Lost Your Residence Permit Card in Sweden? What to Do, Step by Step

Losing your residence permit card is stressful, especially in a new country. The good news: there is a clear process, and you can take the first step today. This guide walks you through every step, in order, using what Migrationsverket (the Swedish Migration Agency) and the Swedish Police say on their own pages.

This guide is about the card, the plastic card with your photo (often called the UT-kort or uppehållstillståndskort). If you mean that your permit itself was withdrawn or refused, skip to the last section.

First, what the card is (and isn't)

• It is proof of your permit. Migrationsverket describes the card as proof that you have the right to be in Sweden. It shows your type of permit, how long the card is valid, your date of birth and nationality.
• It has a chip with your fingerprints and photo. That is why you need to be photographed and fingerprinted again for every new card.
• It is not an identity document or a travel document. You can't prove who you are with it, and it can't replace your passport.

Your permit and your card are two different things. If your permit is about to run out, a new card does not extend it: you apply for an extension instead (see our work permit extension guide).

Step 1: Report the loss or theft to the police

Migrationsverket asks you to report a lost or stolen card to the police before anything else. You will need a copy of the police report in the next steps.

• Call the police on 114 14 (not an emergency number), or visit a police station.
• If you call from abroad or from a foreign mobile number in Sweden, call +46 77 114 14 00.
• Give your personal details and, as well as you can, when and where you lost the card or it was stolen.
• In an emergency, for example if you are being robbed right now, call 112.

Tip: Lost your passport too? Report it to the police as well, so that it can be blocked, and contact your own country's embassy about a new passport. You will need a valid ID document for the next steps.

Step 2: Send a copy of the police report to Migrationsverket

Once you have the police report, post a copy to:

Migrationsverket
Box 1430
171 27 Solna

Keep the original report and a copy for yourself. Migrationsverket's page on lost cards also asks you to bring a copy of the police report to your appointment for the new card.

Step 3: Wait for the letter, then book at Statens servicecenter

When Migrationsverket has reviewed your police report, it sends you a letter explaining how to book an appointment to be photographed and fingerprinted at Statens servicecenter (the National Government Service Centre).

• Book on My page. You book the visit through Migrationsverket's My page (Min sida, its online service), even though the visit itself is at Statens servicecenter.
• Pick the office that suits you. Statens servicecenter has offices across Sweden that offer Migrationsverket's services, Västerås among them. Find an office (filter on Migrationsverket's services).
• Bring your valid passport or ID card, your case number, and a copy of the police report.
• No letter within 14 days? Contact Migrationsverket through My page or by telephone.

If you don't have a valid ID document

Don't go to Statens servicecenter. Contact Migrationsverket through My page or by telephone instead, and give them your current email address and phone number. Migrationsverket then books an appointment for you at its office closest to you: Boden, Sundsvall, Stockholm, Gothenburg, Norrköping or Malmö. The booking confirmation comes by email.

Step 4: Receive your new card

• After your visit to Statens servicecenter, the card is posted to your home address, the one registered in the population register, within two weeks.
• If Migrationsverket has no registered home address for you, the card goes to the Statens servicecenter office instead. My page shows when it has arrived, and you can collect it without an appointment.
• You can't change the delivery address afterwards. If you have moved, tell Migrationsverket before the card is made.
• When the card arrives, check that your name matches your passport. If it doesn't, contact Migrationsverket.

Tip: Keep your address up to date. Migrationsverket says a card can be sent back to them when they have the wrong address for you, which is one reason a card can seem to take a long time.

While you wait: work, travel and everyday life

Tell your employer

Employers must check the documents that show you have the right to work in Sweden and keep copies of them for the whole employment and for at least twelve months after it ends. So HR may already have a copy of your card. Let them know the card is lost, and give them a copy of the new one when it arrives.

Hold off on travel if you can

Migrationsverket says you need both a valid passport and your residence permit card to travel out of Sweden and back. Plan any trip abroad for after the new card has arrived.

