Vinnova Innovative Startups 2026 opens Oct 12: up to SEK 500,000
Vinnova's Innovative Startups 2026 call opens for applications on 12 October 2026 and closes 12 January 2027 at 14:00, with decisions on 23 March 2027. It provides up to SEK 500,00…
Founders News
Founder news for Sweden.
Updates relevant to founders in Sweden. 43 in total.
Region Stockholm affarsutvecklingscheckar open Sept 7 to 27, 2026: up to SEK 200,000
Region Stockholm's 2026 business development checks (affarsutvecklingscheckar) are open for applications from 7 to 27 September 2026. SMEs can apply for SEK 50,000 to SEK 200,000,…
Vinnova's Innovativa Startups 2026 grant raised to max SEK 500,000, opens Oct 12
Vinnova's revamped Innovativa Startups 2026 call offers grants of up to SEK 500,000 (up from SEK 300,000 in the 2025 Phase 1) to test customer needs, business concept and willingne…
Sweden proposes new 200% R&D salary-cost tax deduction from Jan 1, 2027
On August 17, 2026 the Swedish government submitted a lagradsremiss (referral to the Council on Legislation) proposing a new voluntary R&D tax incentive: an elevated cost deduction…
Vinnova opens Innovative Startups 2026 grant: up to SEK 500,000
Vinnova's Innovative Startups 2026 call runs from 12 October 2026 to 12 January 2027 (14:00), offering grants up to SEK 500,000 to knowledge-intensive startups. Eligible firms are…
AI transparency rules now enforced in Sweden: label chatbots and AI content
From 2 August 2026 the EU AI Act's transparency obligations (Article 50) are enforced and apply directly in Sweden: businesses must tell users when they are interacting with a chat…
Sweden expands vaxa-stod hiring relief to two employees, SEK 35,000/mo ceiling
From the January 2026 reporting period, Sweden's vaxa-stod employer-contribution relief for small firms now covers up to two employees instead of one, and the qualifying monthly sa…
Sweden softens personal tax liability for founders from July 1, 2026
From July 1, 2026, Sweden's rules on 'företrädaransvar' (personal payment liability for company representatives) were eased: a director can now be relieved of personal responsibili…
From July 1, 2026 Skatteverket can deny or revoke VAT registration
Effective July 1, 2026, Sweden's Tax Agency (Skatteverket) gained four new anti-fraud powers: it can require in-person identity checks during VAT registration, deny or cancel a VAT…
New Swedish anti-VAT-fraud rules from July 1, 2026: registration can be denied or voided
From July 1, 2026, Skatteverket can deny or revoke a company's VAT registration where there is a risk of tax evasion, require in-person identity verification for some VAT applicati…
Sweden arms Skatteverket to deny or revoke VAT registration from July 1, 2026
Under Prop. 2025/26:128 (Atgarder mot mervardesskattebedragerier), rules in force since July 1, 2026 let Skatteverket run tighter checks at VAT registration, deny or deregister a c…
Sweden ends duty-free imports: EUR 3 per-item customs fee from July 1, 2026
From 1 July 2026 Sweden applies a customs fee to non-EU online orders even under EUR 150 (SEK 1,655.30), previously duty-exempt. The fee is EUR 3 per item type (one fee for multipl…
From July 1, 2026 Skatteverket gains new powers over VAT registration
From July 1, 2026, Sweden's Tax Agency (Skatteverket) gains expanded authority when a company registers for VAT (moms): it can require the owner to appear at a tax office to identi…
Sweden softens director tax liability: 2-month grace period from June 30, 2026
New rules on skatterättsligt företrädaransvar (tax representative liability) entered into force on June 30, 2026, after Riksdagen approved prop. 2025/26 on May 6, 2026. A company r…
Sweden orders Vinnova and Tillvaxtverket to fix deeptech funding gaps
On June 25, 2026, the Swedish government tasked Vinnova and Tillvaxtverket with analyzing how to improve capital access for breakthrough-innovation and deeptech companies. The agen…
Sweden's overhauled competition rules take effect Aug 1, 2026; Konkurrensverket gains proactive powers
From 1 August 2026, Sweden's amended Competition Act and a new Public Sales Activities law (Lagen om offentlig säljverksamhet, LOS) take effect. Konkurrensverket can now open inves…
Sweden lifts work permit salary floor to SEK 34,470/month from June 2026
As of 16 June 2026 the Swedish Migration Agency set the national median salary at SEK 38,300, so a first-time work permit now requires a monthly salary of at least SEK 34,470 (90%…
Sweden mandates a consumer "withdrawal button" on online sales from June 19, 2026
From 19 June 2026, Swedish law requires any trader concluding distance contracts with consumers via a website or app to provide a clear, easily accessible "withdrawal button" that…
Sweden's June 2026 bill boosts R&D deduction and expert tax relief (25% to 30%)
On 11 June 2026 the Swedish Government submitted a draft bill expanding the R&D tax deduction (FoU-avdrag) and the expert tax relief, with changes proposed to take effect 1 January…
Sweden proposes to broaden R&D employer-fee relief (FoU-avdrag) and expert tax from 2027
In a lagradsremiss published June 11, 2026, the Swedish government proposes scrapping the rule that an employee must work at least 15 hours/month on R&D to qualify for the FoU-avdr…
Vinnova opens Test & Demo grant for SMEs: up to SEK 1M, deadline Sept 8 2026
Vinnova's 'Test & Demo for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises 2026' call opened 2 June 2026 and closes 8 September 2026 at 14:00. It funds up to 70% of eligible costs to a maximum…
Sweden cuts alcohol tax up to 50% for independent small producers from July 1, 2026
