THE SHORT ANSWER
In Sweden, your financial protection comes from several places. Konsumenternas divides it into three: insurance from society, insurance through your employer and private insurance. You can take out private insurance yourself or as a group policy, and sometimes a policy comes with membership of a trade union. The parts fit together, but they have different rules and different documents.
This guide is a map, especially for people new to Sweden. It shows what each part usually covers, what the law requires and where to get help. The details are in the guides the map links to. [1][2]
Keep these points in mind
- Cover comes from society, your job and your own policies.
- The law only requires third-party insurance, and only for people with a car or another vehicle that needs it.
- Home insurance is voluntary, but nearly everyone in Sweden has it.
STEP BY STEP
How to check your cover
Find out whether you are insured in Sweden
According to Konsumenternas, the social insurance system gives you help from the state if you fall ill, have children or retire. It is run by the Swedish Social Insurance Agency, which pays benefits such as sickness benefit and parental benefit. Your state pension comes through the Swedish Pensions Agency.
To be covered, the Swedish Social Insurance Agency says you need to either reside or work in Sweden. Benefits you receive instead of working usually require you to work here, and for other benefits you usually need to reside here. You are not automatically insured just because you are a Swedish citizen. What the agency pays, and where the cap lies, is in the guide to social insurance and private insurance.
[1][4]Ask whether your workplace has a collective agreement
If you work and have a collective agreement, Konsumenternas says you get additional cover through your employer, such as compensation for illness, accidents or death, and an occupational pension. Avtalat says an employer with a collective agreement must always take out insurance agreements for its employees, and that the policies supplement what you are entitled to by law.
The policies work differently depending on whether you are a manual worker or a salaried employee, Avtalat says. So ask your employer whether there is a collective agreement and which one applies to you. Which policies may be involved, and how to find the statement, is covered in the guide to insurance through work and your union.
[1][5]Keep the union and the unemployment fund apart
According to Sveriges a-kassor, the joint organisation of the unemployment insurance funds, trade unions and unemployment funds (each called an a-kassa) are independent organisations. You do not need to join a union to join an a-kassa, and vice versa. The memberships are two different things, each with its own statement.
According to Konsumenternas, income insurance is sometimes included automatically when you are a member of a trade union. Sveriges a-kassor says you can only receive payments from the union's income insurance if you are a member of an a-kassa. How to check both memberships is in the guide to income insurance and a-kassa.
[6][2]Go through your private policies
Private insurance is voluntary and run by insurers, Konsumenternas says. Home insurance is the base for most people. According to Konsumenternas, all home insurance policies are package policies that include property, travel, liability and legal expenses cover, and nearly everyone in Sweden has one. Konsumenternas also mentions assault cover, which can pay out if you are attacked, for example. How home insurance works after moving here is in the guide to home insurance for newcomers to Sweden.
If you have a car, there is a legal requirement. According to Konsumenternas, every car owner must have third-party insurance when the car is not off the road, and third-party insurance is the only insurance you must have by law. Konsumenternas also says that mopeds and motorcycles need third-party insurance. Read more in the guide to car insurance for newcomers to Sweden.
[1][2][3]
Travel, accident, life and pet insurance
As a supplement to society's cover, you can buy private personal insurance, Konsumenternas says. The travel cover in home insurance pays, among other things, for medical care abroad and air ambulance to Sweden. Accident insurance can pay a lump sum if you suffer a permanent injury from an accident.
According to Konsumenternas, cover on death can go by different names, such as life insurance or loan protection, or exist indirectly as survivor cover in a pension policy. You can receive payments from several policies. For animals, Konsumenternas mentions insurance for dogs, cats and horses, for example, because veterinary costs can be high. Read each agreement on its own, because the name does not show what is included.
[1][3][2]Where to get help
The Swedish Consumers' Insurance Bureau (Konsumenternas) gives individuals independent facts and guidance on insurance and pensions. The guidance is free of charge, and you can get personal guidance from lawyers and specialists. The bureau does not decide disputes.
