Sweden runs both parent days on its own calendar, so a greeting timed by your home date usually lands on the wrong Sunday. Here are the Swedish dates, why they differ, what changes on the day and what to do if you are someone’s guest.
When you need this
You are in Sweden in late May or in November and every florist, card rack and menswear window says Mors dag or Fars dag. Or you are staying with a Swedish host family, an au pair family or a partner’s parents, and want to get the Sunday right. Or you are from Germany, Austria or the United States and want to send a card at the Swedish time rather than your own.
It also helps if you are simply planning a Sunday: you will want to know whether anything closes (it doesn’t) and why the brunch place is full.
The dates
Both days are tied to a Sunday, never to a fixed date. Mother’s Day is the last Sunday in May; Father’s Day is the second Sunday in November.
| Year | Mother’s Day (mors dag) | Father’s Day (fars dag) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Sunday 31 May (passed) | Sunday 8 November |
| 2027 | Sunday 30 May | Sunday 14 November |
| 2028 | Sunday 28 May | Sunday 12 November |
The calendar rule is all there is. No Swedish statute fixes either date; they are set by custom and printed in every Swedish calendar. We read both laws that could have named them, the Public Holidays Act and the flag-day ordinance, and neither does.
Some years Mother’s Day falls on the same Sunday as Whit Sunday (pingstdagen), the seventh Sunday after Easter. Then both are marked on the same day. You may read online that Mother’s Day moves a week when that happens; we found no source for such a rule.
Why Sweden has its own dates
Mother’s Day has been celebrated in Sweden since 1919. The writer Cecilia Bååth-Holmberg introduced it after the American model. According to Statistics Sweden, the last Sunday in May was chosen because by then there were plenty of flowers and greenery to pick all over the country. In Germany and Austria, by contrast, Mother’s Day is the second Sunday in May, so the Swedish day usually comes two to three weeks later.
Father’s Day arrived in 1931, on the retail trade’s initiative, with Mother’s Day as its commercial model. The American original started in June 1910 in Spokane, Washington, and Sweden first held it in June too. That put it only a few weeks after Mother’s Day, so it was moved to the second Sunday in November, where it has stayed.
The result surprises many visitors:
- A Mother’s Day card timed for the German or Austrian date arrives about two weeks early.
- A June Father’s Day card arrives five months early.
- Ascension Day (Kristi himmelsfärdsdag), the sixth Thursday after Easter, is a Swedish public holiday but has nothing to do with fathers here. Swedish Father’s Day is in November.
Not a holiday, not a flag day
Neither parent day is a public holiday (allmän helgdag). Sweden’s Public Holidays Act lists all Sundays plus thirteen named days, from New Year’s Day to Boxing Day. Mors dag and fars dag are not among the named days. Because both always fall on a Sunday, which is a public holiday in its own right, there is no extra day off and no “observed” Monday.
Nor are they official flag days. The flag-day ordinance lists 19 days. In November the only one is Gustavus Adolphus Day on 6 November, two days before Father’s Day 2026. You may still see a flag on a private pole: a 1920 instruction booklet for Mother’s Day told families to hoist the Swedish flag at home, and some still do. That is a household choice, not an official occasion. Our guide to the Swedish flag and flag days explains what the poles mean.
What this means on the day:
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do shops close? | No. Swedish shop hours have been free since 1972, Sundays included, so it is a normal Sunday. |
| Do buses and trains run differently? | Only as on any Sunday. |
| Do offices or schools close on Monday? | No. |
| Are restaurants open? | As on any Sunday; book brunch if you want a table. |
For the days that really do close things, see Swedish public holidays, and for Sunday trading in general, opening hours in Sweden.
How Swedish families celebrate
Both days are home customs, and the main event is the morning. The 1920 Mother’s Day booklet, quoted by Statistics Sweden and by Nordiska museet via SVT, set a pattern that is still recognisable:
- The children greet their mother with a song in the morning.
- She is served coffee and bread before getting up, with flowers and a small gift.
- She rests from housework: the children make the beds, sweep, cook and wash up.
- At afternoon coffee or in the evening there is a small ceremony, with the father taking part.
- Children who live away send a letter, telegram or card.
Swap the telegram for a phone call and the rest holds up well. A typical morning is breakfast or coffee in bed (frukost på sängen), a card the children made, flowers and a modest present. It is the same ritual Swedes use for birthdays; our guide to Swedish birthdays describes the song and the tray in detail.
Father’s Day follows the same script in November. Its running joke is the tie (slips), the gift every Swedish dad is assumed to receive, alongside cards and “World’s best dad” mugs. In the days before either Sunday, preschool children practise songs and make cards to bring home.
