Øresund commuter tax and the Nordic tax treaty – where you pay when you cross a border to work
Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →
Øresund commuter tax changed on 1 January 2025, and Norway's border-commuter rules shifted in 2026. Whether you are working in Denmark while living in Sweden or crossing into Norway, here is where your salary is taxed, what the 50 per cent rule means and which tax returns you file.
Øresund commuter tax is where many people slip, because working from home can move your salary from one tax system to another. Under the new Øresund Agreement, announced on 7 May 2024 and in force since 1 January 2025, you are taxed only in your country of work if you work there at least half of your working time in every 12-month period, rather than every three months – and public employees are now covered too. On the Norwegian border, employers have withheld the 7.6 per cent national insurance contribution from border commuters every month since 2026.
Where do you pay tax when you live in one Nordic country and work in another?
Each country's own law decides whether you are tax resident there, and the Nordic tax treaty stops the same income being taxed twice. If both countries see you as resident, Skatteverket (the Swedish Tax Agency) explains, the treaty looks first at where you have a permanent home, then at where your personal and economic interests are strongest, then at where you usually stay. In Norway, being registered as resident is not the same as being tax resident.
| You live in | You work in | Where your salary is taxed |
|---|---|---|
| Sweden | Denmark, at least half your working days in every 12-month period | Denmark only, including home-office days in Sweden (Øresund Agreement) |
| Sweden | Denmark, less than half your working days | Split: Danish days in Denmark, Swedish days in Sweden – your employer withholds 30 per cent Swedish tax on those days unless Skatteverket sets another rate |
| Denmark | Sweden, commuting daily | Sweden: SINK (special income tax for non-residents) at 22.5 per cent, or ordinary rules if you choose; only the Swedish part if under half your days are there |
| A Swedish border municipality | A Norwegian border municipality | Sweden – you pay Skatteverket yourself; your employer pays 7.6 per cent trygdeavgift (national insurance contribution) in Norway |
| Norway, not registered in Sweden | Sweden | Sweden: SINK for work under six months, A-tax for six months or more (not for day commuters); register every year |
| Sweden or Denmark | The other country, briefly | At home only, if you stay there no more than 183 days in a 12-month period and are not paid by an employer based, or with a permanent establishment, there |
Source: Skatteverket, Øresunddirekt, Grensetjänsten Norge–Sverige and the Danish Tax Agency, read 23 September 2026.
The Øresund Agreement does not apply to artists and athletes, who are taxed in Denmark with a capped credit in Sweden. Aircrew are taxed where they live, wherever they fly.
How does Øresund commuter tax work after 2025?
It comes down to a 50 per cent test. Your salary is taxed in full where you normally work if you work there at least half of your working time in every rolling 12-month period – even if the rest is remote work in your country of residence or business trips. The Danish Tax Agency, Skattestyrelsen, confirms that the remote work need not be at home: a local café or library counts the same.
Counting has its own rules, and the Danish Tax Agency offers an Excel tool for 2025 to track your days.
Say Anna lives in Malmö and works for a Copenhagen firm. Working from home two days a week and in Copenhagen three, she has more than half her days in Denmark, so all her salary is taxed there. With three home days a week all year, her Swedish days would be taxed in Sweden.
| Day | How it counts |
|---|---|
| A day worked in the country of employment, even part of a day | A full working day there |
| Paid holiday and sick leave | Working days in the country of employment |
| Weekends, public holidays and days off in lieu without work | Not counted on either side |
| Remote work anywhere in your country of residence | A day in the country of residence |
| Period tested | Every rolling 12-month period – until the end of 2024, every three months |
Source: Øresunddirekt, Skatteverket and the Danish Tax Agency, read 23 September 2026.
For any part of the year the agreement does not cover, you state on the Danish årsopgørelse (annual tax statement) how your salary is divided between the countries. And if at least 75 per cent of your net earned income is taxable in the country of work, you can deduct contributions there to a tax-favoured pension scheme in your country of residence, says the Danish Tax Agency.
