Social insurance

The Government wants to raise pensions. The Government and the Working Group on Pensions have therefore proposed a number of pension measures in bills submitted to the Riksdag on 28 May. The Working Group on Pensions includes the governing parties – the Swedish Social Democratic Party and the Green Party – and the Moderate Party, the Centre Party, the Liberal Party and the Christian Democrats.

On 11 April, Minister for Social Security Annika Strandhäll and Japan’s Ambassador Shigeyuki Hiroki signed a social security agreement between the two countries. The agreement coordinates the Swedish and Japanese public old-age, survivors’ and disability pensions systems (for Sweden, sickness and activity compensation). Japan is one of Sweden’s largest trade partners outside the EU.

The agreement coordinates the Swedish and Japanese public old-age, survivors’ and disability pensions systems (for Sweden, sickness and activity compensation), and governs whether a person must be insured for such benefits in Sweden or Japan. As the agreement coordinates the Swedish and Japanese regulatory frameworks, individuals will not lose their accrued social insurance rights, primarily pension rights, when they move between the two countries.

Minister for Social Security Annika Strandhäll and Japan’s Ambassador Shigeyuki Hiroki today signed a social security agreement between the two countries. The agreement coordinates the Swedish and Japanese public old-age, survivors’ and disability pensions systems.

The Government wishes to mitigate the consequences for Swedish citizens in the United Kingdom in the event that the country leaves the EU without reaching any agreement whatsoever on how this withdrawal is to take place. Among other things, the government bill submitted to the Riksdag proposes that, in the event of a hard Brexit, it should still be possible to pay Swedish social security benefits to individuals in the United Kingdom over a transitional period. It is also proposed that it should still be possible to receive compensation for healthcare expenses over the same period.

In the social security area, the immediate effect of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU is that central EU legal provisions will no longer apply. To prevent any acute consequences, the Government is planning to take measures that will primarily mitigate the effects that may arise for individuals during the initial period after the withdrawal. The proposals aim to allow a period of adjustment.

Sweden has a fundamentally sound pension system, whose unique design attracted much international attention when it was adopted in the 1990s. Several countries, inspired by the Swedish pension system, have now reformed their own. The fact that the pension system is outside the government budget and pays out exactly as much in pensions as money is available for makes the pension system financially sustainable, which means that there is no risk of rolling over debt to future generations. This, combined with political stability — a large majority of Riksdag members backed the system — paves the way for secure pensions.

The Government’s fourth gender equality policy sub-target is ‘An even distribution of unpaid housework and care work’. Women and men must have the same responsibility for housework and have the opportunity to give and receive care on equal terms.

The Government’s second gender equality policy sub-target is ‘Financial gender equality’. Women and men must have the same opportunities and conditions with regard to paid work, which gives financial independence throughout life.