Deductions for interest expenses

Interest expenses for which you can claim a deduction

You are entitled to a deduction provided that the following requirements are met:

• you have been personally liable for loan repayment
• the interest has been paid during the income year
• the interest is of a type that qualifies for a deduction

The regulations determining the types of interest that qualify for a deduction will be changed from income year 2025.

Deduction of interest expenses: income year 2025 (2026 tax return)

If we have received an income statement – from a bank or credit institution, for example – the amount in question will be prefilled in your income tax return.

If you have made any advance payment of interest, including interest for parts of the next income year, you can only claim a deduction in your tax return for the share of interest that relates to January of the next income year.

Interest expenses that are not included in your tax return

If you are entitled to a deduction for interest expenses that are not included in your income tax return, you should request this deduction in section 8.1 of your income tax return. You must write the name of the lender under under “Other information” (Övriga upplysningar”). If the lender is a private individual, you must also enter their personal identity number.

Interest expenses for which you are not entitled to claim a deduction

You cannot claim a deduction for interest on:

• loans added to a debt instead of it being repaid
• a student loan from the Swedish Board of Student Finance (CSN)
• maintenance allowance debt
• tax arrears
• a loan provided by a limited company to a shareholder or any of their family members

Deductions for interest expenses for income year 2024 (2025 tax return)

The new regulations do not apply to the tax return you file in 2025 for income year 2024. If you request a review of interest expenses in your tax return for income year 2023 or a previous year, the new regulations will not apply to this either.

Interest deductions for income year 2025 (2026 tax return)

The new regulations apply to loans that do not meet the security and maximum loan-to-value ratio requirements. For income year 2025 (2026 tax return), you can only claim a deduction for half of your interest expenses on unsecured loans. This applies to unsecured debt, bridging loans for property acquisitions, credit card debt and loans from private individuals, for example.

You can claim deductions in full for interest expenses on loans that meet the security and maximum loan-to-value ratio requirements.

Interest deductions for income year 2026 (2027 tax return)

From 1 January 2026, you are only entitled to deductions for interest expenses on loans that meet the security and maximum loan-to-value ratio requirements.

This means you can no longer be granted a deduction for unsecured loans such as personal loans without security, bridging loans for property acquisitions, credit card debt and loans from private individuals.

Loans that do not meet the security requirements

Examples of loans that do not meet the requirements include the following:

• a personal loan without security
• unsecured consumer credit for purchases of goods or services
• credit card debts and unsecured overdraft facilities
• a temporary loan bridging the gap between your purchase of a residential property and the sale of your previous home (bridging loan)
• a private loan you have taken from a private individual

Loans that meet the security requirements

You can claim a deduction for loans that meet the security requirements, such as loans on:

• residential property, holiday homes, plots of land and site leaseholds
• vehicles
• boats and ships
• aircraft
• securities

You can also claim a deduction for interest on loans:

• provided by a pawnbroker
• to cover new home construction, extension or rebuilding costs – if the loan will be converted into a residential mortgage when the building project is complete (construction loans)

Residential-mortgage interest expenses

You can claim loan interest expenses in full for loans secured by immovable property, site leaseholds, tenant-owner property or similar. If you buy a residential property and take out a mortgage secured by the property, you can claim a deduction for all your interest expenses.

The loan must have been provided by an authorised credit institution or lender in accordance with the Mortgage Business Act. The maximum loan-to-value ratio for residential mortgages is 85% under the current regulations. This means that the amount of a loan secured by your home cannot exceed 85% of your home’s market value at the time of borrowing.

Secured and unsecured mortgages

If you buy a residential property, and you take out a mortgage secured by the property as well as a private loan, different rules apply regarding the share of interest expenses for which you can claim a deduction. You are entitled to a deduction for the full amount of interest expenses on the secured mortgage. For the unsecured private loan, you are entitled to claim a deduction for half of the interest expenses for the 2025 income year. From income year 2026, you are not entitled to interest deductions for unsecured loans.

Interest expenses on vehicle, boat, ship or aircraft loans

You are entitled to a full deduction for loan interest expenses on the purchase of a vehicle, boat, ship or aircraft (these are referred to as “the goods” below). A deduction can only be granted if all of the following requirements are met:

• Both the seller of the goods and the lender must be business owners.
• The goods must serve as collateral to secure the loan.
• Both the goods and the borrower must be identifiable in the credit agreement.

In order to be granted a deduction for interest expenses on a vehicle loan, your purchase must be registered under your name in the Swedish Transport Agency’s Road Traffic Register. In the case of co-ownership (for example, if spouses take out a joint car loan), a vehicle only has to be registered under one borrower’s name.

In order to be granted a deduction when buying a ship or aircraft, you must be registered as the owner of the goods in the Swedish Register of Shipping or Swedish Civil Aircraft Register accordingly.

