Latest news with #MySwedishCareer
Local Sweden
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Local Sweden
Inside Sweden: The long waiting times for citizenship are about to get even longer
The Local's editor Emma Löfgren rounds up the biggest stories of the week in our Inside Sweden newsletter. Advertisement Hej, The Migration Agency on Friday lowered its forecast for how many Swedish citizenship cases it believes it will process in 2025. In October 2024, it predicted it would be able to finish processing 87,000 applications this year thanks to increased staff. That would have been a welcome increase after years of strong criticism (from heavyweights such as the Parliamentary Ombudsman and National Audit Office) of its long waiting times. Then the government ordered the agency to carry out extra security checks of citizenship applicants, instructions widely interpreted by experts as a pretext for slowing down the granting of new citizenships before major reforms come into force in summer 2026. As a result of these security checks, the Migration Agency now predicts it will finish processing 26 percent fewer citizenship cases in 2025 than previously estimated. Meanwhile, the government has said it generally wants the 2026 citizenship reforms to apply even to those who apply before they come into force (going directly against the advice of the official inquiry). It means people who apply for citizenship today, even without taking the delays caused by the extra security checks into account, have *no idea* under what rules they will actually be assessed (current advice from the Migration Agency is that 75 percent of recently concluded cases were processed within 23 months, the upper limit of which takes us well past the 2026 deadline). The long waiting times for citizenship are an undemocratic scandal and the result of how a series of governments have failed to give the Migration Agency adequate resources, despite claiming that migration is one of their most important issues. It should be on the front page of every Swedish newspaper. Advertisement In other news Everyone who has applied for Swedish citizenship, both before and after tighter security checks came into force on April 1st, is being asked to answer a set of detailed additional questions. We got hold of the questions so looked into what they say, and also why the Migration Agency is asking for this information. In Stockholm parents of some of the 159 pupils left stranded by the IES school chain's decision to close its only upper secondary school mounted a protest, calling for the council's education department to intervene to save the school. GAMES: Have you tried The Local's games for Membership+ subscribers yet? We've got a new crossword and word search puzzle out now The government this week appointed an inquiry to look into whether legislative changes are needed to strengthen academic freedom – a topic which has grabbed headlines after the Trump government's attempts to crack down on diversity and inclusion initiatives at universities. Another interview for our My Swedish Career series! Richard Mason, originally from Wales, moved to Sweden in 2020 for a postdoctoral position at Umeå University. The Local's Becky Waterton spoke to him about his research and his experience of life in northern Sweden as an international academic. Are you paying too much rent? One subletter is set to get back more than 120,000 kronor after being overcharged for an apartment in Stockholm's upmarket Östermalm area, the Svea Court of Appeal ruled. Advertisement The government and the Sweden Democrats have put forward a proposal that would pay refugees up to 350,000 kronor to return home, increasing the current grant by 3,400 percent, despite an inquiry last year criticising it. In this week's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra for Membership+ subscribers we interview Gothenburg politician Axel Darvik and Uppsala University vice chancellor Anders Hagstedt about how Sweden can woo US scientists. Sweden's first and only Catholic cardinal, Anders Arborelius, is one of the possible candidates to become the next pope after Pope Francis died on Easter Monday. How likely is it that he takes over? And finally, The Local's monthly roundup of everything happening in Sweden next month, including a change of direction for the Social Democrats, a tax deadline, public holidays, and, maybe, another Eurovision win for Sweden. Have a good weekend, Emma Löfgren Editor, The Local Sweden Inside Sweden is our weekly newsletter for members which gives you news, analysis and, sometimes, takes you behind the scenes at The Local. It's published each Saturday and with Membership+ you can also receive it directly to your inbox.
Local Sweden
15-02-2025
- Business
- Local Sweden
Inside Sweden: Who are the foreigners doing cool things in Sweden right now
Hej, One of the goals I've set for us at The Local is to do more interviews with foreigners doing cool things in Sweden in 2025 – because there are so many of you, as I found out when I posted an appeal for tips on LinkedIn. If you're a long time reader, you may be familiar with our My Swedish Career series. It got put on hold due to the extremely busy news cycle of the past few years, but we've picked it up again and hope to make it a weekly feature. We're doing this for a few different reasons. One, at a time when so many harmful stereotypes about immigration are being spread on social and in the mainstream media, it feels important to show the range of individuals who have moved to Sweden, who are all unique and have nothing in common, while at the same time having so much in common. I said "doing cool things" at the start of this email, but I think pretty much everything everyone does is cool, so if you're interested in being interviewed for our My Swedish Career series, please don't hesitate to get in touch, regardless of whether you're an entrepreneur, teacher, shop worker, doctor, student, job seeker, lawyer, on parental leave, cleaner, researcher or anything else. Two, research suggests that people are tired of being force fed ONLY negative stories by the media. Bringing negative stories to light is of course our job, but sometimes it can feel like an endless flow of despair that you can't avoid. At the same time, I don't think that means that people are interested in just happy, fluffy stories about kittens and puppies. But stories that are inspiring, that show you new thoughts and perspectives, that are useful, constructive and relatable – I don't know about you, but I want to read more of those. In other news My latest My Swedish Career interview features Nina Lipjankic, who moved from Bosnia Herzegovina to Lund in southern Sweden to do a master's degree in molecular biology and managed at the 11th hour to find a job and stay after her graduation. Her journey had its up and downs, but recently, mostly ups. This week's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra for Membership+ subscribers features an interview with Sophia Omarji, a former Spotify worker who's navigating life in Sweden after a layoff. Sweden's highest migration court, the Migration Court of Appeal, overturned a rejected work permit application, setting a precedent that evening and weekend pay can count towards the minimum salary threshold. After feeling like he was just going through the motions, Stockholm-based Australian Jake Farrugia, 33, decided to abandon the world of dating apps in favour of a completely different approach. FI, the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority, is urging property owners to try and negotiate a better deal on their mortgages. Apparently it's the ideal time! In his speech to the nation after the Örebro mass shooting, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson avoided political punchlines. But was his message of unity the right one, asked Richard Orange in this week's Politics in Sweden column. This week I also wrote about how Kristersson as well as opposition politicians would do well to reflect on how their rhetoric, not just the Örebro attack, has caused many foreigners to feel vulnerable, unsafe and unwelcome in Sweden. The Internationella Engelska Skolan free school chain is closing its flagship upper secondary school in Stockholm district Södermalm, leaving 66 students with nowhere to complete their International Baccalaureate. The two Malmö artists behind Anonymouse, the street art collective which charmed the world with mouse-sized bistros, cafés, and nut shops, this week revealed their identities as they brought the viral project to an end. And finally, this petition wants your help to stop the new Swedish citizenship rules from applying retroactively to those already in the queue. Have a relaxing weekend everyone, Emma Löfgren Editor, The Local Sweden Inside Sweden is our weekly newsletter for members which gives you news, analysis and, sometimes, takes you behind the scenes at The Local. It's published each Saturday and with Membership+ you can also receive it directly to your inbox.
