Sweden raises the bar for family reunification from 1 October 2026

A sponsor on a temporary permit must now have lived in Sweden for two years before relatives can join, and the maintenance test will apply to extensions for the first time, according to the Swedish Migration Agency.

People hoping to bring a partner or children to Sweden face a stricter set of rules from 1 October 2026. According to the Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket), a sponsor who holds a temporary residence permit must have lived in Sweden for at least two years before family members can be granted a permit to move here. There are exceptions, for example for refugees whose relationship was established before they came to Sweden.

The same date brings a second change. The amounts in the maintenance requirement for family immigration go up, and the requirement will for the first time also apply when a family applies to extend its permits, not only at the first application. A transitional rule softens the blow: the older, lower amounts still apply to extensions of permits granted before 1 October 2026, provided the application is made by 1 October 2027.

Until now the Migration Agency's published figures for 2026 required the sponsor in Sweden to have at least 6,243 kronor a month left after tax and rent if single, or 10,314 kronor for cohabiting spouses or partners, plus a supplement of between 3,336 and 5,339 kronor per child depending on the child's age. The requirement also includes a housing test: a home counts as large enough for two adults and two children, who may share a bedroom, if it has at least two rooms and a kitchen. Lodging with someone else or living with your parents does not count.

The Migration Agency announced on 17 September 2026 and 21 September 2026 that the new rules also change the conditions for family members of people who hold or apply for permits for studies and for work. Swedish citizens who sponsor a relative remain exempt from the general maintenance requirement if the relationship is well established, but they must still show that they intend to settle in Sweden.

The change is the latest in a year of tightening. Since 1 June 2026 a new work permit requires a salary of at least 90 per cent of the Swedish median wage, which the agency puts at 34,470 kronor a month on the basis of the median published on 16 June 2026. Since 12 July 2026 permanent residence permits are as a main rule no longer granted, and since 13 July 2026 stricter conduct requirements apply to anyone seeking or keeping a residence permit.

If you are already in Sweden on a temporary permit and plan to bring family, the practical advice is simple: check whether your two years are complete before 1 October 2026, and if you extend a family permit granted before that date, do so before 1 October 2027 to keep the old amounts.

Sources: Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket), news items of 10, 17 and 21 September 2026; Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket), maintenance requirement for the person in Sweden; Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket), salary requirement for work permits; Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket), news of 12 July 2026 and 13 July 2026, read 24 September 2026.

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