If you have worked in Sweden, even for a year, you have a Swedish pension. Here is how the three layers work, what the orange envelope tells you and what it leaves out, and what happens to the money when you leave.
When you need this
An orange envelope has turned up in your mailbox, in Sweden or forwarded to your home abroad. Your new contract mentions tjänstepension (occupational pension), ITP or a collective agreement. You are leaving after a few years of work or a degree with a part-time job and want to know whether you can take the contributions with you. Or a colleague mentioned the riktålder and you thought Sweden retired everyone at 65.
The three layers
Swedish retirement income is built in three layers, and the orange envelope covers only the first.
| Layer | Who pays in | Who runs it | What a foreigner should know |
|---|---|---|---|
| National public pension (allmän pension) | Part of the taxes on your pay | Pensionsmyndigheten, the Swedish Pensions Agency | Earned on all taxable income in Sweden, up to a ceiling |
| Occupational pension (tjänstepension) | Your employer | Pension companies chosen under the agreement | About 90% of employees have one; check your contract |
| Private savings | You | Banks and insurers | No tax deduction for most employees since 2016 |
The state layer has two parts you earn. Every year, 18.5% of your pensionable income is credited to you: 16% goes to the income pension (inkomstpension), a notional account paid from current contributions, and 2.5% goes to the premium pension (premiepension), which is invested in funds. You can pick funds yourself or leave the money in AP7 Såfa, the state’s default portfolio. Income above 7.5 income base amounts earns nothing more.
“Pensionable income” is wider than salary. Parental benefit, unemployment benefit, sickness compensation and self-employment income all count, and the state adds credits for the first four years of a child’s life, for study-grant years and for military service. That is one reason unemployment insurance and parental leave matter for retirement too.
Below the earned layers sits a safety net, the guarantee pension (garantipension), for people with little or no earned pension. It depends not on income but on how long you have lived in Sweden, and that difference matters a lot for anyone who leaves.
What the orange envelope shows
The orange kuvertet is Pensionsmyndigheten’s annual statement of your national public pension. Everyone who has earned toward it gets one, including people who have since moved abroad. The 2026 mailing went out in February and March, on paper or to a Swedish digital mailbox if you have one (that needs a Swedish e-ID).
For someone still working, it shows:
- how much income pension and premium pension you have earned so far, up to your last assessed income
- which funds your premium pension is invested in, and how they performed during the year
For someone already drawing a pension, it shows the monthly amount and the payment days.
What it does not show is your total pension. The forecast of the state pension was taken out of the envelope in 2018, partly because a large share of recipients believed the state figure was all they would ever get. Most employees also have an occupational pension, so the envelope understates their retirement income. For a forecast of the whole picture, log in to Pensionsmyndigheten’s My Pages or to minPension.se, a free service run jointly by the state and the pension companies that shows all three layers together.
No BankID? Pensionsmyndigheten also accepts Freja eID+ and approved foreign e-IDs through its ForeignID login, and paper forms still work (see BankID for visitors).
Workplace pension: the layer the envelope ignores
Roughly nine in ten employees in Sweden have an occupational pension, mostly through one of four big collective agreements:
| Agreement | Who it covers |
|---|---|
| ITP | Private-sector white-collar staff |
| Avtalspension SAF-LO | Private-sector blue-collar workers |
| AKAP-KR | Municipal and regional employees |
| PA 16 | State employees |
Under a typical agreement the employer pays 4.5 to 6% of salary up to the state-pension ceiling, and around 30% on salary above it, which is why the occupational pension matters most for higher earners. An employer without a collective agreement is not obliged to offer the same; some have an individual solution and some have none, so read your contract (see moving to Sweden for work).
Occupational pensions can often be paid over a fixed period, such as 5, 10, 15 or 20 years, instead of for life; lifelong payment is the default. Some start automatically at 65, others need an application, so ask each pension company.
Private saving is the third layer. Since 2016 most employees get no tax deduction for private pension saving; it survives only for people with no pension rights at work and for active business income. In practice Swedes save through an investment savings account or an endowment insurance instead.
When you can draw it: the riktålder
Sweden has no fixed retirement age. Since 2026, ages are tied to a riktålder (benchmark age) that follows life expectancy and is set six years in advance.
| Born | Benchmark age | Earliest income and premium pension |
|---|---|---|
| 1960–1964 | 67 | 62–64, by transitional rules |
| 1965–1966 | 67 (forecast) | 64 |
| 1967–1981 | 68 (forecast) | 64–65 |
| 1982–1997 | 69 (forecast) | 65–66 |
| 1998–2000 | 70 (forecast) | 66 |
The rule behind the table: you can draw income and premium pension three years before your benchmark age, and the guarantee pension, income pension complement and housing supplement from it. You have the right to keep working until 69, and longer by agreement with your employer.
Three things surprise newcomers. The pension is never paid automatically: you apply, and it starts no earlier than the month your application arrives, with no back pay. It is paid monthly for life and cannot be taken as a lump sum. And from the year you turn 67, pension income is taxed more lightly.
