Housing

Last updated: 24/8-2023

In Sweden there are different ways to have a home. You can rent or buy a flat, or you can rent or buy a house. More information about different types of housing and about how to go about finding a place to live is available here.

Everyone has a right to housing

In Sweden everyone has a right to housing. It is illegal to discriminate against people looking for a place to live because of their:

  • ethnicity
  • religion or other belief
  • functional impairment
  • gender
  • gender identity or expression
  • sexual orientation
  • age

Anti-discrimination bureaus

There are various local and regional anti-discrimination bureaus in Sweden. They can provide advice and support to you if you have been subjected to discrimination.

Diskrimineringsombudsmannen – the Equality Ombudsman

Diskrimineringsombudsmannen (DO), or the Equality Ombudsman in English, is a government agency that monitors compliance with the Discrimination Act. If you have been subjected to discrimination, you can send a tip-off or a complaint to DO.

DO uses tip-offs and complaints to ensure that the act is complied with, not to resolve discrimination issues of private individuals.

Help with accommodation

If you have been granted a residence permit and are living in a Migration Agency accommodation centre, or if you have arrived in Sweden as a quota refugee, you are eligible for help with settling in a municipality.

View over a residential area in Gothenburg with residential buildings, skyscrapers and famous landmarks.

Photo: Misak Nalbandian


The Migration Agency can designate municipalities to receive people who have recently been granted a residence permit. This means that the municipality is responsible for arranging housing for those people.

You are not allowed to choose which municipality is designated to receive you. You will only receive one offer of a designated municipality for you to live in. If you turn this offer down you will be removed from the Migration Agency's reception system. This means you will no longer be entitled to an allowance and housing arranged by the Migration Agency, and that you will have to arrange your own housing.

Municipalities in Sweden

Everyone who lives in Sweden lives in a municipality. A municipality can be a city, a town or several towns together. There are 290 municipalities in Sweden.

National Registration

Everyone living in Sweden must be registered. Information such as who all live in Sweden and where they live is registered.