The belt has stopped and your suitcase isn’t on it. What you do in the next twenty minutes decides how easy the rest is. Here is the sequence, the deadlines that can cost you the claim, and where to complain in Sweden.
When you need this
You are standing at an empty belt at Arlanda, Landvetter or another Swedish airport. Your bag came out damaged or opened, or a connection in Copenhagen, Amsterdam or Frankfurt left it behind. Or you are three weeks on, the bag is still missing, and the airline has gone quiet.
First: stay in the baggage hall
Don’t walk through customs to “sort it out later”. Konsumentverket, the Swedish consumer agency, puts it first: report the missing bag in the arrival hall and get a Property Irregularity Report (PIR) filled in there.
- Check the special-baggage point beside the belts. Skis, golf bags and pushchairs come out there, not on the belt.
- Go to the baggage service desk of the airline that flew your last leg. On a connecting journey you may legally claim from the first airline, the last, or the one on whose leg it went wrong. Report it where you landed.
- File the PIR. Show your boarding pass and the baggage tag stub, describe the bag and what’s in it, and give a delivery address in Sweden and a phone number.
- Keep the file reference. SAS uses a 10-character code such as ARNSK12345. Photograph the report.
- Ask two questions at the desk: will the airline deliver the bag to your address, and what does it consider a reasonable essentials spend?
Missed the desk? Some airlines accept an online report for a short time after landing — SAS says 72 hours. Do it in the hall if you possibly can, though.
Who handles your bag (it isn’t the airport)
The single most common wrong turn is the airport information desk. Swedavia, which runs Arlanda, Landvetter and most Swedish airports, says plainly that the airline is legally responsible for you and your bag from A to B. Swedavia has no access to airlines’ baggage data and cannot trace anything.
The person at the airline’s desk usually works for a ground-handling company the airline contracts:
| Airport | Ground handlers listed by Swedavia |
|---|---|
| Stockholm Arlanda | Aviator, Menzies, SAS Ground Handling |
| Göteborg Landvetter | Aviator, Menzies |
| Malmö | Aviator |
You don’t need to know which one serves your airline. Swedavia’s airline list for each airport shows the right baggage service. When storms or snow cause backlogs at Arlanda, Swedavia warns that handlers are overloaded and often don’t answer the phone. That’s one more reason to file before you leave. Our Arlanda Airport arrival guide and Landvetter Airport guide show where the reclaim hall sits on your route.
While you wait: track it, buy essentials, keep receipts
Track the file online with your reference and surname, either on your airline’s baggage page or on the WorldTracer tracing page most airlines use.
Then buy what you actually need: toiletries, underwear, a change of clothes, a charger, a warm layer if it’s cold. The airline pays proven, reasonable costs, not a flat allowance, so keep every kvitto (receipt). A new wardrobe won’t be reimbursed; a toothbrush and a shirt will.
The deadlines that decide your claim
The rules come from the Montreal Convention, the international treaty on airline liability. EU airlines apply it to every flight, Swedish domestic flights included. The deadlines are strict: miss one and you have no claim against the airline, except in a case of fraud.
| Situation | Deadline | Counted from |
|---|---|---|
| Bag damaged or items missing | 7 days, in writing | The day you received the bag |
| Bag delayed — claim your costs | 21 days, in writing | The day the bag was placed at your disposal |
| Bag still missing | Counts as lost after 21 days | The day it should have arrived |
| Court action | 2 years | Arrival, or when the flight should have arrived |
“In writing” means an email or the airline’s claim form. A phone call doesn’t count. Attach the PIR, the receipts, the tag stub and your boarding pass.
When the bag is lost: what you can claim
A checked bag counts as lost when the airline admits the loss, or when it hasn’t arrived 21 days after it should have. From then you claim the value of the bag and its contents, with receipts or other proof, not only your essentials.
The airline’s liability is capped at 1,519 Special Drawing Rights (SDR) per passenger for loss, damage and delay together. Two points people miss:
- It’s a ceiling, not a payout. You get your proven loss, up to the cap.
- It’s per passenger, not per bag. A laptop or camera in a checked bag can use up the whole cap on its own. Carry valuables in the cabin, where the airline is liable only if it was at fault.
Outdated figure warning: the cap rose from 1,288 to 1,519 SDR on 28 December 2024. Many pages, including the EU’s own Your Europe portal, still print the older amount (“approximately €1,300”). Use 1,519 SDR.
The only way to get a higher limit is a special declaration of value when you check the bag in. The airline may charge a supplementary sum for it, and you can’t make one after the event.
If the airline says no: ARN and Konsument Europa
Complain in writing to the airline first. If it rejects the claim or doesn’t answer, Sweden has an out-of-court route:
- Allmänna reklamationsnämnden (ARN), the National Board for Consumer Disputes, reviews airline baggage disputes. Your case must reach it within one year of your first complaint to the airline, and the claim must clear the travel area’s value threshold. ARN accepts English if the airline doesn’t object and usually decides within about six months. Its decisions are recommendations, but most companies follow them. ARN charges a filing fee (amount in the table below) — it has not been free since August 2024.
