Swedish passport

  • Swedish passport
  • Svenskt pass
Front cover of a biometric Swedish passport issued since 2022
TypePassport
Issued byKingdom of Sweden
First issued1812 (first passport regulations, as amendment to the Basic Laws of Sweden)[1]
1998 (first machine-readable EU design)
1 October 2005 (first biometric version)
2 January 2012 (second biometric version)
1 January 2022 (current biometric version)[2]
PurposeIdentification
EligibilitySwedish citizenship
Expiration5 years after issuance for individuals aged 12 and above; 3 years for citizens 11 and under.
Cost400 SEK[3] (1,600 at embassies)[4]

Swedish passports (Swedish: Svenskt Pass) are issued to nationals of Sweden for the purpose of international travel. Besides serving as proof of Swedish citizenship, they facilitate the process of securing assistance from Swedish consular officials abroad (or other EU or Nordic missions[5][6] if a Swedish embassy or consulate is not available).

Swedish passports are issued by the Swedish Police and applications are made at police stations equipped with a passport terminal for taking photographs and fingerprints. Passports issued since 1 October 2005 are biometric, and valid for five years.[7] Earlier passports were valid for ten years (adults) or five years (children).

It is possible for a Swedish citizen to hold two valid passports at the same time if it is needed for work or other special reasons for as long as the necessity applies,[8][9] but not longer than the ordinary passport is valid for. This can be useful when travelling to states which reject a passport with an entry stamp or visa of another state in it (Israel vs several Arab states). It can also be used when the ordinary passport is held by another country's embassy for processing a visa application.

In 2013, Swedish passports were reported to be among the most frequently traded passports on the black market. The reason cited was that there was no limit on the number of replacement passports a holder could request. This prompted calls for legislation to limit the number of times replacement passports could be issued per individual.[10] On 15 April 2016 a new law was enacted so that no more than three passports could be issued to the same person within a five-year period.[11]

Every Swedish citizen is also a citizen of the European Union and the passport, along with the national identity card allows for freedom of movement in any of the states of the European Economic Area and Switzerland. For travel within the Nordic countries, the Nordic Passport Union allows Nordic citizens to move freely without requiring identity documentation.

  1. ^ "Passets historia: Från jordbruksarbetare till vaccinpass". 12 April 2021.
  2. ^ "Nya pass och nationella identitetskort den 1 januari 2022 | Polismyndigheten".
  3. ^ Pass och nationellt id-kort
  4. ^ "Vad kostar ett nytt pass; Embassy of Sweden". swedenabroad.se.
  5. ^ "Meld. St. 12 (2010–2011)". April 2011.
  6. ^ Article 34 of the Helsinki Treaty (Article 34 p. 8)
  7. ^ "Fakta om nya passet". Swedish Police Authority. Archived from the original on 1 April 2010. Retrieved 17 May 2010.
  8. ^ "Passförodning (1979:664)" (in Swedish). Retrieved 25 February 2012.
  9. ^ "Passförodning (1979:664)" (in Swedish). Retrieved 25 February 2012.
  10. ^ Olaglig handel med svenska pass ökar, from Dagens Nyheter, accessed 29 September 2013
  11. ^ New rules to reduce abuse of Swedish passports, from Government of Sweden, accessed 15 April 2016

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