Working in Norway while living in Sweden – and the other way round
On the Norwegian border, the gränsgångare (border commuter) rule decides: you pay Swedish tax yourself to Skatteverket, and your employer pays trygdeavgift to Norway. Everyone working in Norway also needs a skattekort (tax deduction card); without one, the employer withholds 50 per cent.
When you first apply for a tax deduction card, Skatteetaten (the Norwegian Tax Administration) automatically enrols you in PAYE (Pay As You Earn), a voluntary flat-tax scheme with no tax return, open if you earn less than NOK 725,050 in 2026.
Living in Norway and working in Sweden without being folkbokförd (registered) there, you register with Skatteverket for tax every year: SINK for work in Sweden under six months, or ordinary A-tax for six months or more, though not as a day commuter. Enclose a copy of your passport unless you already have a samordningsnummer (coordination number) or personnummer; if not, you get a samordningsnummer when you register.
| Country | Rate in 2026 | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Sweden | SINK: 22.5 per cent | Salary of non-residents taxed under SINK |
| Norway | Trygdeavgift: 7.6 per cent | Salary, for people aged 17 to 69 |
| Norway | PAYE: 25 per cent, or 17.4 if exempt from national insurance | Foreign workers in the scheme earning less than NOK 725,050 |
| Denmark | AM-bidrag (labour market contribution): 8 per cent | All salary income |
| Denmark | Bundskat (bottom-bracket tax): 12.01 per cent; new mellemskat (middle-bracket tax): 7.5 per cent above DKK 641,200 | Personal income; the middle bracket is new from 2026 |
Source: Skatteverket, Skatteetaten and the Danish Tax Agency, read 23 September 2026.
Which tax returns do you file, and when?
Filing in two countries is normal for a commuter – keep your working-day log as evidence.
| Country | What | 2026 dates |
|---|---|---|
| Sweden | Income tax return for 2025 | 4 May 2026, or 1 June with an extension. Not needed under SINK |
| Denmark | Forskudsopgørelse (preliminary income assessment) for the coming year | Published every November – correct it when your job or pay changes |
| Denmark | Årsopgørelse for 2025 | March 2026 |
| Norway | Skattemelding (tax return) | 30 April, with a 30-day extension if you apply by 30 April. Not under PAYE |
Source: Skatteverket, the Danish Tax Agency and Skatteetaten, read 23 September 2026.
Questions? Call Skatteupplysningen on 0771-567 567 (+46 8 564 851 60 from abroad), the Danish Tax Agency's preliminary-assessment line on +45 72 22 27 95, or Skatteetaten on 800 80 000 (+47 22 07 70 00 from abroad).
What to do now
| Step | What | When |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Work out your tax residence and which commuter rule applies | Before you start the job |
| 2 | Log every working day by country, including home-office, holiday and sick days | Continuously – every 12-month period counts |
| 3 | Get a tax deduction card in Norway, or register for SINK or A-tax in Sweden | Before your first payday; in Sweden every year |
| 4 | Under half your days in Denmark? Ask your employer to register in Sweden; correct your forskudsopgørelse | As soon as you see it coming |
| 5 | File the returns each country requires | Norway 30 April; Sweden 4 May 2026 for 2025 |
Source: Skatteverket, Skatteetaten, Øresunddirekt and the Danish Tax Agency, read 23 September 2026.
Official sources
The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.
- Skatteverket – Bo i Danmark och arbeta i Sverige · skatteverket.se
- Øresunddirekt – Tax on cross-border remote work (working in Denmark) · oresunddirekt.se
- Skat.dk – Privatansat øresundspendler (ny Øresundsaftale fra 2025) · skat.dk
- Skatteverket – Bo i Sverige och arbeta i Danmark · skatteverket.se
- Øresunddirekt (Danish edition) – Tax when working remotely if you live in Denmark and work in Sweden · oresunddirekt.dk
- Nordic cooperation – 'New Öresund Agreement welcomed by Freedom of Movement Council' · norden.org
- Grensetjänsten Norge-Sverige – Skattekort i Sverige · grensetjansten.com
- Skattestyrelsen – Dansk-svensk grænsegængeraftale (Øresundsaftalen), gældende regler · info.skat.dk
Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.
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