How vat / sales tax works in Sweden
Swedish VAT (moms) defaults to 25% on goods and services, with output tax charged, input tax deducted, and returns filed monthly, quarterly, or annually by turnover.
A 12% rate covers food, restaurants, hotels, and repairs, while 6% covers books, press, passenger transport, culture, and sport.
Registration follows past SEK 120,000 of taxable turnover, OSS routes cross-border B2C, and reverse charge covers most B2B imports of goods and services.
Tax rates at a glance
- Standard VAT
- 25%
- Reduced VAT
- 12% / 6%
- Restaurant food
- 12%
- Books and transport
- 6%
- Exports
- 0%
- Registration line
- SEK 120,000
Who benefits most
These profiles tend to benefit most when the rules match their real residence, payroll and business setup.
E-commerce sellersSaaS foundersFreelancersExpatsHospitality operators
Watch out for
- At 25%, misclassification is expensive: a single band error on volume sales outweighs most income-tax planning for consumer businesses.
- Takeaway versus restaurant, print versus service, and culture-versus-entertainment boundaries each carry their own Skatteverket practice.
- Exempt healthcare, education, and finance supplies block input recovery, which reprices mixed public-sector contracting.
- Filing frequency steps with turnover, so growth crosses from annual to quarterly to monthly without an application.
Frequently asked questions
What is the VAT rate in Sweden?
Sweden applies 25% standard VAT in 2026, with 12% for food, restaurants, hotels, and repairs and 6% for books, press, transport, culture, and sport.
When must a Swedish business register for VAT?
Past SEK 120,000 of taxable turnover. Voluntary registration below that suits input-heavy starters, and OSS covers cross-border B2C distance sales.
How often are Swedish VAT returns filed?
Monthly, quarterly, or annually depending on turnover, with larger traders filing monthly. Skatteverket sets the period from reported figures.