What is Särskild Avgift? Sweden's Employer Sanction Fee Explained

Särskild avgift (special fee) is the sanction a Swedish employer must pay for employing a non-EU citizen who has no right to be or to work in Sweden. Since 1 June 2026 it is two price base amounts per person (SEK 118,400 at the 2026 amount), or four (SEK 236,800) if the violation lasted more than three months.

The amounts

Situation	Fee per person	In 2026
Violation from 1 June 2026, up to 3 months	2 × price base amount	SEK 118,400
Violation from 1 June 2026, more than 3 months	4 × price base amount	SEK 236,800
Violations before 1 June 2026	Old levels: 1 or 2 × price base amount	SEK 59,200 or 118,400

The price base amount (prisbasbelopp) is SEK 59,200 in 2026 and is set every year. The law uses the amount that applied when the violation ended.

Who pays and who decides

• The employer pays, per person employed without the right to stay in Sweden or without the required work permit. In some subcontracting chains, the company that hired the employer as a subcontractor can also have to pay.
• A general court decides whether the fee is charged, on an application from a public prosecutor.
• The fee can be charged whether or not the employer is also convicted of a crime, and it can be reduced in part or in full for special reasons.
• For a person without the right to stay, the fee is not charged if the employer checked the right to stay, kept a copy of the documents and notified the authority of the employment.

Why it matters beyond the fee

• Since 1 June 2026, a work permit can be refused if the employer has been charged a särskild avgift.
• Employing someone without the right to stay or work is also a crime, punished with up to two years in prison, or a fine if the crime is minor.
• Two new crimes, exploitation of foreign labour and trading in work permits, were introduced from 1 June 2026.

How to avoid it

1. Check the right to work before day one, for example the residence permit card, or the proof of a pending application with the right to keep working.
2. Keep a copy of the permit for the whole employment and 12 months after it ends.
3. Notify Skatteverket of the non-EU hire (form SKV 1160), no later than the end of the third month after the month the employment started.
4. Track expiry dates and file extensions before the permit runs out.

Full guides: employer compliance for Swedish work permits and preparing for an audit.

Related terms

• AT-UND: the right to work for some asylum seekers.
• Kompetensutvisning: when permits are lost over employer mistakes.
• The June 2026 rules

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the särskild avgift charged per employee?

Yes. The fee is calculated for each person employed without the right to stay or work in Sweden, so several workers multiply the amount. Violations that lasted more than three months cost twice as much per person.

Do the higher 2026 fees apply to old violations?

No. The older rules apply to violations that took place before 1 June 2026. Those are charged at the old levels of one or two price base amounts.

Can a fee affect future work permit applications?

Yes. Since 1 June 2026 a work permit can be refused when the employer has been charged a särskild avgift.

How Settio keeps permits on track

Most permit problems start with a date or a salary nobody was watching. Settio helps employers and immigration agencies watch both, for every person, before they move, after they arrive and at every renewal:

• Permit and salary monitoring tracks every expiry date and the salary each permit was granted on, and turns a dip or a missing month into a follow-up step with an owner.
• Plans for every case, from the first application to the extension, with each deadline counted for you.
• Your whole international workforce at a glance: import the people already on permits and see their risks in minutes.

Try it with your own people: see plans and start for free.

Sources

6 official sources

• Lagen.nu: Utlänningslagen (2005:716), 6 kap. 2 c § and 20 kap. 5, 10, 10 a, 12 to 13 §§
• Riksdagen: Prop. 2025/26:87 Nya regler för arbetskraftsinvandring
• Migrationsverket: New work permit rules in force (1 June 2026)
• Migrationsverket: New rules for work permits come into force (1 June 2026)
• Skatteverket: Amounts and percentages 2026
• Skatteverket: Employing third-country nationals (employer notification)