Later in the day, a cake on the fika table (the coffee-and-cake break) is a natural way to keep it going. Some adults celebrate a mother-in-law (svärmor) as well; children who live away call or send a card.
The shops push both days hard, and a Nordiska museet ethnologist has pointed out that the parent days took root along with the welfare state’s focus on the nuclear family. In most homes the day itself stays small and homemade.
If you are a guest
If you are staying with a Swedish family on one of these Sundays, a small gesture is all that is expected.
- Bring something small. Flowers or a cake for the coffee table works for either day. If there are children, a card from them counts for more than anything you buy.
- Say it in Swedish. Grattis på mors dag! or Grattis på fars dag! means “Happy Mother’s Day” or “Happy Father’s Day” (literally “congratulations on”).
- Leave the morning to the family. If you hear singing and a tray going past, that is the ritual; join in if invited.
- Plan ahead. Buy flowers or a cake the day before, and book a table if you are taking someone out for brunch.
Spelling note for cards: the Swedish names have no apostrophe. The “s” in mors and fars is the genitive (mor = mother, far = father), so it is mors dag, not “mor’s dag”.
| Swedish | Meaning |
|---|---|
| mors dag | Mother’s Day |
| fars dag | Father’s Day |
| Grattis på mors dag / fars dag | Happy Mother’s / Father’s Day |
| morsdagspresent / farsdagspresent | Mother’s / Father’s Day present |
| frukost på sängen | breakfast in bed |
| slips | tie |
A day that can hurt
Not everyone has a mother or father to celebrate. A Church of Sweden priest in Boden has noted that Father’s Day has been criticised for exactly that reason. As a visitor or colleague, ask “Are you doing anything this Sunday?” rather than “What are you doing for your dad?”, and let people raise their own families.
Practical information
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Mother’s Day (mors dag) | Last Sunday in May |
| Father’s Day (fars dag) | Second Sunday in November |
| Public holiday? | No; both fall on a Sunday anyway |
| Official flag day? | No |
| Shops and transport | Normal Sunday hours and timetables |
| Cost of joining in | Nothing beyond ordinary shop prices for flowers, cards or cake (checked 2026-10-15) |
| Greeting | Grattis på mors dag / Grattis på fars dag |
FAQ
When is Mother’s Day in Sweden?
Sweden celebrates Mother’s Day, mors dag, on the last Sunday in May: 30 May in 2027 and 28 May in 2028. That is usually two to three weeks later than in Germany and Austria, which use the second Sunday in May. The Swedish date goes back to 1919 and was reportedly chosen because flowers are plentiful across the country by late May.
When is Father’s Day in Sweden?
Swedish Father’s Day, fars dag, is the second Sunday in November: 8 November 2026, 14 November 2027 and 12 November 2028. The custom arrived in 1931 and was first held in June, but that was too close to Mother’s Day, so it moved to November. It is not linked to Ascension Day or to the American June date.
Are Mother’s Day and Father’s Day public holidays in Sweden?
No. Neither is in Sweden’s Public Holidays Act or among the official flag days. Both always fall on a Sunday, which is a public holiday anyway, so nothing extra closes. Shops, restaurants and public transport run as on any other Sunday, and there is no day off on the Monday after.
How do Swedes celebrate Mother’s Day and Father’s Day?
At home, and mostly in the morning. Children wake the parent with a song and coffee or breakfast in bed, with a handmade card, flowers or a small gift. Father’s Day has a running joke about ties. Some families add a cake to the afternoon coffee or celebrate a mother-in-law too, and absent children call or send a card.
What should I give a Swedish host on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day?
Something small. Flowers or a cake for the coffee table works for either day, with a card from the children if there are any. Expensive presents are not expected from a guest. Wish them Grattis på mors dag or Grattis på fars dag, meaning “congratulations on Mother’s Day” or “Father’s Day”.
Why is Swedish Father’s Day in November?
Father’s Day reached Sweden in 1931 through the retail trade, modelled on the already established Mother’s Day. It was first celebrated in June, as in the United States, but that was too close to Mother’s Day in late May. It was moved to the second Sunday in November, where it has stayed.
Related guides
- Swedish public holidays — the days that actually close shops and offices.
- The Swedish flag and flag days — why a flag on a weekday usually means a royal or national date, not a parent day.
- Swedish birthdays — the same breakfast-in-bed ritual, with the song.
- Dinner at a Swedish home — what to bring and expect as a guest any other time.
- Sweden in November — where Father’s Day sits in the month’s calendar.
Facts verified 2026-10-15. Sources: Sveriges riksdag (Lag 1989:253, Förordning 1982:270), SCB, Svenska kyrkan, SVT, TV4, University of Innsbruck — full register in this topic’s source file. Found something outdated? Tell us and we’ll fix it.