6 MIN READ

Living in Sweden: A guide for newcomers

By Beyondo, 23. Jun 2022

Always dreamt of working and living in Sweden? Good to know is that Sweden has topped a poll as the best ‒ or “best” ‒ country when it comes to serving the interests of its people while avoiding damaging impacts to other nations and the environment. Sweden scores highest for positive lifestyle contributions including prosperity, equality, health and wellbeing, while also performing well culturally according to the Good Country Index. This makes it even more interesting to work and live here.

There are a variety of organisations we recommend you to check out for more information about how to settle down in Sweden: NewinSweden, Sweden.se and Grow Internationals. Another piece of advice is to check out Nim.Mersion Sweden's YouTube channel, where you can find information on how to find your way when relocating to Sweden.

Prepare yourself for living in Sweden 

Intertalents in Sweden offers a platform with a course that will teach you all the secrets about Swedish networking culture and how you can prepare when integrating into Swedish society. 

Housing 

Finding accommodation can be very challenging, especially in the big cities in Sweden. The Stockholm market for renting apartments is so tight that prices are way above market prices. Start early in your search and look outside the big cities. A good option is searching for flat share advertisements.

Besides asking your friends or colleagues for tips, these websites may be able to help you.

EGENBOSTAD

Buying a house in Sweden, as an alternative to renting. EGENBOSTAD- Real estate Consulting, the only property buying consultant in Sweden, offers a service, that brings you a broader choice of stability for your housing in Sweden and at the same time an investment possibility.  With EGENBOSTAD, you can streamline all the time and feel assured to be represented in all negotiations with the agents, biddings, banks and everything related to the whole buying process.

Bostad Direkt

Sweden's leading marketplace for "second-hand" housing. They have anything from apartments to houses and villas. They mainly rent out to corporate organisations.

Just landed

For flat sharing, apartments, short-term rentals and international property

The Local

News and a search tool to buy a house in Sweden

The Newbie Guide

Tips and tricks that will do your search for a place to call home smother and faster.

Swedish Language Courses

Beyondo specialises in finding you the right job, in which Swedish is, in most cases,  not required. Though, while living in Sweden, we assume you would like to learn the Swedish language. Please find below some options for learning Swedish.

Learning Swedish

Learning Swedish is a free online course in Swedish for beginners with material for self-study for adult learners. It is your fast track to learning Swedish wherever you live. The course gives basic spoken and written knowledge of the Swedish language, as well as an insight into Swedish culture and society. All instructions are given in English.

Folkuniversitetet

Folkuniversitetet is passionate about language courses and we have a long history of offering Swedish language courses. They have something for everyone, from beginners to experienced speakers.

The Newbie Guide

Learning a language is also a long process that will require hard work. Some would say it is a lifelong process. But why, where and how do you learn Swedish? Read more on their website.

Grow Internationals

The language lessons at Grow Internationals are based on interactive and dynamic speaking exercises with digital tools.

Berlitz

More than 140 years of experience and more than 300.00 satisfied customers. Berlitz has a tailored training program to suit everyone. Whether for adults or children, executives or travel enthusiasts, they provide top trainers, a motivating atmosphere, and modern content.

Swedish Teacher

Swedish Teacher:  your qualified teacher with one-to-one and group lessons. I tailor the lessons to your needs and have a communication-based, "real-life" functional approach. You are experienced at teaching Swedish to professionals in international companies in and outside Sweden, on location and via video link. English and/or Swedish are used in instruction, depending on your level.

Social security in Sweden

Right to medical care/ health care

Once you are registered in Sweden, you are entitled to medical care under the same terms as others who live in Sweden. This means that you pay the standard patient fee for care in the public healthcare system.

Health Care

In Sweden, the healthcare system is decentralised, which means that it is managed and run either by the regions, local authority or municipality. Health, medical and dental care is divided into public and private sectors.

Every county council, local authority or municipality is responsible for managing and prioritising its own healthcare resources. As a result, the type of healthcare services available may vary.

You will find a lot of information on the Socialstyrelsen / Swedish Health Care System

Insured in Sweden 

You are generally insured in Sweden if you live in Sweden. This means that you may be entitled to various forms of compensation from the Swedish Insurance Fond, Försäkringskassan Försäkringskassan. You do not need to report to or register with Försäkringskassan before you apply for compensation. If you have a child under 16 years of age or work in another EU/EEA country or Switzerland, other rules may apply.

The Swedish Educational System

Public education in Sweden is compulsory and free for all children between the ages of seven and 16. The Swedish School System.

International Schools in Stockholm

There is a fairly wide selection of international schools in Stockholm (and other major cities), that cater to students from all over the world. Expats can opt to have their children taught in a variety of languages including English, German, French or Dutch. Some ex-pat parents choose to have their children taught in Swedish, especially if they are younger, easing their transition into their new country. Find a list of all international schools here

 

Here you find some more, helpful links on how the Swedish system works. 

 

 

 

 

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