Social Security Agreement
If you are employed by a non-Swedish employer without a permanent establishment in Sweden, you can sign a social security agreement with your employer. This means that you agree to pay your own social security contributions in Sweden, called employer contributions, instead of your employer paying them. The same rules apply if you are a contractor working for a client without a permanent establishment in Sweden.
The requirement for entering into this type of agreement is that your employer does not have a permanent establishment in Sweden. A non-Swedish employer without a permanent establishment pays employer contributions at a lower rate than a Swedish employer. This is because the contributions a Swedish employer pays include general payroll tax, which is only paid by employers that are liable for tax in Sweden.
You, the employee, must register as an employer
When you sign a social security agreement with your employer, you must register with the Swedish Tax Agency as an employer within two weeks of signing the agreement.
You register by filling in form SKV 4738. You can down load the form, which is in Swedish, via the link below:
- Application for responsibility to declare and pay employer contributions on own salary
External link. (SKV 4738, in Swedish) (“Anmälan om skyldighet att redovisa och betala arbetsgivaravgifter på egen lön”)
You will be assigned a specific registration number to use when declaring and paying employer contributions. The number begins with 66 and should only be used in connection with employer contributions. You will also be assigned a specific tax account to which you must make these payments. Remember that you must not use your personal identity number (“personnummer”) or your personal tax account when you declare and pay employer contributions in connection with your social security agreement.
You will receive two separate tax account statements: one for your private tax account and one for the tax account connected to your social security agreement.
A social security agreement does not mean that your employer is free from responsibilities. You are simply agreeing to declare and pay employer contributions instead of your employer. If you do not declare and pay the employer contributions, the Swedish Tax Agency may instead require your employer to do so.
Income tax
A non-Swedish employer without a permanent establishment in Sweden are obliged to deduct tax from earnings and benefits paid for work carried out in Sweden. Your non-Swedish employer must register as an employer in Sweden – if it is not already registered – and must declare the tax deductions in a monthly PAYE tax return.
If you have a social security agreement with your employer (which means you have agreed to pay employer contributions in Sweden instead of your employer paying them), this agreement is unaffected by the new regulations. You must continue to declare and pay employer contributions using the specific registration number allocated to you. However, your employer must deduct preliminary tax from your income and declare these deductions to the Swedish Tax Agency in monthly PAYE tax returns.
Submit an employer’s tax declaration and pay contributions on your salary
After you have registered and received your agreement registration number which begins with 66, you may submit your employer’s declarations.
The employer’s declaration must be submitted, and social security contributions paid, by the 12th of the month after your have received your employment income. If you, for example, have received salary and benefits in April then you need to submit the employer’s declaration and pay the employer’s contributions no later than 12 May.
In August and January, the deadline for submitting the employer’s declaration and paying the social security contribution is the 17th instead of the 12th if the employment income has been paid out in July (17 August) or in December (17 January).
Remember to submit and pay on time. You may have to pay late filing fees if you do not keep to the deadlines.
Remember that when paying your social security contributions (into your tax account), use your assigned agreement registration number which starts with 66, not your personal identity number or coordination number.
The easiest way to file a PAYE tax return every month is to log into “My pages” (“Mina sidor”) in the PAYE tax return e-service, using your Swedish e-identification.
You can also file a PAYE tax return using a printed form.
Appointing an agent
If you would like someone else to file your PAYE tax return, you can appoint a tax return agent. Your agent can submit your PAYE tax return via the e-service available through “My pages” (“Mina sidor”). Use the form “Application e-services tax return agent” (SKV 4809, in Swedish) to apply for registration of your PAYE tax return agent.
Example: How to calculate the basis for employer contributions
A has a social security agreement and will receive a salary of SEK 100,000 SEK. The rate of employer contributions, excluding general payroll tax, is 19.8% (for those born in 1957 or after).
The employer pays SEK 19,800 to A as compensation for employer contributions. A’s total salary will be SEK 119,800. The entire salary should not be used as the basis for employer contributions. The salary amount should be divided by 19.8% plus 100 percentage units, i.e. 1,198. The basis for employer contributions will be SEK 119,800 / SEK 1,198 = SEK 100,000. A must therefore pay employer contributions at 19.8% on a basis of SEK 100,000.
In this example, A’s taxable salary is SEK 119,800. When calculating income tax, A is entitled to deduct the full amount of employer contributions paid. The basis for employer contributions calculated in the example, SEK 100,000, is also the basis for calculating income tax.
How to fill in the PAYE tax return, social security agreement
Box by box
006 Accounting period+
The accounting period (month) to which the employer's declaration relates.
201 Registration number
This is a mandatory field. Enter your special registration number, which starts with 66.
062 – Reduced fee for first employee
Check this box if you meet the requirements for special calculation of certain fees for the first employee, known as Growth Support. A reduced fee for a first employee may only be claimed for one payee per employer.
400 Basis for employer contributions
Here you fill in the total amount of salary and benefits you have received on which you are liable to pay employer contributions. The amount should exclude any compensation for social security contributions that you have received from your employer.
487 Total employer contributions
Here you state the total amount of employer contributions. Non-Swedish employers without a permanent establishment in Sweden pay a lower rate than other employers. The percentage rate of employer contributions for non-Swedish employers without a permanent establishment in Sweden is currently 19.8% of the employee’s gross salary and benefits. For other employers, the rate is 31.42%. The fees are also lower for employees born between 1938 and 1953. This also applies to employees with a social security agreement.
470 – Basis for deductions: research and development
Here you fill in the basis for deductions from employer contributions on salaries of people who work in research and development, and to whom the rules for deductions apply. You should also fill in the deduction in box 475, “Deductions: research and development” (“Avdrag forskning och utveckling”).
475 – Deductions: research and development
Here you fill in deductions from employer contributions on salaries of people who work in research and development. You should also fill in the deduction in box 470: “Basis for deductions, research and development” (“Underlag avdrag forskning och utveckling”).
305 – Socia security convention with
Fill in this box if a social security convention with India, the US, Canada, Québec or South Korea applies to the payee and part of the employer contributions will be paid in Sweden.
Leave the box blank if full employer contributions or no employer contributions are payable.
Please fill in your contact information
You do not have to provide contact information, but it will help us to get in touch with you more quickly if necessary.
Swedish personal income tax return
At the end of the year, your employer must provide a statement of earnings and tax deductions with details of the full amount that has been paid, including both salary and any compensation for employer contributions. The statement must be made in connection with your personal identity number (“personnummer”).
The social security contributions that you have paid during the income year will be automatically deducted when you receive your Swedish income tax return. Your employment income (excluding the social security contributions paid) will be pre-printed on your tax return. It is therefore important that your employer submits your income statement.
You will be taxed on the net amount of salary and benefits, after employer contributions have been deducted. This net amount will also be the basis for your pensionable income. It is therefore important that your employer submits the statement of earnings and tax deductions.
Your final tax and pensionable income are shown in your final tax statement. Since pensionable income is the basis for calculating your pension, it is important to check that it has been correctly calculated.
If the social security agreement no longer applies
You must notify the Swedish Tax Agency when the social security agreement no longer applies. Notify either by letter, or by using the same form as when applying for registration, Anmälan – om skyldighet att redovisa och betala arbetsgivaravgifter på egen lön, SKV 4738 External link. and submit the relevant information in the ‘Other information’ section. Remember that you must continue to submit employer's declarations until you have received confirmation of your deregistration from the Swedish Tax Agency.
If you and your employer choose to end the social security agreement, your employer will be responsible for declaring and paying both deducted preliminary tax and employer contributions.
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