Compulsory schools in Sweden

If you move to Sweden with a child who has gone to school in another Nordic country, and want to register the child in a Swedish school, contact the Swedish school and ask what papers you should take. The documents should be in a Scandinavian language or English.

Your child is entitled to attend school in Sweden at the same level as in their home country, together with similar-aged classmates - regardless of language proficiency.

Children begin in the preschool class (förskoleklass) at the age of six in preparation for the start of school. The preschool class is included in the requirement to attend school, and often serves as an integrated part of the compulsory school. Part of the curriculum for compulsory school applies to preschool.

For further information about the Swedish school system contact your local municipality.

Children living in Sweden are entitled and required to attend compulsory school for nine years. With the preschool class, this makes a total of ten years. Most children start in preschool when they are aged 6, and in Year 1 of compulsory school when they are 7. Both preschool and compulsory school are obligatory for all children. 

The Swedish compulsory school (grundskola) consists of nine year groups (Years 1-9). Each school year is divided into two terms, a spring term and an autumn term. There are also school forms for children with disabilities in the compulsory school system, such as schools for pupils with intellectual disabilities (grundsärskola, anpassade grundskola) and special needs schools (specialskola)

How are schools governed?

In Sweden, the Government steers the school system through laws, regulations, curriculums and syllabuses that define goals and guidelines for schools. The Swedish National Agency for Education (Skolverket) is the national school authority that considers, evaluates and develops schools in Sweden.

Who finances and runs schools?

In Sweden, the municipalities have main responsibility for compulsory schools, which are state financed and free of charge. There are both municipal compulsory schools and independent (fristående) schools. Most children go to municipal school close to their homes, while a small proportion go to independent schools.

What is the difference between municipal schools and independent schools?

• Municipal schools: Most schools in Sweden are municipal. The tuition is free of charge and is adapted to local needs.
• Independent schools: These schools are also state financed, but have a different ownership structure to municipal schools, such as a business enterprise, a foundation, or an association. Independent schools must follow the same curriculum as municipal schools, but can have a special profile, for example in relation to pedagogical approach or religious belief.

Which specialised profiles are available?

All compulsory schools follow the same curriculum, but the schools may have different orientations and offers, which can include teaching in English, culture and sports classes, or other specialised programmes.

Work experience in compulsory schools

According to the Swedish Education Act, all students must complete work experience in Year 8 and/or 9. This is called “PRAO” (praktisk arbetslivsorientering), which gives the pupils experience of the labour market.

For further information about the Swedish school system contact the Swedish National Agency for Education or your local municipality.

Some Nordic countries have compulsory education but, in Sweden, there is a requirement to attend school. Requirement to attend school means that children must be taught in school unless they have valid grounds for absence.

When does the requirement to attend school begin?

The school year in Sweden is divided into two terms (terminer), an autumn term and a spring term. The requirement to attend school starts in the autumn term of the calendar year of your child’s sixth birthday. The requirement to attend school generally ceases after the tenth school year or, if your child attends a special needs school, after the eleventh school year.

About free compulsory education

All children who are subject to the general requirement to attend school are entitled to free education in compulsory schools.

For further information about the requirement to attend school and compulsory education in Sweden, contact your local school or your local municipality.

In Sweden, parents can choose a school for their child anywhere in the municipality in which they live. In some parts of Sweden there are local agreements through which parents can choose a school anywhere in the county.

Choice of school and the principle of proximity

The choice of school is not limited to the city district or part of the municipality in which the child lives. However, your preference for a certain school cannot override another pupil’s right to go to a school close to home. This is called the principle of proximity (närhetsprincipen). When you choose a school, the municipality will consider your and your child’s preferences and the principle of proximity, but there is no guarantee of admission to a certain school.

Municipal schools and independent schools

Parents and children can choose between a municipal school and an independent school. Be aware that you may need to register your child with an independent school many years in advance to obtain a place. Independent schools are themselves responsible for admissions and have their own selection procedures.

