Cars in Sweden
If you live in Sweden, your vehicle must be registered in Sweden.
The origin of all vehicles brought into Sweden for use in the country must be verified before they can be registered. You apply to the Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen) to verify the origin of your car.
Once the origin has been verified, you must contact the car inspection service, Svensk Bilprovning, for a registration inspection.
The Swedish Transport Agency has drawn up a checklist for the import of vehicles, from start to finish. The checklist describes what you need to do, and in what order, from the time you arrive at the Swedish border until all the formalities are completed and the car is ready to drive. The list provides information on customs, tax, traffic insurance, verification of origin, registration inspection, and registration number.
Customs duties and tax
Importing a car to Sweden from Denmark and Finland does not involve customs duties, as all three countries are members of the EU. Contact the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) for information about tax and VAT.
Importing a car to Sweden from Iceland and Norway involves customs duties, so you must contact Swedish Customs.
If you are bringing a vehicle from Iceland or Norway when you move to Sweden, you can apply for relief from customs duties. Relief from customs duties depends on various factors, such as whether you are moving permanently to Sweden or returning, and how long you have owned the vehicle.
Traffic insurance
All vehicles must be insured. On the website of the Swedish Transport Agency, you can find information about traffic (third-party) insurance, when you need to take out an insurance policy, and what happens if your vehicle is uninsured.
Driving in Sweden with a foreign vehicle
If you are a citizen of another Nordic country and are staying in Sweden temporarily, you may drive a foreign-registered car in Sweden for up to one year.
If you are a tourist in Sweden, you should contact your insurance company in your home country for more information.
Traffic regulations
When you drive a vehicle in Sweden, you must comply with the traffic regulations and respect speed limits. You can read more about the relevant regulations in Sweden on the following links.
Swedish vehicles in other countries
If you drive a Swedish-registered car in another country, it is the regulations of that country that determine how long you may drive the car there.
The regulations about car registration in Denmark vary, depending on whether you commute across the Öresund Sound, are temporarily resident in Denmark, or have a permanent address in Denmark.
There are clear restrictions governing how much and under what circumstances you may use a Swedish-registered car in Denmark when your registered address is in Denmark. You must have a special permit from the Danish tax authorities to use the car in Denmark. Using Form 21059, you can apply for a permit to drive your car from the border to your registered Danish address. If you drive your Swedish-registered car in Denmark without this permit, you are risking a fine.
Contact SKAT (the Danish Customs and Tax Administration) and ask for the Central Registry for Motor Vehicles, which can provide you with information on the regulations regarding the use of foreign-registered vehicles in Denmark.
If you have any questions, please fill in our contact form.
NB! If you have questions regarding the processing of a specific case or application, or other personal matters, please contact the relevant authority directly.
