3. Arrival

Missions should notify the Protocol Department at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs within a week of the arrival of staff members by using the notification form in the link below. This notification should identify accompanying family members and any private servants. Two copies of a valid passport and two photos of each person (for ID cards) should be attached.

Notification of arrival

For missions covering Sweden from another country, please note that notification is only necessary for the head of mission, military attachés, police attachés and long-term chargé d’affaires (see chapter 5).

Photographs for ID cards

• Must be of high quality and show the applicant against a white background looking directly into the camera.
• Should not be more than six months old and must be 35−40 mm in width (standard passport photo).
• The space between the eyes and the chin must be 14−17 mm.
• If the applicant wears glasses the photograph must show their eyes clearly with no flash reflection off the glasses.
• Retouched photographs are not permitted. Head coverings worn for religious purposes are permitted.
• The applicant's name and date of birth and the name of the embassy should be written on the back of both photographs.

For non EU/EEA citizens, after arrival and notification, the Protocol Department issues residence permits to mission staff, their family members who form part of the regular household (please see chapter 2 for the definition of family member) and private servants. All individuals granted residence permits are expected to reside in Sweden. 

A residence permit card will be issued as proof of a residence permit. The residence permit card facilitates travel within the Schengen area.

For the issuance of a residence permit card, each person is required to visit the Protocol Deparmtent at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs to be photographed and to provide an electronic signature. Diplomatic agents, members of the administrative and technical staff, consuls, consular agents and their family members are exempt from the collection of biometric data (fingerprints), whereas this is required for service staff and private servants. 

Followong the initial application, a residence permit valid for three years is issued to members of the administrative and technical staff and members of the service staff. A residence permit may be extended for a maximum of two years at a time and for a total period of no longer than eight years. The same rule applies to consulate equivalents. This does not apply to EU/EEA citizens who have the right to reside in Sweden under EU law. The eight year limitation does not apply to officials at international organisations or their family members. 

Information on residence permits for private servants is provided in chapter 7.

To extend residence permits and/or renew identity cards, the 'Supplementary notification' form is used (via the link below). One copy of a valid passport and one photo of each person should be attached. The form should state the estimated length of stay. The length of a residence permit can never extend beyond the expiry date of the passport.

Supplementary notification

Identity cards are issued to all resident staff at diplomatic missions, career consular posts and international organisations, as well as to family members who form part of their household and to private servants. Identity cards are not issued to family members with Swedish citizenship or to children under 6 years of age.

Identity cards are valid for a maximum of three years. They may not be issued for a validity period shorter than six months.

Holders of identity cards are expected to carry their cards with them to verify their identity and their registration with the Protocol Department at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs upon request.

Please observe that identity cards are only issued to personnel posted/residing in Sweden.

If an identity card is lost, a police report should be made and a copy be sent with a note verbal to the Protocol without delay.

Staff members, their family members and private servants who wish to apply for a personal identity number may do so if they are to reside in Sweden for more than one year. Personal identity numbers given to staff members of diplomatic missions and consular posts are sometimes referred to as “immunity numbers”. 

Personal identity numbers are registered in the Swedish Population Address Register (SPAR) and facilitate everyday transactions and contact with banks, medical and health care institutions, and schools. A personal identity number does not, in itself, give access to the Swedish social security system or other residence-based welfare benefits.

Mission staff (diplomatic agents, administrative and technical staff, service staff, private servants and consular staff members) should not register in the Swedish Population Register. 

Locally employed should be registered in the Swedish Population Register. Locally employed staff who are not EU citizens need a residence and work permit through the Swedish Migration Agency prior to taking up their duties. 

Staff (and their families) working at international organisations that have their seat in Sweden should, as a rule, register in the Swedish Population Register. However, officials of international organisations and their family members who, according to an applicable treaty or seat agreement, enjoy diplomatic immunity are, like diplomats, not registered in the Swedish Population Register. 

All staff members (except locally employed staff) are considered to be on a diplomatic posting by the sending State. This includes staff members who have been recruited in the sending State and who are nationals of the sending State or third-country nationals. The mission concerned bears full financial responsibility for these staff members and their families, including health insurance.

Recruitment of third-country nationals as mission staff must be confirmed in a note to the Protocol Department from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in the sending State.

Other family members (adult sons/daughters, parents, grandchildren, etc.) who wish to work in Sweden may apply for a work permit at a Swedish embassy abroad when they have received a firm offer of a job. The Swedish Migration Agency is the authority responsible for handling these applications. The work permit must be received before departing for Sweden.

More information about how to apply for a residence permit to work in Sweden: Work - The Swedish Migration Agency - external website, - external website,

A residence permit is required to study in Sweden for more than three months. The residence permit must be obtained before departing for Sweden. To study for less than three months, a visa may be required.

Applications for a residence permit to study at a university or college in Sweden can be submitted online directly to the Swedish Migration Agency and are given priority.

For other studies at other educational institutions, applications can be submitted in person to the nearest Swedish embassy.

Further information: Study - The Swedish Migration Agency - external website, - external website,

If a visa is required, applications should be submitted to the nearest Swedish embassy as soon as possible. The embassy should be contacted before the visit.

If an entry visa is not required, it is possible to travel to Sweden without a residence permit card if a decision from the Migration Agency can be presented when entering Sweden. In these cases, the documentation for a residence permit card is submitted to the Migration Agency after arrival.

Relatives who do not wish to work or study in Sweden may be granted a visitors' residence permit for visits exceeding 90 days. The Swedish Migration Agency will normally only grant such permits for a maximum period of nine months.

An application for a visitors' residence permit must be approved by the Swedish Migration Agency prior to arrival in Sweden. An application can be submitted to a Swedish Embassy or Consulate General. 

Further information about how to apply for a residence permit in Sweden: Visiting Sweden for more than 90 days - The Swedish Migration Agency - external website, - external website,

Relatives of staff members who wish to visit for a period of less than 90 days should apply for a Schengen visa (C visa). The applications should be submitted to the nearest Swedish embassy in the region.

Further information about how to apply for a Schengen visa: Visiting Sweden for up to 90 days (entry visa) - The Swedish Migration Agency - external website,