Social insurance if you work in or move to Sweden

If you live and work in Denmark, you automatically have social insurance in Denmark. However, if you choose to live or work in Sweden, this may affect your social insurance.

Social security if you move to Sweden

If you move to Sweden, your social insurance will depend on whether you also start working in Sweden or keep your job in Denmark. As a general rule, social insurance follows the country of employment, so if you start working exclusively in Sweden, this is where you will be covered by social insurance. If you keep your job in Denmark, you will continue to be covered by social insurance in Denmark for as long as you exclusively work in Denmark. If you work part-time in Sweden, for example, if you work from home a couple of days a week, you are deemed to be working in both countries. Please note that even if you continue to have social insurance in Denmark, any children you may have will be covered by social insurance in their country of residence, which is Sweden. If you are unemployed, you will be covered by social insurance in your new country of residence.

Deciding where you have social insurance becomes a bit more complicated if you work in both Denmark and Sweden.

Read further about working in both Sweden and Denmark

Social insurance if you start working in Sweden

If you start working in Sweden you will probably be covered by social insurance in Sweden although you live in Denmark. In certain cases, you may, however, apply to keep your social insurance in Denmark. This is possible if, for example, you have been posted to Sweden by your employer, or if you work in Denmark and Sweden at the same time.

To be covered by social insurance in Sweden, you must register with Försäkringskassan, which is the government body that administers social insurance and payment of benefits in Sweden. You register by filling in the form "Uppgifter för utredning av försäkringstillhörighet”, which is available on Försäkringskassan’s website. You need a Swedish ID number or a coordination number.

Download the form "Information when moving to or working in Sweden"

Find out where you have social insurance

The country in which you have social insurance can potentially have a lot of impact on your finances, so it is important to find out what rules apply. In Sweden, as already mentioned, it is the public authority Försäkringskassan that administers social insurance and pays the benefits which, in Denmark, would normally be paid by the municipality or Udbetaling Danmark.

In Denmark, Udbetaling Danmark is the authority responsible for making decisions about social insurance when a person is posted to Sweden or works in both countries while resident in Denmark. Applications must be sent to Udbetaling Danmark. Application forms relating to decisions about social insurance can be downloaded from borger.dk.

If you exclusively work in Denmark but live in Sweden, you must contact the following Danish authorities, depending on the type of benefits involved.

• Family benefits – Udbetaling Danmark
• Parental benefits – Udbetaling Danmark
• Sickness benefits – the municipality
• Retirement pension – Udbetaling Danmark (if early retirement pension: the municipality)
• Health insurance – the municipality
• ATP – ATP
• Workmen’s compensation – the National Board of Industrial Injuries
• Unemployment insurance – your unemployment fund

 In Sweden, it is almost always Försäkringskassan you need to contact. 

• Family benefits (“familjeförmåner”) – Försäkringskassan
• Parental benefits (“föräldrapenning”) – Försäkringskassan
• Sickness benefits (“sjukpenning”) – Försäkringskassan
• Early retirement pension (“sjukersättning”) – Försäkringskassan 
• Workmen’s compensation (“arbetsskadeförsäkring”) – Försäkringskassan
• Unemployment insurance (“arbetslöshetsförsäkring”) – your unemployment fund
• Health insurance (“sjukvård”) – the County Council/Skåne Region
• Retirement pension (“ålderspension”) – the Swedish Pensions Agency

If in doubt about which country is responsible for your social insurance, you should contact the relevant authority in your country of residence, i.e. Udbetaling Danmark if you live in Denmark and Försäkringskassan at Øresunddirekt in Malmo if you live in Sweden.

Contact Försäkringskassan at Øresunddirekt