What Swedish law says
The current Citizenship Act (medborgarskapslagen), the Act (2001:82) on Swedish Citizenship, came into force on 1 July 2001. It replaced the 1950 Act. Under the old Act, anyone who acquired a foreign citizenship by applying for it or by expressly agreeing to it lost their Swedish citizenship. The aim of the old rule was to avoid dual citizenship.
The 2001 Act made dual citizenship fully allowed. If you apply for Swedish citizenship (medborgarskap), you do not need to give up your previous one. A Swede who becomes a citizen of another country does not lose Swedish citizenship for that reason. The Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket) says that Sweden allows both dual and multiple citizenship.
The other country's law decides
Swedish law only decides on Swedish citizenship. Whether you can keep another citizenship when you become Swedish is decided by the law of the other country. The Migration Agency points out that you must find out for yourself whether your previous home country accepts dual citizenship. Some countries' laws do not.
The same applies the other way round. If you become a citizen of a country that requires you to give up your Swedish citizenship, you can apply to the Migration Agency to be released from it (section 15). If you are already a citizen of the other country, the release takes effect as soon as the decision is made. If you only have Swedish citizenship, the decision is conditional: you must get the other citizenship within one year, otherwise you remain Swedish. No one should become stateless.
For children, the release must not go against the best interests of the child, and a child aged twelve or over must give their own consent.
How people become dual citizens
Many people have two citizenships from birth. A child becomes a Swedish citizen at birth if a parent is a Swedish citizen (section 2), and the child can also get the other parent's citizenship under that country's rules.
Others become dual citizens when they apply for Swedish citizenship and are allowed to keep their previous one. The requirements are the same as for everyone else. Under the new citizenship rules from 6 June 2026, the main rule is eight years of habitual residence. A child aged twelve or over who has another citizenship must consent to becoming a Swedish citizen (section 12).
If you have been a Swedish citizen before, two years of habitual residence is enough instead of eight (section 11 a). This can apply to someone who lost their Swedish citizenship before 2001 when they became a citizen of another country, and who has since moved back. The other requirements apply as usual.
The risks of having two citizenships
The Migration Agency describes the biggest risk like this: the other country may not recognise your Swedish citizenship. If you are there, Swedish authorities may then have little chance of helping you, and an official from the Swedish embassy might not be allowed to meet you.
Problems can also arise in a third country. If you entered on your other passport instead of your Swedish one, the authorities there may claim that Sweden has no right to help you. You also have rights and obligations towards both countries.
Can your Swedish citizenship be taken away?
Under the Instrument of Government (regeringsformen), no Swedish citizen who lives or has lived in Sweden may be deprived of their citizenship (Chapter 2, Section 7). Someone who has never lived here can, however, lose it. Under section 14 of the Citizenship Act, you lose your Swedish citizenship when you turn 22 if you
- were born abroad
- have never had your habitual residence in Sweden
- have not stayed here in circumstances that show a connection with the country.
You can apply to keep your citizenship after you turn 18 but before you turn 22. It is not lost if you would become stateless, and it is also not lost if you have lived for at least seven years in total in Denmark, Finland, Iceland or Norway.
The rules may change. On 20 May 2026, the Swedish Parliament (Riksdag) made a first, provisional decision to change the Instrument of Government. Under the change, a person with dual citizenship could be deprived of their Swedish citizenship if it was obtained on false grounds, or if the person has been convicted of crimes that seriously harm Sweden's vital interests. A change to the constitution needs a second decision after a general election, and after that a law with the detailed rules is needed. The government inquiry on revoking Swedish citizenship (Återkallelse av svenskt medborgarskap, SOU 2026:21) has proposed what such a law could look like. According to the Migration Agency, it is proposed to apply from 1 January 2028.
How we can help you
If you want to become a Swedish citizen and keep your current citizenship, we go through the Swedish requirements with you and help you with your application for citizenship. You need to check what your other country requires with that country's authorities. We help you with the Swedish part, for example your time in Sweden, how you support yourself and which documents to include.
Describe your situation in the form, and we will normally get back to you within one working day with a quote.
