(SWEDEN) — Sweden’s parliament passed a “good behaviour” law and a separate reporting duty on June 15, 2026, giving authorities wider powers to revoke residence permits and requiring staff at several public agencies to alert police when they encounter undocumented migrants.

The measures mark another step in the immigration crackdown pursued by the right-wing coalition government with support from the Sweden Democrats. Lawmakers approved the reporting duty by 174 to 172, while the broader package tightened rules for both current permit holders and people still waiting on decisions.

Johan Forssell, Swedish Minister for Migration, framed the changes as a test of conduct. “Anyone who doesn’t make the effort to do the right thing shouldn’t be able to count on staying. If you, for example, neglect to pay your debts, if you don’t follow decisions by Swedish authorities, if you cheat on benefits, or if you cheat in order to get a Swedish residence permit—well, then you don’t have the right to be here.”

The good behaviour law, known in Swedish as Vandelskrav, restores residency standards that existed before 2005. Under the new rules, authorities can withdraw permits for what the law describes as “deficient conduct,” or bristande vandel.

That category extends beyond criminal convictions. It covers unpaid debts, failure to pay taxes, undeclared or black market work, benefit fraud, false information in permit applications, and known links to criminal networks or extremist or terrorist organizations.

The reporting duty, widely described by critics as a snitch law, requires employees in six public agencies to report undocumented migrants to police. Those agencies include the Tax Agency, the Public Employment Service, and the Social Insurance Agency, with other covered bodies falling under the same mandate.

Ingemar Kihlstrom, migration policy spokesman, defended that change in terms of information sharing between state bodies. “It is unreasonable to have a situation where one agency holds information that the Swedish Migration Agency or the police authority needs in order to enforce deportation decisions, but, due to current confidentiality rules, is not allowed to share it.”

Lawmakers carved out exemptions for healthcare, education, and social services. The government said those sectors would stay outside the reporting duty so people would not avoid essential care or basic support out of fear of being reported.

The new powers also reach backward. Authorities can apply the good behaviour law to pending applications and to residence permits that have already been granted, opening the way for reviews based on past conduct rather than only future violations.

Some groups remain outside the measure’s reach. The rules do not apply to people whose residence rights are protected under EU law, including recognized refugees and EU citizens.

Sweden’s shift has been swift. On June 9, 2026, the government decided to abolish permanent residency permits for refugees and long-term residents, making temporary status the standard. Together with the new good behaviour law and reporting duty, that move pushes Sweden further from the looser migration approach that defined much of its earlier policy.

Ministers have described the goal as an “orderly migration system” and tied the overhaul to public safety, organized crime, and integration failures. They have also argued that tighter controls will help dismantle what they call “shadow societies,” a term used for people living outside the formal system and beyond the reach of enforcement.

Human rights groups said the new standard creates legal uncertainty because “bad behavior” can cover conduct that is not a crime. Civil Rights Defenders argued that immigrants with financial trouble or minor infractions now face the risk of losing status even if they have not been convicted of an offense.

That concern centers on the breadth of the good behaviour test. Unpaid debts or tax failures can stem from economic hardship, while errors in paperwork can trigger the same review machinery used for more serious misconduct. The law gives the Swedish Migration Agency a wider role in assessing daily conduct as part of immigration control.

Continuous monitoring is now built into that system. Recorded misconduct can trigger a fresh review of a person’s right to stay, adding another layer of scrutiny for people whose permits were once treated as more secure.

Critics of the reporting duty said the mandate will also change how undocumented migrants deal with the state. They warned that fear of being identified could keep people away from agencies they still need for work-related issues, benefits disputes, or contact that touches other parts of public administration.

Advocates said the deterrent effect may spread beyond the offices covered by the law, even with exemptions for healthcare, schools, and social services. They warned of a climate in which undocumented people avoid contact with authorities altogether, leaving health problems untreated and crimes unreported.

The political balance behind the legislation reflects the harder line taken by the Sweden Democrats, whose influence has pushed migration policy toward tighter enforcement and fewer long-term protections. The coalition has presented the reforms as a reset of the system rather than an isolated measure.

That reset carries practical consequences for migrants who already live in Sweden and for those still applying to remain. Residence now depends not only on the original grounds for protection or family ties, but also on an ongoing assessment of conduct that can reach into finances, work history, and past dealings with the state.

Employers, local agencies, and permit holders will also have to adjust to a framework in which immigration enforcement and routine public administration overlap more directly. Information held by one part of the state can now play a larger role in another part’s deportation decisions.

Sweden’s parliament has published updates at Sveriges Riksdag, while the government’s broader migration agenda appears at Government of Sweden migration and integration policy. The agency responsible for implementation, permit reviews, and enforcement guidance is the Swedish Migration Agency.

With the reporting duty approved by a two-vote margin and the good behaviour law now in place, Sweden has tied residency more tightly to conduct and expanded the state’s power to act on information already sitting inside its own agencies.