Sweden · permanent residence · work permit
Swedish permanent residence after a work permit: when does the four-year clock really start?
Short answer
You must have held a qualifying work permit and met its conditions for four of the past seven years. Time spent only under the Temporary Protection Directive does not by itself replace that work-permit requirement.
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What to do step by step
- 1
Identify the date your qualifying work permit actually started.
- 2
Check that permit and employment conditions were met throughout the relevant period.
- 3
Separately verify the sustainable self-support requirement.
- 4
At extension time, check whether you already have four qualifying years within the past seven.
Important
Physical presence in Sweden before the work permit is not automatically the same as qualifying work-permit time for this permanent-residence route.
Official sources
Checked: 2026-10-05