Sweden passes law forcing families to wait two years to reunite

Sweden’s parliament has passed tighter family-reunification rules that will impose a two-year main waiting period on many sponsors with temporary residence permits from 1 October.

Under the Riksdag’s decision, a sponsor normally must have lived in Sweden with a residence permit for at least two years before a relative can receive a permit based on family ties. Exceptions include unaccompanied children and refugees in certain situations.

The maintenance requirement will apply in more situations, including some applications to extend a permit. The rules differ for Swedish and Nordic citizens, people with permanent residence rights and sponsors who hold temporary permits.

The law also lets some people under 21 who previously held family permits as children continue to qualify after turning 18. A temporary expansion of routes to apply from within Sweden will end on 1 January 2028.

Parliament’s vote changes the proposal from the committee recommendation reported on Monday into adopted law. Most changes take effect on 1 October 2026, with transitional rules for some pending cases.

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