How to choose a school

On Utbildningsguiden you can see which schools are available for your child. When you move to Sweden, you should contact the municipality to which you are moving for guidance on how to enrol your child in the school you want.

Children who are living in Sweden for a short period, or who need an international education, are entitled to attend an international school, providing the school is approved by the Swedish Schools Inspectorate (Skolinspektionen). For approval, the school’s tuition must be assessed as being equivalent to that in Swedish compulsory schools.

In the Swedish compulsory school, a six-point grading scale is used, from A to F. Grades A-E are approved, and show that the pupil has passed, while grade F means that the pupil has not passed.

When are grades given?

At the end of each term from Year 6 to Year 9, pupils are awarded grades (terminsbetyg) in the subjects in which they have received tuition. The head teacher of a school can decide to award grades from Year 4.

Leaving grades

At the end of Year 9, the pupils are given their leaving grades (slutbetyg), which are used as a basis for application to upper secondary school.

Grades in compulsory school for learning disabilities and special school

In the compulsory school for pupils with learning disabilities, grades are only awarded if the child or the parent/guardian request this. In special schools, grades are awarded in Years 7 to 10.

The school systems in the Nordic countries are not completely identical. The table below shows how the year groups are distributed in each of the five Nordic countries. Figures in parentheses show that the year group in question is not compulsory.

Year 0 corresponds to the preschool class, which is followed by 9-10 years of schooling in the individual Nordic countries.

Sweden          Denmark          Finland         Iceland          Norway          Age

     0                     0                      (0)                 1                  1                 6

     1                       1                      1                    2                  2                 7

     2                      2                       2                   3                  3                 8

     3                      3                       3                   4                  4                 9

     4                      4                       4                   5                  5                10

     5                      5                       5                   6                  6                11

     6                      6                       6                   7                  7                12

     7                      7                       7                   8                  8                13

     8                      8                       8                   9                  9                14

     9                      9                       9                  10                10               15

     -                    (10)                   (10)                 -                   -               16

Pupils whose parents have a different mother tongue to Swedish are entitled to mother-tongue teaching under certain conditions. Here are the most important requirements and opportunities:

Requirements for mother-tongue teaching

A pupil is entitled to mother-tongue teaching in another language to Swedish if the following conditions are satisfied:

1. Daily use in the home: The language is spoken daily in the home.
2. Basic knowledge: The pupil must have a basic knowledge of the language.
3. Demand in the municipality: At least five pupils in the municipality must have requested mother-tongue teaching in this language.

Exceptions for national minority languages

If the parents have a national minority language as mother tongue, the pupil is entitled to mother-tongue teaching, even if the language is not spoken daily in the home or there are fewer than five pupils in the municipality who want mother-tongue teaching in the language.

The recognised national minority languages recognised in Sweden include: Finnish, Meänkieli (Tornedal Finnish), Sami (all dialects), Romany Chib, and Yiddish.

For more information about mother-tongue teaching and how you apply for it in your municipality, contact your local school or your local municipality.

Schoolchildren can participate in activities at a school-age educare centre (fritidshem), in open leisure-time centres, or in child care from when they are aged six up to and including the spring term in the year of the child’s 13th birthday.

There are both municipal and independent school-age educare centres. Individual school-age educare centres can be run by business enterprises, religious communities, foundations, or economic associations such as cooperatives.

The role of the municipality

The municipalities are responsible for ensuring that there are sufficient places in school-age educare centres. They also approve and conduct inspections of independent educare centres, which largely follow the same regulations as the municipal ones.

Opening times and payment

School-age educare centres are open from early morning until the evening to cater for parents’ need for child care while they work or study. Parents normally pay a fee for this child care.

In most cases, the school-age educare centre is integrated with the school and shares premises.

Pupils who live a long distance from the school, or who have a disability or special needs, may in certain cases be entitled to free school transport (skolskjuts). For more information about whether your child may be eligible for school transport, contact your municipality.