Sweden Work Permit Rejected: What Employers Need to Know

A refusal is not always about the current application. In a case reported in 2016 and 2017, a developer in Stockholm was refused an extension because a previous employer had not taken out the occupational pension insurance the permit was based on, although the current employer had done everything right. A Sweden work permit rejected decision can reach back over the worker's whole time on permits in Sweden. This guide covers the usual grounds, what the June 2026 changes mean for employers, and what to do when a refusal arrives.

Why Work Permits Get Rejected in Sweden

Migrationsverket looks at the current application and at how the permit's terms were met before. Grounds that come up again and again:

• Salary too low: For applications from 16 June 2026 the salary must be at least 90% of the Swedish median (SEK 34,470 a month), and also on par with the collective agreement or what is normal in the occupation. Pay below the terms the permit was granted on is a common reason for a refused extension. The law lets Migrationsverket refrain from revoking a permit in minor cases, but do not count on that.
• Missing or incorrect pension insurance: The permit is granted on terms that include insurances such as occupational pension. If an employer in the worker's Swedish employment history failed to provide them, it has led to refusals at extension, even where the current employer was compliant.
• Job not advertised correctly: For a new recruitment, the job must normally have been advertised for at least ten days so that people in Sweden, the EU/EEA and Switzerland could apply, usually through Arbetsförmedlingen's Platsbanken (which also shows the ad on the EU job portal EURES). An ad only on a professional networking site has led to refusals in the past.
• Wrong occupation code or documentation: The offer of employment classifies the job by its SSYK occupation code. Make sure the code and the described duties match the real job.
• Change of occupation without a new permit: During the first two years the permit is tied to the employer and the occupation (after that, to the occupation only). Working in a different occupation without a new permit can cause the extension to be refused.
• The employer's own record (from 1 June 2026): Migrationsverket can refuse a work permit if the employer is suspected or convicted of certain crimes, or has been charged the special fee or tax surcharges.

Why extensions are refused more often than first applications

At the extension Migrationsverket has more to check: the payslips and insurance records for the whole permit period, compared with the terms the permit was granted on. A pay cut during a restructuring that took the salary below the collective agreement level for some months, and that nobody flagged as a permit issue at the time, shows up here, when it can no longer be undone.

The Consequences of a Rejection

When a permit is rejected, the consequences move fast:

• The employee must leave Sweden once the decision has entered into force and can no longer be appealed
• If the employee appeals, the decision states whether they may stay in Sweden while the appeal is considered; whether they can keep working depends on having held the permit for at least six months and applied for the extension before it expired
• If the employee keeps working without the right to work, the employer can be charged the special fee, which doubled on 1 June 2026 to two price base amounts (four if the work lasted more than three months)
• Deliberate exploitation of foreign workers is now a crime, with up to two years in prison (four if gross)

Reading the decision

The decision letter (beslutsbrev) states the legal grounds for the refusal and how and when to appeal. Read both before deciding anything else.

The Appeals Process

Most refusals can be appealed to the Migration Court (Migrationsdomstolen). The process:

1. Deadline: The appeal must reach Migrationsverket within 3 weeks of the day the decision was received. A late appeal is dismissed.
2. Where to file: Appeals are submitted to Migrationsverket, which first checks whether to change the decision itself and otherwise forwards the appeal to the Migration Court. Do not send the appeal directly to the court.
3. What to include: The appeal must state which decision is appealed and what change is asked for. Explain why the decision is wrong and attach anything that supports it.
4. Working while the appeal runs: Whether the employee can keep working during this period depends on whether they had the right to keep working while the extension was processed: at least six months on a work permit and an application filed before the permit expired. If so, that right lasts until any expulsion order becomes final, which includes the appeal.

What HR Should Do Right After a Refusal

• Day 1: Preserve the decision letter and note the appeal deadline in the case file. Do not discard or archive the original decision.
• Day 1–3: Engage an immigration lawyer if the refusal involves substantive grounds (salary, employer approval, advertisement). Procedural refusals (missing documents) can sometimes be handled without legal counsel.
• Day 3–7: Assess whether the employee can continue working. If the original permit has expired and the employee does not have the right to keep working while the extension is processed (at least six months on a work permit and an application filed before expiry), the employee must stop working immediately: continuing to employ them is a legal violation.
• Week 2: Decide whether to appeal or re-apply. In some cases, a fresh application with corrected documentation is faster than an appeal.

What HR Teams and Employers Can Do

If a rejection arrives:

• Do not wait. File an appeal (överklagande) within 3 weeks of the rejection decision. Appeals go through Migrationsverket to the Migration Court (Migrationsdomstolen).
• Get advice from someone who handles permit appeals, as early as possible.
• Gather all payroll records, pension insurance certificates, and role documentation for the full permit period to understand the exact ground for rejection.
• If the rejection was due to a correctable issue, a new application with corrected documentation may be faster than waiting for an appeal outcome.

To prevent rejections:

• Monitor salary compliance monthly, not annually
• Audit pension insurance at every provider change
• Route all role changes through an immigration review before implementation
• Keep a log of each permit's terms and checks for every employee on a permit

Frequently Asked Questions

Why was my employee's Swedish work permit rejected at extension?

Common reasons are: salary falling below the terms the permit was granted on during the permit period, missing insurances such as occupational pension (even from a previous employer), a change of occupation without a new permit, and, from 1 June 2026, the employer's own record of certain crimes, special fees or tax surcharges. Migrationsverket reviews the full permit period at extension, not just the current moment.

Can a rejected Swedish work permit be appealed?

Yes. Appeals must be filed within 3 weeks of receiving the decision. They are sent to Migrationsverket, which forwards them to the Migration Court if it does not change the decision itself. The decision states whether the employee may stay in Sweden while the appeal is considered. If the employee had held the permit for at least six months and filed the extension before it expired, the right to keep working normally continues until the decision is final.

Can a previous employer's mistake cause a rejection?

It has happened. In a case reported in 2017, a previous employer's failure to take out pension insurance led to a refused extension even though the current employer was compliant. Since 1 June 2022 a permit need not be revoked in minor cases or where revoking it would not be reasonable, but it is still an assessment of each case.

Can an employer's own record lead to a refusal under the June 2026 rules?

Yes. Since 1 June 2026 Migrationsverket can refuse a work permit if the employer, or someone representing it, is reasonably suspected or convicted of certain crimes, or has been charged the special fee or tax surcharges. A problem with one employee can therefore affect the company's future hires.

How Settio keeps permits on track

Most permit problems start with a date or a salary nobody was watching. Settio helps employers and immigration agencies watch both, for every person, before they move, after they arrive and at every renewal:

• Permit and salary monitoring tracks every expiry date and the salary each permit was granted on, and turns a dip or a missing month into a follow-up step with an owner.
• Plans for every case, from the first application to the extension, with each deadline counted for you.
• Your whole international workforce at a glance: import the people already on permits and see their risks in minutes.

Try it with your own people: see how to start for free.

Sources

9 official sources

• Migrationsverket: New work permit rules in force (1 June 2026)
• Migrationsverket: Lönekrav för arbetstillstånd (salary requirement)
• Migrationsverket: Advertising the job
• Migrationsverket: Extending an employee's work permit
• Migrationsverket: The employee's application was refused
• Riksdagen: Prop. 2025/26:87 Nya regler för arbetskraftsinvandring
• Utlänningslagen (2005:716) 6 kap. 2 a §: permit tied to employer and occupation
• Förvaltningslagen (2017:900) 43 to 46 §§: how to appeal
• The Local: Star developer loses fight against deportation from Sweden (16 May 2017)