If you still have the loan but no longer own the goods you bought in connection with the loan (i.e. your collateral), you cannot claim a deduction for the interest expenses.

The maximum loan-to-value ratio for vehicle, boat, ship and aircraft loans is 80% under the current regulations. This means the maximum loan amount for a secured loan is 80% of the market value of the goods in question at the time of borrowing.

Interest expenses on loans backed by securities

You can be granted a full deduction for interest expenses on a loan provided by a credit institution or securities company, provided that the loan is secured by:

• financial instruments admitted to trading on a regulated market or similar market outside the EEA
• financial instruments traded through a multilateral trading facility
• shares in investment funds or special reserve funds

Endowment policies do not meet the requirements outlined above. The Swedish Tax Agency therefore considers that interest on loans secured by an endowment policy does not qualify for a deduction under the new regulations.

What are regulated markets and multilateral trading facilities? (In Swedish)

Interest expenses on loans provided by pawnbrokers

You can be granted a full deduction for interest expenses on a loan provided by a pawnbroker with a permit, in accordance with Swedish legislation. Since the item pawned is the only security you are providing, you don’t need to be personally liable for a loan from a pawnbroker in order to be granted a deduction.

Interest expenses on loans to cover new home construction, extension or rebuilding costs

You can claim interest expenses for a loan you have taken out in order to cover new home construction, extension, or rebuilding costs – if the loan will be converted into a residential mortgage when the building project is complete. This is usually known as a construction loan. The loan must have been provided by an authorised credit institution or lender in accordance with the Mortgage Business Act.

The maximum loan-to-value ratio for building loans is 85% under the current regulations. This means you can take out a maximum secured loan of 85% of the expected market value of the property in question when the building is complete.

Here’s how interest expenses affect your tax in the event of a capital surplus or deficit

In your preliminary tax assessment and final tax statement, you can see whether you have a capital surplus or deficit.

Capital deficit

If you have a capital deficit, you will be granted a deduction for the deficit amount through tax reduction.

Capital deficit can occur in the following circumstances, for example:

• if you have interest expenses
• if you have made a loss on the sale of securities

If you have a capital deficit, you will be granted a tax reduction corresponding to:

• 30% of the part of the amount up to SEK 100,000
• 21% of the part of the amount over SEK 100,000

Tax reductions (in Swedish)

Capital surplus

If you have made a profit on the sale of a residential property or securities, you might have a capital surplus.

If you have a capital surplus, you pay state income tax at 30% on the amount in question. If you have a capital deficit instead, you will be granted a deduction for the deficit amount through a tax reduction.

Calculate your tax

You can use our e-service “Räkna ut din skatt” to help you calculate your tax.

Calculate your tax (in Swedish) External link.

Reallocation of interest expenses

If you have a joint loan with someone else, you can reallocate the interest expenses between you in a way other than that shown in your prefilled tax return. To make the necessary adjustment, one person enters the relevant reduced amount in section 8.1 (Interest expenses, etc.) of their tax return. The other person enters the corresponding increased amount in section 8.1 of their tax return. You must both write the name and personal identity number of the other individual under “Other information” (Övriga upplysningar”).

If you would like your joint loan to be distributed differently in your prefilled tax returns, please contact your bank or lender.

Applying for a tax adjustment

If you know that you are entitled to claim deductions for interest expenses, you can apply for a tax adjustment. This means that a payer will deduct less preliminary tax from your compensation, instead of you getting a tax refund when you receive your final tax statement.

Please be aware of the new rules on deductions for interest expenses when you apply for a tax adjustment.

Tax adjustments: pay the correct amount of tax from the start (in Swedish)

If you have paid interest in another country

If you have unlimited tax liability in Sweden (in other words, if you pay tax on all your income here), the same rules apply to interest you have paid in another country. From income year 2024, you can claim the same deduction as for interest expenses you have paid in Sweden.

From income year 2025, if you have unlimited tax liability in Sweden, you can claim a deduction for all your interest expenses if your loan is secured by a residential property, securities, a vehicle, a boat, a ship or an aircraft. The same applies to loans provided by a pawnbroker. You are also entitled to a deduction for interest expenses if your loan covers new home construction, extension or rebuilding costs – if the loan will be converted into a residential mortgage when the building project is complete. This rule applies if the lender is within the EES, or in a state that has signed a tax convention with Sweden containing a provision relating to the exchange of information.

If the lender does not meet these requirements, you can only deduct half of your interest expenses for income year 2025.

From income year 2026, you are only entitled to deductions for interest expenses on loans that meet the security and maximum loan-to-value ratio requirements.

Liability for taxation

If you have a sole trader business

From 2025, the new rules on interest expenses for unsecured loans apply to private loans only. This rule does not apply to business activities. Interest expenses on business loans bust be booked and reported in annexe NE.

Deductions glossary for sole traders (in Swedish)