2026-04-292025/26:SfU28 · p.1SfUMigration & social insurance
Tightened requirements for Swedish citizenship
Stricter requirements for Swedish citizenship
What's at stake: The decision determines how long and demanding the path to Swedish citizenship becomes for everyone applying, with particular significance for people with weaker ties to the labour market and for children affected by requirements on proof of identity and residence. It therefore affects both the integration process and legal certainty for a large group of people already living in the country.
Case texts and AI reasoning are AI-translated from the Swedish originals; the Swedish text is authoritative.
What the vote decides
The question is whether Parliament should adopt the government's bill tightening the requirements for Swedish citizenship - including a longer residence period, a requirement of honest and orderly conduct, a self-support requirement, and requirements on knowledge of Swedish and Swedish society - or reject most of the proposal as damaging to integration and a threat to legal certainty and children's rights.
Yes Yes — the committee proposal
The committee shares the government's view that citizenship should be seen as the endpoint of an integration process built largely on a person's own efforts, and it backs the bill's longer residence period, requirement of honest and orderly conduct, self-support requirement, and requirements on knowledge of Swedish and Swedish society. The committee does not share the view of the motions' authors that the proposals worsen integration and increase inequality and exclusion, noting among other things that a longer residence period, according to the Security Service, gives better opportunities to detect security threats, and that support measures already exist for groups with weaker labour-market ties.
No No — the reservations
Reservation 1 (V, MP)
The reservation (V, MP) calls for rejecting most of the government's bill, arguing it makes the path to citizenship longer and harder rather than easier for people who already live, work, study and build their future in Sweden. The motions' authors argue the proposals risk reinforcing exclusion rather than reducing it, raise rule-of-law concerns, and in several respects conflict with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, including the requirements on proof of identity and residence applied to children.
Summarised from the committee report. Party labels in the summary come from the report, not from the vote.
V–
S–
MP–
C–
L–
KD–
M–
SD–
YesNoAbstainAbsent
What do the votes mean here?
Yes The committee proposal: adopting the government's legislative proposal and rejecting the motions (keeping things as they are).
No Backing the counter-proposal: reservation 1 by V, MP.
Abstain The party marks a position of its own that is not one of the two final alternatives.
The plan's stance / Actual vote
AI
Vote
Confidence
Evidence
Vown reservation
–
No 0/13/0/8
S
–
Yes 91/1/0/14
MPown reservation
–
No 0/15/0/3
C
–
Yes 20/0/0/4
L
–
Yes 9/0/0/7
KD
–
Yes 16/0/0/3
M
–
Yes 57/0/0/9
SD
–
Yes 60/0/0/10
Broke with the party line
SAnnika Strandhäll(S, Stockholms kommun)
No — party line: Yes
MPs whose vote differs from their party's majority position in this division. Marked with a dark ring in the chamber view.
Committee proposal
Parliament adopts the government's proposal for
1. act amending the Citizenship Act (2001:82),
2. act amending the Citizenship Act (2001:82),
3. act amending the Citizenship Act (2001:82),
4. act amending the Act (2014:481) on amendment of the Citizenship Act (2001:82).
Thus parliament grants proposition 2025/26:175 points 1-4 and rejects the motions
2025/26:3989 by Annika Hirvonen et al. (MP) demand 1 and
2025/26:3991 by Tony Haddou et al. (V) demands 1-9.
Original (Swedish)
Riksdagen antar regeringens förslag till
1. lag om ändring i lagen (2001:82) om svenskt medborgarskap,
2. lag om ändring i lagen (2001:82) om svenskt medborgarskap,
3. lag om ändring i lagen (2001:82) om svenskt medborgarskap,
4. lag om ändring i lagen (2014:481) om ändring i lagen (2001:82) om svenskt medborgarskap.
Därmed bifaller riksdagen proposition 2025/26:175 punkterna 1-4 och avslår motionerna
2025/26:3989 av Annika Hirvonen m.fl. (MP) yrkande 1 och
2025/26:3991 av Tony Haddou m.fl. (V) yrkandena 1-9.
Riksdag decision: Parliament approved the government's proposal to tighten the requirements for obtaining Swedish citizenship.
The proposal includes, among other things, that
the requirement that one must have lived in Sweden for a certain period, that is to say, have had one's residence here, shall be raised from five to eight years as a starting point
higher requirements are imposed on the way of life for those who wish to obtain Swedish citizenship
a requirement for self-sufficiency is introduced when applying for citizenship
a requirement for sufficient knowledge of Swedish and about Swedish society is introduced to obtain Swedish citizenship
the notification procedure, that is, the possibility of becoming a Swedish citizen by notification, shall be limited as much as possible
children shall be able to acquire Swedish citizenship independently after the child's guardian has made an application.
The purpose of the proposal is to strengthen the status of citizenship and increase the individual's ability to actively participate in society.
The legislative amendments enter into force on June 6, 2026. The legislative amendments concerning the citizenship test in reading and listening comprehension in Swedish at functional level enter into force on October 1, 2027 or on an earlier day determined by the government. The legislative amendments concerning the citizenship test in Swedish otherwise enter into force on a day determined by the government.
Counter-proposals
The counter-proposal wants to preserve accessible paths to Swedish citizenship and protect children's rights in the citizenship process. (V, MP) — Reservation 1