall, from 24 February 2025 turn to one of the five Schengen hubs for migration related matters.
2025-02-07
As from 10 March, 2025, the embassy in Sarajevo will no longer handle migration related matters. Instead, you should turn to the Swedish embassy in Skopje, North Macedonia.
2025-01-07
New EU Blue Card rules now apply
As of 1 January, new requirements and rules apply for anyone who wants to apply for an EU Blue Card and existing Blue Card holders.
2024-12-20
As of 3 February 2025, residents of Serbia and Montenegro should contact the Embassy of Sweden in Skopje, North Macedonia for applications for residence and work permits.
