EU citizen in Sweden: getting a personnummer as a self-sufficient person

🇸🇪 SE · documents · 2026-09-30

Translating to Finnish. Showing the English original for now.

Yes. An EU or EEA citizen can be listed in the Swedish Population Register, and get a personal identity number (personnummer), on the basis of being self-sufficient instead of working or studying. You notify the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) of your move through its "Moving to Sweden" (Flytta till Sverige) e-service, visit a state service centre in person for an identity check, and show that you have enough money to support yourself in Sweden for at least one year. Skatteverket decides whether you meet the conditions. If you already live in Sweden on a coordination number, this is the same route: the coordination number is replaced by a personal identity number once you are registered as living in Sweden.

The three routes for EU citizens, and where self-sufficiency fits

Skatteverket says that an EU or EEA citizen who plans to live in Sweden for one year or more is generally required to be registered in the Swedish Population Register. To be registered, you either have your own right of residence (uppehållsrätt) or a residence permit as a family member.

For your own right of residence, Skatteverket's English pages give three alternatives:

you are working in Sweden;
you are studying in Sweden;
you are self-sufficient.

The self-sufficient route is for people who can show they have enough money to live on and support themselves in Sweden. Skatteverket states that you need to prove your right of residence before you can be listed in the register, and that it is the Tax Agency that decides whether you meet the conditions. When you are listed for the first time, you are assigned a personal identity number.

This matters for anyone who has been looking for work for months without an offer: the self-sufficient route does not require an employment contract. The work route and the study route each have their own page and their own list of documents on the Skatteverket site.

Step by step: notifying Skatteverket of your move

Submit the notification online. Use the "Moving to Sweden" (Flytta till Sverige) e-service. Skatteverket says it is available in English, Arabic, Ukrainian and Swedish, and you can ask for help with it at a service centre.
Book an identity check. You, and any family members moving with you, must visit a Swedish state service centre in person for an identity check after you have arrived in Sweden. Appointments are booked at selected service centres. If you did not submit the notification in the e-service, you can also submit it at the service centre.
Bring the required proof. At the service centre you must provide proof of your identity, your full address, proof that you intend to support yourself with your own assets, and details about your family relationships.
Wait for the case to be assigned. On its processing times page, Skatteverket gives about 4 weeks for a "Moving to Sweden" case to be assigned to an administrator. That is the time until someone picks up the case, not a promise of a decision date. Processing can take longer if Skatteverket has to ask you for more information.

What counts as proof that you can support yourself

Skatteverket's page for self-sufficient EU citizens says you need to show that you have enough money to support yourself for at least one year in Sweden. If your family moves with you, your assets must be enough to support the whole family.

The examples of supporting documentation it lists are:

a balance statement from your bank;
confirmation of a pension;
an employment contract and salary specifications from another country;
information about your rent, electricity and home insurance costs.

The page does not name a fixed amount. Because the test is about your own living costs for a year, the cost documents belong in the case next to the bank statement.

If you intend to live on another person's assets, Skatteverket asks for a letter or document confirming that the other person can support you, plus documents showing that this person is able to do so, such as a bank balance statement.

Address, name on the door, and being reachable

The money is only one part of the notification. For the address, Skatteverket asks for:

the full address of the property where you live and sleep;
the apartment number if there is one (four digits, normally stated in the rental contract and sometimes shown in the entrance);
the name of the person you are staying with, if you live in someone else's home.

Your name must be on the door or on the post box in the entrance, whatever your living situation. Skatteverket cannot register "care of" (c/o) addresses. Temporary accommodation such as a hotel or hostel can be given as the address, but if you move before you are registered, you must report the new address and the moving date.

Skatteverket normally writes to you if it needs more information. If it cannot reach you, it cannot process your notification, and you may not be registered at all.

Civil status and family members

If you move alone, Skatteverket needs to register your civil status. If you are married, or have been before, you need documentation such as a marriage certificate, a civil registry extract, a divorce decree or a family registration document. If you have never been married, no documentation of civil status is needed.

If family members move with you, each of them needs a right of residence, and the same page lists the documents for spouses, partners and children. Family members who are not EU or EEA citizens must contact the Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket). Their right to work before the residence card arrives is covered separately.

Country specifics: already in Sweden on a coordination number

A coordination number (samordningsnummer) is for people who have never been listed in the Population Register, and Skatteverket says you apply for one yourself when you plan to stay in Sweden for less than one year. Its coordination number page says that if you move to Sweden and plan to live here for one year or more, you notify the move instead of applying for a coordination number. It also says that if you already have a coordination number and are later registered as living in Sweden, the coordination number is replaced with a personal identity number.

So a person who arrived on a coordination number and now intends to stay goes through the normal "Moving to Sweden" notification. The Skatteverket pages we read do not describe a separate procedure for people whose plans changed after arrival, and they do not set out how short trips back to your home country are treated. For those two points, ask Skatteverket directly before you submit, and describe your situation in the notification as it actually is.

After registration, you can apply for an ID card from Skatteverket or from the Swedish Police. For the bank side, see personnummer, bank account and BankID in Sweden.

FAQ

Can an EU citizen get a personnummer without a job in Sweden?

Yes. Skatteverket lists being self-sufficient as one of the three grounds for an EU or EEA citizen's own right of residence, next to working and studying. You must show you can support yourself in Sweden for at least one year.

How much money do I need to show?

Skatteverket does not state a figure. It asks for enough money to support yourself, and your family if they move with you, for at least one year.

I already live in Sweden with a coordination number. What do I do?

If you now plan to live in Sweden for one year or more, you notify your move through the "Moving to Sweden" e-service. According to Skatteverket, once you are registered as living in Sweden, your coordination number is replaced with a personal identity number.

Do I have to go to a service centre in person?

Yes. Skatteverket requires an in-person identity check at a Swedish state service centre, booked in advance. Family members moving with you must come as well.

How long does it take?

Skatteverket gives about 4 weeks for a "Moving to Sweden" case to be assigned to an administrator. Missing information or follow-up questions make it longer.

Can I register a c/o address?

No. Skatteverket cannot register "care of" addresses. You give the address where you actually live and sleep, with the apartment number if there is one, and your name must be on the door or post box.

How Jobsy fits

We build Jobsy, a job search service for Europe that searches for you: you say what work you want, and Jobsy finds employers and recruitment agencies, including in Sweden, and prepares outreach in the language of the recipient. It does not deal with Skatteverket or population registration. The first result is free, and Jobsy Active, which keeps the search going, costs €6.70 a month.

Sources

Sources: Skatteverket: You are a citizen of an EU or EEA country · Skatteverket: You are self-sufficient · Skatteverket: Coordination numbers · Skatteverket: Processing times for population registration