If you lose the card while abroad

Report it to the local police and keep the report. Then contact the Swedish embassy or consulate-general in the country you are in before you book your journey home, and ask what you need to travel back to Sweden.

Everyday ID

Because the card is not an ID document, it doesn't change what you use as ID day to day. If you still need a Swedish ID document, see our guide to the Swedish ID card and BankID.

Your checklist

1. Report the loss or theft to the police (114 14).
2. Lost your passport too? Report it, and contact your embassy.
3. Post a copy of the police report to Migrationsverket, Box 1430, 171 27 Solna.
4. Wait for Migrationsverket's letter. Nothing after 14 days? Contact them.
5. Book on My page and go to Statens servicecenter for your photo and fingerprints, with your passport, case number and the police report.
6. Make sure your address is registered and up to date.
7. Tell your employer, and give HR a copy of the new card.
8. Plan travel for after the new card arrives.

If your permit, not the card, is the problem

Sometimes "losing your residence permit" means something else: the permit ran out, an extension was refused, or Migrationsverket decided to withdraw it. A new card doesn't help in those cases.

• Your permit is about to expire: apply for an extension before it runs out. See our extension guide.
• Your extension was refused: the decision explains how to appeal and by when. Read what to do when a work permit is refused.
• Why permits get withdrawn: read about kompetensutvisning and how the rules changed on 1 June 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

What should I do first if I lose my residence permit card in Sweden?

Report it to the police, by calling 114 14 or at a police station. Then send a copy of the police report to Migrationsverket, Box 1430, 171 27 Solna. Migrationsverket then sends a letter on how to book your photo and fingerprints for the new card: you book on My page and go to a Statens servicecenter office.

Is my residence permit still valid if I lose the card?

Migrationsverket describes the card as proof that you have the right to be in Sweden. For a lost or stolen card, its process is a new card, with a new photo and fingerprints, after you report the loss. A new card doesn't extend a permit that is running out, though: for that you apply for an extension. You also need the card to travel.

How long does it take to get a new residence permit card?

After you send the police report, Migrationsverket reviews it and sends a letter on how to book your appointment. If nothing arrives within 14 days, contact them. After your photo and fingerprints, the card is posted to your registered home address within two weeks.

Can I travel without my residence permit card?

Migrationsverket says you need both a valid passport and your residence permit card to travel out of Sweden and back. Plan trips abroad for after your new card has arrived.

Can I use my residence permit card as ID?

No. Migrationsverket says the residence permit card is not an identity document or a travel document, so you can't prove your identity with it.

What if I don't have a passport or other valid ID?

Don't go to Statens servicecenter. Contact Migrationsverket through My page or by telephone, with your email address and phone number. They book you an appointment at their nearest office: Boden, Sundsvall, Stockholm, Gothenburg, Norrköping or Malmö.

I lost my residence permit card abroad. What do I do?

Report it to the local police and keep the report. Then contact the Swedish embassy or consulate-general in that country before you book your trip home, and ask what you need to return to Sweden.

Moving for work? How Settio helps

Settio helps employers and immigration and relocation agencies run the whole move in one place, so the person moving can focus on settling in:

• Before the move: one plan for the permit and the move, with every step and deadline. A partner and children get their own steps in the same household.
• After arrival: the employee portal shows the newcomer their next steps on their phone, in their language, from registering after arrival to help for settling in.
• When the permit runs out: permit monitoring flags the extension in good time.

HR teams and agencies can start for free. Moving yourself? Try our free tools for life in Sweden.

Sources

9 official sources

• Migrationsverket: Residence permit cards
• Migrationsverket: Uppehållstillståndskort (in Swedish)
• Migrationsverket: Lost your residence permit card
• Migrationsverket: You plan to travel abroad (work permits)
• Migrationsverket: You plan to travel abroad (permanent residence)
• Migrationsverket: Who can you employ?
• Migrationsverket: Book an appointment to visit us
• Statens servicecenter: Visit a service office
• Swedish Police: Report a crime