Work in Sweden as a foreign doctor, nurse or AHP (2026)

• SocialstyrelsenNational Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen)

  Licences for doctors, nurses, dentists, pharmacists, midwives and 17 other health professions

  Read the registration guide

1. 1

   1. Choose your route: Socialstyrelsen or a complementary programme

   Socialstyrelsen offers two paths for people educated outside the EU and EEA. Its own five-step route usually takes 2 to 4 years; a university complementary programme usually takes 1 to 3 years but has few places, and many universities ask for Socialstyrelsen's decision that your education is equivalent first. Most people start with step 2 below either way.
2. 2

   2. Apply to have your education assessed

   Send Socialstyrelsen the paper application form for assessment of education received outside the EU and EEA, with a passport copy, your diploma, a course list showing the length of your programme, any name-change document and a receipt for the SEK 990 fee. Documents not in Swedish, Norwegian, Danish or English need a translation by an authorised translator. You do not need a Swedish personal identity number, a residence permit or Swedish to apply, and Socialstyrelsen says the assessment takes about 3 months.
3. 3

   3. Learn Swedish, starting now

   Every step after the assessment is in Swedish, so the language is the real bottleneck. For licensed professions Socialstyrelsen accepts, for example, Swedish 3 or Swedish as a Second Language 3 (Komvux), Swedish at C1, a course or exam that gives eligibility for Swedish higher education, equivalent Norwegian or Danish, or a C1-level assessment by a healthcare provider. You send the proof at the latest with your licence application.
4. 4

   4. Pass the proficiency test (kunskapsprov)

   If the assessment is positive, you sit a theoretical part and then a practical part, arranged for Socialstyrelsen by a university: Umeå University for doctors, the University of Gothenburg for nurses, Karolinska Institutet for dentists and physiotherapists, Uppsala University for pharmacists. You have five attempts at the theory and three at the practical part, and once you fail a first attempt you have five years to pass. If you run out of attempts you cannot continue on Socialstyrelsen's route.
5. 5

   5. Take the course in Swedish laws and regulations

   Once Socialstyrelsen confirms you have passed the whole proficiency test, you apply to Lund University's web course on the laws and regulations that govern Swedish healthcare (författningskunskap). It is free, you can study full-time or part-time, and you may take it before, after or alongside your clinical training, as long as it is not during working hours.
6. 6

   6. Find a clinical training placement

   You must find your own placement and complete all of it at one workplace (midwives do two 3-month periods, at a maternity ward and a midwife's clinic). Socialstyrelsen sets 6 months for doctors, dentists, pharmacists and midwives and 3 months for nurses and physiotherapists. Previous experience does not shorten it, and Socialstyrelsen gives no financial support during it.
7. 7

   7. Get a special authorisation if you are a doctor

   Doctors need a special authorisation to do clinical training. Public healthcare providers can issue one once you have passed both parts of the proficiency test; private providers must apply to Socialstyrelsen. It lasts up to 7 months, so you can work one extra month after training, and with it you can also work as a doctor for a limited period before training starts.
8. 8

   8. Get a coordination number

   You need a Swedish personal identity number or a coordination number (samordningsnummer) to receive a licence. If you have neither when you apply, Socialstyrelsen asks the Swedish Tax Agency to assign one, and you will usually be called to an identity check at a Tax Agency office or, from abroad, at a Swedish passport authority. You can also apply for one yourself beforehand.
9. 9

   9. Apply for the licence

   Send the licence application form with a passport copy, your Swedish language certificate, the original certificate of clinical training and, if you have no personal identity or coordination number, your law course certificate. If you paid SEK 990 for the assessment you do not pay again. Socialstyrelsen checks the police records and says processing currently takes about 2 to 4 weeks for a complete application.
10. 10

    10. Work, and later specialise

    Once licensed you appear in HOSP and can work in your profession. Specialist recognition is a separate application after the licence: Socialstyrelsen says foreign specialists must first be licensed as doctors and then complete Swedish specialist training to receive a specialist certificate.