From July 1, 2026, Sweden reduces alcohol tax by up to 50% for legally and economically independent small producers, scaled by annual output. Qualifying ceilings are max 100,000 li…
Sweden's new work permit salary rule now in force: 90% of median wage
From 1 June 2026, a non-EU/EEA worker's salary must equal at least 90% of Sweden's median salary (up from the previous 80%), which secondary sources put at roughly SEK 33,390/month…
New Sweden work permit rules in force: 90% median salary floor for foreign hires
From 1 June 2026, first-time work permit applicants in Sweden must earn at least 90% of the national median salary (a minimum of about SEK 34,470/month), up from the previous 80% l…
Vinnova Innovative Startups 2026: up to SEK 500,000, applications Oct 12-Jan 12
Vinnova's Innovative Startups 2026 call funds knowledge-intensive Swedish startups with up to SEK 500,000 to test customer needs, business idea and willingness to pay. The applicat…
Sweden scraps EUR 150 duty-free import limit; EUR 3-per-item duty from July 1, 2026
Under Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382, the EUR 150 (about SEK 1,655) customs duty-free threshold for goods imported into Sweden from outside the EU is abolished as of July 1, 2026…
Sweden delays EU Pay Transparency Directive, missing June 7 2026 deadline
Sweden confirmed it will not transpose the EU Pay Transparency Directive by the EU-wide deadline of June 7, 2026, and is instead pushing to postpone and renegotiate the text. Its i…
Sweden work permit pay floor rises to 90% of median wage from June 1 2026
From 1 June 2026 a first-time Swedish work permit requires a salary of at least 90% of the national median wage, up from the old 80% level (which was SEK 29,680/month); press pegs…
Sweden halves food VAT from 12% to 6%, in effect April 2026–Dec 2027
Sweden's Riksdag approved a temporary cut in the VAT rate on food and bottled water from 12% to 6%, effective 1 April 2026 through 31 December 2027. The reduction covers food for h…
Sweden cuts employer contributions for young workers to 20.81% from April 1, 2026
From April 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, Swedish employers pay reduced social-security contributions of 20.81% (instead of the standard 31.42%) on monthly wages up to SEK 25,…
Sweden cuts employer contributions for young hires to 20.81% for 2026 to 2027
From 1 April 2026 through 30 September 2027, Swedish employers pay a reduced payroll tax of 20.81% (vs the ordinary 31.42%) on wages up to SEK 25,000 per month for employees aged 1…
Vinnova FFI Accelerated Startup Partnership: up to SEK 750k, Sept 16 deadline
Vinnova's FFI Accelerated Startup Partnership (ASP) 2026 funds collaborative projects between knowledge-intensive startups and established road-transport players, with a total budg…
Vinnova FFI Accelerated Startup Partnership: up to SEK 750,000, next deadline Sep 16 2026
Vinnova's FFI Accelerated Startup Partnership 2026 funds innovation collaborations between startups and established need-owners in sustainable road transport (circularity, transpor…
Sweden cuts employer contributions for hiring 18 to 22 year olds from April 1, 2026
From 1 April 2026 to 30 September 2027, Swedish employers pay a reduced social security contribution of about 20.81% instead of the standard 31.42% on monthly pay up to SEK 25,000…
Digital iXBRL annual reports become mandatory for all Swedish ABs from FY2026
For financial years starting after 31 December 2025, all Swedish limited companies (aktiebolag) must file their annual report digitally in iXBRL format via Bolagsverket; paper and…
Sweden's new 3:12 rules take effect: simpler dividend tax, SEK 322,400 standard amount
From 1 January 2026 Sweden's reformed 3:12 rules for owners of closely held companies (fåmansföretag) replace the old choice between the simplification rule and main rule with a si…
New simplified 3:12 rules for closely held companies take effect Jan 1 2026
Sweden's overhauled 3:12 rules entered into force on January 1, 2026, merging the old simplified and main rules into one model. The tax-free-style dividend threshold now combines a…
Vaxa-stod now requires monthly retroactive claim from Jan 2026 reporting period
From the January 2026 reporting period, employers using vaxa-stod (reduced employer contributions for the first two hires) must first report and pay the full 31.42% contribution, t…
Sweden 2026: companies can claim tax reduction for charity gifts, up to SEK 164,800
From calendar year 2026, Swedish legal persons (companies) can claim a tax reduction of 20.6% on cash gifts to Skatteverket-approved non-profits working in social assistance or sci…
Sweden's new 3:12 rules for closely held companies take effect Jan 1, 2026
From 1 January 2026 the 3:12 rules for owners of Swedish famansforetag are reformed (SFS 2025:1361). A single unified grundbelopp of SEK 322,400 (4x inkomstbasbelopp) replaces the…
Sweden's new 3:12 rules take effect Jan 1, 2026 with SEK 322,400 base allowance
From 1 January 2026, Sweden's reformed 3:12 rules for closely held companies replace the old simplified/main-rule split with one unified model. The low-taxed dividend allowance (ta…
Sweden's new 3:12 rules take effect Jan 1 2026, cutting tax for closely held firms
As of 1 January 2026 Sweden's reformed 3:12 rules replace the dual-track model with a unified calculation: a basic dividend allowance of four income base amounts (SEK 322,400 for 2…
Växa-stöd hiring relief switches to pay-first, refund-later from Jan 2026
From the January 2026 reporting period, Skatteverket removes the Växa-stöd checkbox in the employer declaration: small firms must now pay the full 31.42% employer contribution up f…