Leaving Sweden: what follows you and what stops
This is where the system is kinder than many expats expect, and stricter in one place.
| Part | If you move abroad |
|---|---|
| Income pension | Kept, paid to any country |
| Premium pension | Kept, paid to any country |
| Occupational pension | Kept |
| Income pension complement | Paid in the EEA, Switzerland and social-security-agreement countries |
| Guarantee pension | Stops: paid only to people living in Sweden |
| Housing supplement, elderly support | Stops |
There is no refund of contributions when you leave. Your rights stay in the system until you reach the minimum age and apply. The guarantee pension used to follow pensioners within the EU, but the Riksdag ended that from October 2022 for new emigrants and from January 2023 for those already abroad. Many expat guides have not caught up.
How you claim depends on where you live. In an EEA country or Switzerland, you apply through your own country’s pension authority. Elsewhere, you apply to Pensionsmyndigheten on a form, at least six months ahead, with a life certificate. Once paid, you must send a life certificate every year or the payments stop.
Tax is the other moving part. A non-resident normally pays SINK, a flat special income tax, on a Swedish pension. Skatteverket cut it to 22.5% from 1 January 2026, and it falls to 20% from 1 January 2027, charged only above a monthly tax-free amount. Pensionsmyndigheten’s own English page still says 25%. You can choose ordinary Swedish taxation instead, and a tax treaty may give your country of residence the right to tax. Apply for SINK together with the pension, about six months ahead.
Before you go, update your address with Skatteverket so the envelopes and life certificates find you, and note which pension companies hold your occupational money (see leaving Sweden).
Practical information
| Item | Figure | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| State pension contribution | 18.5% of pensionable income (16% income, 2.5% premium) | 2026-10-14 |
| Income ceiling for state pension, 2026 | 7.5 income base amounts = 52,125 kr a month | 2026-10-14 |
| Typical agreement employer contribution | 4.5–6% up to the ceiling, 30–31.5% above | 2026-10-14 |
| SINK on a Swedish pension, non-resident | 22.5% in 2026, 20% from 2027 | 2026-10-14 |
| SINK monthly tax-free amount, 2026 | 3,799 kr | 2026-10-14 |
| Full guarantee pension residence | 40 years in Sweden (minimum 3) | 2026-10-14 |
| minPension, Pensionsmyndigheten services | Free | 2026-10-14 |
Guarantee-pension and housing-supplement amounts change every January; Pensionsmyndigheten publishes the current figures. This is general information, not financial advice.
FAQ
What is the orange envelope in Sweden?
It is the annual statement of your Swedish national public pension, sent by Pensionsmyndigheten each year to everyone who has earned toward it, including people now living abroad. It shows what you have earned in income pension and premium pension and how your funds performed. It does not cover workplace pension, so it understates most people’s total.
Can I get my Swedish pension contributions back when I leave Sweden?
No. Sweden does not refund pension contributions. What you earned stays in the system as a right to a monthly pension for life, paid to any country once you reach the minimum age and apply. Income pension, premium pension and occupational pension all follow you; only the guarantee pension and housing supplement require you to live in Sweden.
What is the retirement age in Sweden?
There is no fixed one. A benchmark age, the riktålder, follows life expectancy: it is 67 for 2026 to 2031, and forecast at 68 to 70 for younger people. You can draw income and premium pension three years before your benchmark age, and the guarantee pension from it. You have the right to keep working until 69.
Do foreigners get a Swedish pension?
Yes, if they worked in Sweden. Pension rights are earned on all taxable income regardless of citizenship, so even one or two years of work create a lifelong claim. The guarantee pension is different: it depends on years lived in Sweden, needs at least three years’ residence, and is paid only while you live in Sweden.
How is a Swedish pension taxed if I live abroad?
Usually through SINK, a flat special income tax for non-residents: 22.5 percent in 2026 and 20 percent from 2027, charged only on the amount above a monthly tax-free allowance. You apply to Skatteverket. You can choose ordinary taxation instead, and a tax treaty may give the right to tax to your country of residence.
What is tjänstepension and do I have one?
It is the occupational pension your employer pays on top of the state pension. About 90 percent of employees in Sweden have one, mostly through collective agreements such as ITP, SAF-LO, AKAP-KR and PA 16. A typical agreement pays 4.5 to 6 percent of salary. Ask your employer or union, or check minPension.
How do I see my whole Swedish pension in one place?
Use minPension.se, a free service run jointly by the state and pension companies that shows state, occupational and private pensions together and makes forecasts. Pensionsmyndigheten’s My Pages also gives a forecast that includes occupational pension. Without BankID, Pensionsmyndigheten accepts Freja eID+ and approved foreign e-IDs.
Related guides
- Leaving Sweden: the departure checklist — everything else to settle before you go
- Filing a Swedish tax return as a newcomer — declaring income, including foreign pensions
- Why Swedes pay high taxes — what the taxes behind the pension buy
- The personnummer explained — the number that keys your pension record
- Moving to Sweden for work — the first month of a job, where the workplace pension starts
Facts verified 2026-10-14. Sources: Pensionsmyndigheten, Skatteverket, minPension, Konsumenternas, Regeringen — full register in this topic’s source file. This is general information, not financial or tax advice. Found something outdated? Tell us and we’ll fix it.