Driving in Sweden is calm, orderly and, for most of the year, easy. Roads are well kept, drivers stop for pedestrians, and a snowplough is as normal as a bus. What surprises newcomers is the paperwork around the car: a licence you do not need to exchange, a registration that takes several steps, and a toll system with no barriers.
Is your driving licence valid in Sweden?
If your licence comes from an EEA country (the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway), it remains valid in Sweden as long as it is valid in your country, even if you register as a Swedish resident. You do not have to exchange it. If you want to, because it is about to expire, for example, you must be a permanent resident, which the Transport Agency defines as living in Sweden at least 185 days a calendar year because of personal and professional ties. Studying in Sweden does not change your permanent residence in this sense.
There is a recent twist. Since 1 May 2026, if your EU licence was itself obtained by exchanging a licence from a country outside the EEA, the Transport Agency can refuse the exchange, unless that licence was issued after a driving test in the EEA, comes from a British, Swiss, Japanese or Faroese licence, or you held it at least five years before moving to Sweden.
Can you exchange a British or Swiss licence?
Licences from the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Japan and the Faroe Islands are the only non-EEA licences that can be exchanged, and only under conditions: you must meet the Swedish personal and medical requirements and be a permanent resident.
For a Swiss licence, to keep driving without interruption, the application must reach the Transport Agency within one year of your first registration in Sweden. For a British licence, the exchange remains possible even after more than a year of registered residence.
The process: order the application form (ansökan om utbyte av utländskt körkort, in Swedish) from the Transport Agency, send it with your original licence to Örebro, then, when it is approved, visit a licence office (förarprovskontor) with valid ID for the photo and signature, and pay the 375 SEK production fee. The heavy categories (C1, C, D1, D and trailers) need a medical certificate or a health declaration with an eye test. Your old licence is returned to the authority that issued it, so you will not get it back. While your original is with the agency, the police decide whether you may drive, and the agency suggests carrying a copy and a valid ID.
Other non-EEA licences cannot be exchanged. They stop being valid after you have been a registered resident for more than one year, unless the agency grants an exemption, and then you must take the Swedish driving test. If your licence is not in English, German or French and was not issued under the 1949 or 1968 road traffic conventions, it needs a certified translation.
Unsure which rule applies to your licence, your date of registration or your car? Moovy can check your case against the Transport Agency's pages and list the documents to send, in the right order, so you do not lose an original in the post.
How do you register a foreign car for driving in Sweden?
If you live in Sweden most of the year, the car must be registered here. A car imported to be registered can be driven for seven days from the date of import with valid foreign plates and insurance. After that you need a temporary registration (three months, not extendable), except to drive to the registration inspection.
- Bring the car in. For a new car bought in another EU country, VAT may have to be paid in Sweden first. From outside the EU, customs clearance may come first.
- Apply for the origin check (ursprungskontroll): 1,240 SEK, paid beforehand, online or by registered letter with the originals. The applicant must be the future owner registered in Sweden; if the car changes owner before registration, you start again. The decision is valid five years.
- Book the registration inspection (registreringsbesiktning) at an approved inspection company, which sets its own price. The company registers the car and assigns the number.
- Receive the plates and registration certificate at your Swedish address, in around five working days. They are never sent abroad.
- Activate the registration, with valid insurance, and pay the annual vehicle tax (fordonsskatt) when the notice arrives.
For a standard-series car already permanently registered elsewhere in the EU, the foreign registration certificate generally proves technical conformity. Right-hand-drive cars, miles-per-hour speedometers and small series do not benefit from the simplified route, and a car coming from the UK or Switzerland may need customs clearance.
What does a car cost to run?
Third-party insurance (trafikförsäkring) is mandatory as soon as the vehicle is on the road. A car driven uninsured is flagged automatically to the Swedish motor insurers' association, and the fee is far higher than a normal premium.
The vehicle tax depends on the car. Petrol, diesel and ethanol cars with high CO2 emissions pay a higher tax, the malus, for three years from the date the car first becomes taxable. For cars first taxable on or after 1 June 2022, the Transport Agency lists a basic charge of 360 SEK a year plus 107 SEK per gram of CO2 above 75 g/km and up to 125 g/km, and 132 SEK per gram above 125 g/km; diesel adds an environmental surcharge and a fuel surcharge. Cars first taxable earlier follow different thresholds and rates. The tax is usually paid a year ahead, in three instalments if it exceeds 3,600 SEK. The old "bonus" for low-emission cars has been abolished; it concerned cars ordered by 8 November 2022 at the latest. Ask the Transport Agency's online service for your car's amount.
How does congestion tax work in Stockholm and Gothenburg?
There are no barriers. Cameras read your number plate and a bill arrives after the fact. In 2026 in Stockholm the charge is from 11 to 45 SEK per passage depending on time and season, between 06:00 and 18:29, up to 135 SEK a day in high season and 105 SEK in low season, and also on the Essingeleden. In Gothenburg the charge is 9 to 22 SEK per passage, up to 60 SEK a day, and several passages within 60 minutes count once. There is no charge on public holidays or in July (with a small exception in Stockholm for the first working days).
A late payment adds 500 SEK. Foreign-registered cars pay too, through EPASS24. See best places to live in Sweden before you decide you need a car at all in a big city.
What are the winter rules for driving in Sweden?
From 1 December to 31 March, when winter conditions apply, winter tyres are compulsory, with at least 3 mm of tread, the police being the judge of conditions. Studded tyres are allowed from 1 October to 15 April. The rules also apply to foreign cars. Summer tyres in a December snowstorm are an offence, whatever the plates say.
What are the common mistakes?
- Letting the year pass on a Swiss licence.
- Sending a copy instead of the original. The agency wants the original.
- Selling the car mid-process. The origin check is tied to the applicant.
- Ignoring the malus on a recent used import.
- Forgetting the congestion tax, which costs 500 SEK extra if paid late.
What should you carry when driving in Sweden?
Carry your licence, your vehicle registration certificate and proof of insurance, as in most of Europe. If your original licence is with the Transport Agency for an exchange, carry a copy and a valid ID, as the agency advises, because the police decide whether you may drive during that period.
Know the basics of the road. Third-party insurance is mandatory from the moment the vehicle is on the road. Congestion tax is billed after the fact, so keep the invoice from the system and pay it before the due date to avoid the 500 SEK surcharge. In winter, check the tread depth of your tyres (3 mm at least) before 1 December, and remember that the police judge whether conditions are wintry. Summer tyres on a snowy road are an offence even on a foreign car.
If you drive a car from another country for short periods, the seven-day and three-month rules matter. A car imported to be registered can be driven for seven days with valid foreign registration and insurance. Beyond that, you need a temporary registration, valid three months and not extendable, unless you are driving to the registration inspection. For a long stay, the 185-day rule means the car belongs in the Swedish register.
Last, check the environmental charges before you import a recent car. A petrol, diesel or ethanol car may still be in its three-year malus period, which adds a basic charge plus a charge per gram of CO2 above the threshold. That can weigh on the cost of bringing a second-hand car from abroad. When in doubt, ask the Transport Agency's online service for the tax on your exact car before you buy.
Where does this fit in your move?
After you register, because the plates are sent to a Swedish address. See moving to Sweden: the step-by-step guide and, for Brits, moving to Sweden from the UK.