- Konsument Europa, Sweden’s European Consumer Centre, helps when the airline is based in another EU or EEA country, or the UK, and has no Swedish connection for ARN.
- Court remains open within the two-year limit.
Coming, but not yet in force: in July 2026 the EU adopted a reform of its baggage rules. Airports will have to offer a common complaint form in the baggage hall, and airlines in their apps and on their websites. The date you submit it will count as your filing date. It applies 12 months and 20 days after publication in the EU’s Official Journal. Until then, the steps above are the rules.
Insurance: a second source, not a replacement
Konsumenternas, the Swedish consumer advice bureaus for banking and insurance, name three possible payers for a delayed bag: the airline, travel insurance and card insurance. Insurers ask for the PIR and your receipts, so keep copies. Expect each payer to ask what the other has paid, and check your policy for how long the delay must last.
One catch: delay on the homeward flight usually earns no insurance payment for the delay itself. For a visitor, the flight into Sweden is the outbound one. See travel insurance for Sweden, and gear insurance for cameras and laptops worth more than the cap.
Left something on the plane or in the terminal?
That isn’t a baggage claim; it’s lost property (hittegods). Items left on board go to the airline. At Arlanda, things left in the terminal go to the airport’s lost property, run by Smarte Carte. Our lost property guide covers both airports.
Practical information
| Where to report | Airline’s baggage service desk in the arrival hall, before leaving |
| Report reference | PIR file number (SAS example: ARNSK12345) |
| Damage complaint | Within 7 days of receiving the bag, in writing |
| Delay claim | Within 21 days of receiving the bag, in writing |
| Bag counts as lost | After 21 days, or earlier if the airline admits it |
| Liability cap | 1,519 SDR per passenger (about 21,800 kr, Konsumentverket’s estimate) |
| ARN | 150 kr fee, non-refundable; within one year of your first complaint |
| Court | Within 2 years; small claims under 29,600 kr cost 900 kr |
| Lost property at Arlanda terminal | Smarte Carte |
Cap and fees checked 2026-10-01 with ICAO, Konsumentverket and ARN. The krona value of the SDR moves with exchange rates.
FAQ
What should I do if my bag doesn’t arrive at Arlanda?
Stay in the baggage hall. Check the special-baggage point, then go to the baggage service desk of the airline that flew you in — Swedavia cannot trace bags. File a Property Irregularity Report, keep the reference, the tag stub and your boarding pass, and give a delivery address in Sweden. Then track the file online with the reference and your surname.
How long before a delayed bag counts as lost?
21 days. Under the Montreal Convention a checked bag that has not arrived 21 days after it should have counts as lost, or earlier if the airline admits the loss. From then you claim the value of the bag and its contents in writing, with receipts or other proof, rather than only your delay costs.
What can I buy while my luggage is delayed?
Reasonable necessities: toiletries, underwear, a change of clothes, a phone charger, perhaps a coat if it is cold. Keep every receipt, because the airline pays proven costs rather than a flat sum; ask at the desk what it considers reasonable. Claim in writing within 21 days of getting the bag back, attaching the receipts and the PIR.
How much compensation can I get for lost luggage?
Your proven loss, up to 1,519 Special Drawing Rights per passenger — about 21,800 kr by Konsumentverket’s estimate. That cap has applied since 28 December 2024 and covers loss, damage and delay together; older pages still quote lower figures. A higher limit applies only if you made a special declaration of value at check-in.
What is the deadline to claim for delayed or damaged baggage?
Seven days from receiving the bag for damage, and 21 days from the bag being placed at your disposal for delay. The complaint must be in writing — an email is fine, a phone call is not. Miss the deadline and the claim against the airline is lost. Any court action must start within two years.
The airline rejected my claim. Where can I complain in Sweden?
To ARN, the National Board for Consumer Disputes, within one year of first complaining to the airline. It charges a non-refundable 150 kr fee, accepts English if the airline does not object, and usually decides in about six months; decisions are recommendations most firms follow. For EU airlines without a Swedish connection, Konsument Europa helps instead.
Will my travel insurance pay as well as the airline?
Possibly. Konsumenternas lists the airline, travel insurance and card insurance as possible sources of payment for a delayed bag, and insurers ask for the PIR and receipts. Expect each to ask what the other has already paid, and check your policy’s terms for how long the delay must last. Delay on the homeward flight usually earns no insurance payment.
Related guides
- Arlanda Airport arrival guide — where the reclaim hall and baggage desks sit on your route.
- Landvetter Airport guide — the one-terminal layout in Gothenburg.
- Lost property in Sweden — for things left on the plane or in the terminal.
- Travel insurance for Sweden — what a policy adds on top of the airline’s cap.
- Flight delay compensation — when you, not just your bag, arrived late.
Facts verified 2026-10-01. Sources: the Montreal Convention, ICAO, Konsumentverket, Swedavia, ARN and the Council of the EU — full register in this topic’s source file. Found something outdated? Tell us and we’ll fix it.