• Sweden does not ask for an English test for a licence. It asks for Swedish, Danish or Norwegian. Socialstyrelsen's regulations (HSLF-FS 2017:80) say you must show the necessary knowledge of one of these languages, and the language rules apply even to Nordic citizens.
• For licensed professions, Socialstyrelsen accepts a pass in Swedish 3 or Swedish as a Second Language 3 (for example at Komvux, municipal adult education), a test in Swedish, Danish or Norwegian at C1 on the Common European Framework of Reference, or a course or test that gives eligibility for higher education in Sweden, Denmark or Norway.
• A healthcare provider can also certify your language skills at C1. Socialstyrelsen's form for this must be completed by an operational manager and describe your listening, reading, speaking and writing, how the assessment was made and what tasks you performed during what period.
• For the protected title of assistant nurse (undersköterska), the level is lower: Swedish 1 or Swedish as a Second Language 1, or B2 on the Common European Framework.
• You do not need Swedish to apply for the assessment of your education, but the proficiency test, the law course and the clinical training are all in Swedish. You send your language certificate at the latest with your licence application.
• English still matters in places. Umeå University's theoretical test for doctors includes a part based on a scientific article in English, and the Swedish Migration Agency accepts permit documents in Swedish or English.

• Work permit for employees

  With a job offer from a Swedish employer, you apply for a work permit; your employer starts the application. You need a signed employment contract, pay and conditions at least on par with Swedish collective agreements or practice in the profession, and insurance arranged by the employer. The fee is SEK 2,200 for the employee, SEK 1,500 for each adult family member and SEK 750 per child, and a first permit lasts up to two years.

• Salary requirement and the healthcare exemption

  Since 1 June 2026 the salary must normally be at least 90 per cent of the median salary: SEK 34,470 a month for applications from 16 June 2026. The Migration Agency lists doctors, dentists and nurses with foreign qualifications who are in the process of obtaining Swedish professional certification as exempt; exempt applicants need at least 75 per cent of the median, which is SEK 28,725 a month. Your pay must still match the collective agreement.

• EU Blue Card

  For highly qualified employment of at least six months, you need higher education of at least 180 credits (or five years of relevant experience) and a salary of at least 1.25 times the average Swedish salary: SEK 53,625 a month since 15 July 2026. The fee is SEK 2,000, and a first Blue Card is valid for at least nine months and up to four years.

• Health insurance and good conduct

  From 1 June 2026, if you will stay a year or less you must show that you have, or have applied for, comprehensive health insurance. From 13 July 2026 stricter good conduct (vandel) requirements apply to residence permits, including those based on work.

• Family members

  Your spouse, partner and children under 21 can apply with you. You must meet a maintenance requirement: for 2025 the Migration Agency sets the amount you must have left after rent at SEK 6,243 for a single adult and SEK 10,314 for spouses or cohabiting partners, plus amounts for each child. New rules for accompanying family members applied from 1 October 2026, so check the current page.

• EU and EEA citizens

  EU and EEA citizens need no permit and apply to Socialstyrelsen as educated within the EU or EEA, with a SEK 990 fee. Doctors, dentists, pharmacists, nurses and midwives with harmonised EU qualifications can generally be recognised automatically. If you trained outside the EU but worked for at least three years under a licence in an EU or EEA country, you may qualify under Article 3.3 of Directive 2005/36/EC instead of the third-country route.

Average gross monthly salary in 2025 for all sectors, from Statistics Sweden's salary structure statistics (table LoneSpridSektYrk4AN, occupation codes SSYK 2012), published 16 June 2026. These are national averages, not a pay scale: Swedish salaries are set individually within collective agreements, and your pay depends on your region, employer and experience. Before you are licensed, a role that does not require a licence will usually pay less.

Monthly amounts

• Specialist physician (specialistläkare)

  SEK 98,000

  SCB 2025, SSYK 2211. Median SEK 96,800.

• Doctor in specialist training (ST-läkare)

  SEK 58,900

  SCB 2025, SSYK 2212. Median SEK 56,300.

• Intern doctor (AT-läkare)

  SEK 41,700

  SCB 2025, SSYK 2213. Median SEK 39,700.

• Registered nurse (grundutbildad sjuksköterska)

  SEK 44,000

  SCB 2025, SSYK 2221. Median SEK 42,900.

• Intensive care nurse

  SEK 52,600

  SCB 2025, SSYK 2228. Median SEK 51,700.

• Midwife (barnmorska)

  SEK 50,000

  SCB 2025, SSYK 2222. Median SEK 48,300.

• Dentist (tandläkare)

  SEK 57,500

  SCB 2025, SSYK 2260. Median SEK 53,600.

• Physiotherapist

  SEK 40,100

  SCB 2025, SSYK 2272. Median SEK 40,000.