How to Speed Up Your Swedish Work Permit Application in 2026

What Migrationsverket's own figures show

Migrationsverket publishes how long recent cases took: the time within which 75% of the cases decided in the last 12 months were decided. For a work permit as an employee, the figures it showed in October 2026 were:

Type of case	Complete application	Incomplete application
Highly qualified work, first application	1 month	2 months
Other employment, first application	4 months	10 months
Other employment, extension	4 months	12 months
Seasonal work	2 months	3 months

The figures change over time, so check the page for your case type before you plan a start date.

What makes a case faster

• A complete application. The difference between the two columns above is the clearest lever you have. Migrationsverket does not process an incomplete application until it is complete, and it contacts the employer or the employee when something is missing.
• Highly qualified work. For managers, occupations that require higher education, and EU Blue Card, ICT, research and doctoral cases, Migrationsverket offers employers extra support and aims to decide a complete application within 30 days. A company active for less than 12 months is investigated more thoroughly and cannot expect a 30-day decision, and employers in industries with higher requirements cannot use the support.
• Right documents for the industry. In industries with higher requirements (for example cleaning, hotels and restaurants, construction, trade, agriculture and forestry, automotive workshops and staffing), the employer must show it can pay the salary for at least three months. Attach this from the start.

What you can control: the employer's side

• Advertise correctly. The vacancy must be advertised for at least ten days in Sweden, the EU/EEA and Switzerland, and you will need the ad ID or EURES reference in the application.
• Fill in the employment information carefully. Occupation, SSYK code, salary, the collective agreement date and the insurance companies, and the right email address for the employee.
• Have the four insurances in place. Medical, life, occupational injury and occupational pension insurance by the start date.
• Answer requests quickly. When Migrationsverket asks for more information, a fast, complete answer keeps the case moving.

What to do if the application is taking too long

• Extensions: an employee who applied before the current permit expired, and has held the permit for at least six months, can keep working for the employer while waiting.
• Check Min sida: the applicant can log in to see information about the application and the waiting-time statistics for the permit type.
• Ask for a decision: once four months or more have passed since a work permit application (90 days or more for an EU Blue Card), the applicant can send form 270011 (Begäran om att avgöra ärende). Within four weeks Migrationsverket either decides the case or rejects the request, and processing continues either way. The request can be made only once per case.

How Settio helps employers and agencies

Settio helps employers and immigration agencies run every work permit and relocation case in one place, from the first step to the renewal:

• Before the move: a plan for every hire, with each step, owner and deadline counted back from the start date, and documents that check themselves as they come in.
• After arrival: the employee portal shows the new hire their next steps on their phone, in their language, with no account or password.
• For the renewal: permit and salary monitoring tracks every expiry date and flags the extension in good time.

Your first hire is free, and agencies can try a real case for free. See plans and start.

Sources

7 official sources

• Migrationsverket: Apply for a work permit as an employee
• Migrationsverket: Extending a permit for an employee
• Migrationsverket: Employing someone from outside the EU/EEA
• Migrationsverket: Employing someone for seasonal work
• Migrationsverket: If you are employing highly qualified workers
• Migrationsverket: Du har ansökt för första gången (begäran om att avgöra ärende)
• Förvaltningslagen (2017:900), 12 §