If you want a dispute with an insurer reviewed, you can turn to ARN, the National Board for Consumer Disputes. It reviews disputes about home insurance, holiday home insurance and motor vehicle insurance, for example. According to ARN, the application must arrive within one year of your first complaint to the insurer, and what you claim must be worth at least 3 000 kr. ARN does not review disputes that require medical expertise or that can be handled by certain other boards.
[7][8]Bring the documents together from every source
Keep policy documents, statements from work and your union, and your private policies in My Forsio. You then have the documents from the different sources in one place, and each detail shows the passage it came from. If a statement is missing, for example from work, the cover is shown as Not verified, not as confirmed absent.
Forsio does not decide whether you are insured in Sweden, whether a collective agreement covers you or which policies you need. The Swedish Social Insurance Agency, your employer and the insurer decide that. Forsio is not an insurance intermediary and does not provide insurance advice.
Fictional example
Three sources, three different answers.
Amir has moved to Sweden for a new job and wants to see what cover he has after the first month.
- Home insurance
- Policy document for the rented flat
- Insurance through a collective agreement
- Not verifiedThe employer has not provided a statement.
- Income insurance through the union
- Union member, not an a-kassa memberPotential gapPayment from the union's income insurance requires a-kassa membership.
The home insurance is in place. The workplace policies need confirming, and the income insurance requires Amir to also be a member of an a-kassa.
Common questions
Is home insurance mandatory in Sweden?
No. According to Konsumenternas, third-party insurance is the only insurance you must have by law, and it applies to people who have a car. Private insurance is voluntary. Even so, nearly everyone in Sweden has home insurance, and Konsumenternas says you need it whether you rent, own a tenant-owned apartment or own a house. [2][1][3]
Which insurance do people need in Sweden?
Forsio does not decide that. Start with what already exists: social insurance, any policies through a collective agreement or a union, and your own agreements. Konsumenternas has guides on which policies may be relevant at different stages of life, for example as a student, a family with children or a pensioner. The only legal requirement is third-party insurance, if you have a car. [1][2]
Can I get benefits from the Swedish Social Insurance Agency if I have just moved here?
It depends on your situation. The agency says you need to either reside or work in Sweden, and that benefits you receive instead of working usually require you to work here. Within the EU, the main rule is that you are insured in the country where you work. [4]
Do I have to join a union to join an a-kassa?
No. According to Sveriges a-kassor, trade unions and unemployment funds are independent organisations, and you do not need to join a union to join an a-kassa. If you have income insurance through a union, however, you can only receive payments from it if you are a member of an a-kassa. [6]
Where do I turn if the insurer says no?
The Swedish Consumers' Insurance Bureau gives free guidance on insurance but does not decide disputes. If you want the dispute reviewed, you can submit it to ARN within one year of your first complaint to the insurer, if what you claim is worth at least 3 000 kr. [7][8]
Can I take out insurance without a Swedish personal identity number?
For third-party insurance, Konsumenternas says insurers cannot require you to have a personal identity number or a coordination number. Without one of them, however, you cannot be registered as the owner of a car. For other policies, ask the insurer what it requires. [3]
MY FORSIO
See your cover from every source in one place.
Keep your home insurance, statements from work and your union, and your other policies in My Forsio. Read periods, limits and details that need confirming, with the passage each detail came from. Free for individuals.
Sources and references
Sources checked
This guide explains general principles of Swedish insurance. Your policy schedule and terms set out what applies to you.
- Konsumenternas: private insurance, employer insurance and public insurance
- Konsumenternas: which insurance do I need?
- Konsumenternas: insurance in easy Swedish
- Swedish Social Insurance Agency: insured in Sweden
- Avtalat: insurance through a collective agreement
- Sveriges a-kassor: do I need to join a union to join an a-kassa?
- Swedish Consumers' Insurance Bureau: about the bureau
- ARN, the National Board for Consumer Disputes: insurance disputes