General information about moving to and from Sweden

When moving to or from Sweden, there are different regulations depending on whether your property is being moved between Sweden and an EU country or a country outside the EU. Here you will find general information about moving.

Customs duty or customs exemption

When you transport or ship your property to Sweden from a country outside of the EU, you will pay customs duty, VAT and other taxes for moving your things. Under certain conditions, you may be exempt from customs duty for your personal belongings, meaning you do not have to pay. In order to qualify for customs exemption for your personal belongings, you need to meet a few requirements.

It can be difficult to assess what applies in your case. You can always contact TullSvar for support. Just remember that it is always ultimately the clearing customs officer at the border who makes the final decision regarding customs exemption based on his or her overall assessment.

Your belongings are personal property

When talking about the things you bring with you when moving, we make a distinction between your personal property and the things you bring with you for commercial purposes, i.e. to sell or use for commercial activities. Your personal property is called belongings.

Your personal property includes things that are part of your home. Things such as household goods, curtains, bedding, furniture, clothes, personal possessions and pets. Vehicles, i.e. cars, motorcycles, caravans, boats, aircraft, bicycles and other means of transportation are also included in personal property.

Alcohol and tobacco intended for private use are also private property, although these goods cannot be brought across borders duty-free regardless.

Your normal residence

When assessing whether to grant a customs exemption for your personal belongings, we use the term “your normal residence”. This is the location where your permanent centre of living is situated, i.e. a place to which you are personally and professionally connected.

When assessing your personal connection to a specific location, we take into account multiple factors, such as family, living conditions, financial interests, population records and social benefits. The term “family” includes a husband, wife, common-law spouse, registered partner, children or parents living with you.

When assessing your professional connection to a certain location, your form of employment is a factor. Permanent employment often provides a stronger connection to a location than a temporary one.

A person cannot have their normal residence both in Sweden and a country outside the EU. If our assessment of your personal and professional connection is insufficient to determine where your normal residence is located, we will also take the duration of your stay outside of the EU into account.

Some goods should always be declared to Swedish Customs

There are certain goods that always have to be declared to Swedish Customs when transporting them across Swedish borders, regardless of whether you are relocating or just going on a trip.

Read more about goods subject to special rules.

The regulations for importing and exporting goods vary from country to country, even within the EU. You should always check which regulations apply in the country to which you are moving. This can be done by contacting the country’s embassy or consulate.

Regulations

Customs exemption for belongings is governed by the following laws and regulations:

• Council Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009
• Lagen (1994:1547) om tullfrihet m.m. (information about the customs exemption act in Swedish)
• Förordningen (1994:1605) om tullfrihet m.m. (information about the customs exemption ordinance in Swedish)
• Tullverkets föreskrifter och allmänna råd (TFS 2012:3) om tullfrihet m.m. Pdf, 325.7 kB. (information about the Swedish Customs regulations and general advice on customs exemption in Swedish)