Sweden's food VAT cut lowered grocery prices by 5.5%
Sweden's temporary food VAT cut reached grocery shoppers in full, with shop prices falling 5.5 percent when the lower rate took effect in April, a new national analysis has found.
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The Riksdag cut food VAT from 12 percent to 6 percent from 1 April 2026 until 31 December 2027. A complete pass-through would reduce prices by 5.36 percent, and the Consumer Agency and National Institute of Economic Research said several analyses put the actual decline close to that level.
Prices fell across every food group. Oils, fats and soft drinks recorded the largest drops, while meat, vegetables, sweets and ice cream fell by slightly less. The lower overall price level remained in place after April, and every grocery chain analysed had lower prices in July than in April.
The agencies accounted for other influences on food prices, including raw materials, currencies, energy, transport and seasonal changes. Their combined assessment was that the VAT reduction caused the broad decline rather than changes in only a few products.
The same result did not clearly extend to restaurant takeaway food. The analysis found only limited evidence that chain restaurants passed the lower VAT rate into takeaway prices. The next official report is due on 1 September 2027.
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