What do you get if you become unemployed, ill or go on parental leave?
Short answer: On a median wage of 38,300 kronor a month, unemployment insurance today pays at most 27,200 kronor, 71 percent, and sickness benefit after 100 days about 29,700 kronor, 78 percent, before tax. On a high wage of 61,700 kronor, unemployment insurance pays only 44 percent because the cap kicks in. In 1980 it paid 91.7 percent up to the cap.
How much of your pay you get today.
| Kronor a month before tax | At the start | After 100 days | After one year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment insurance | |||
| Sick | |||
| Parental benefit |
Before tax, for a full-time employee who has been a member of an unemployment fund and worked long enough for income-related benefit. Unemployment insurance is counted on five benefit days a week; after one year = benefit day 261. Sick at the start = day 2 to 14, when the employer pays sick pay without a cap; the first day carries a qualifying deduction. After 100 days and one year the Social Insurance Agency pays sickness benefit. Parental benefit at sickness benefit level. Low, middle and high pay are P10, the median and P90 among all full-time wages according to Statistics Sweden. Top-ups from collective agreements and income insurance are not included, and they often add about 10 percent of pay above the cap.
The most and the least you can get, since 1980.
Unemployment insurance Sickness benefit Parental benefit Median wage
Unemployment basic amount Lowest activity support Guaranteed disability benefit National standard
Highest benefit per month before tax, the first 100 days of unemployment insurance, . Per day, unemployment insurance and the median wage are counted per benefit day, five days a week or the month divided by 21.67, and sickness and parental benefit per calendar day, the annual amount divided by 365, as the Social Insurance Agency counts. The unemployment insurance cap is a fixed amount that parliament seldom changes, so it erodes between increases. The caps on sickness and parental benefit follow the price base amount and thus prices, but not wages. The median wage is SCB's wage structure statistics from 1992. Before 1992 it follows the annual earnings of full-year, full-time workers in SCB's Household Finances survey, spliced to 1992; the dashed line marks the splice.
Kronor per month before tax, . Per day shows only the basic amount and the activity support, which are paid per benefit day; the guarantee compensation and the national standard are monthly amounts. The basic amount is full-time unemployment insurance for those without income-related benefit. The lowest activity support is paid to those taking part in a labour market programme without a right to unemployment insurance. The guarantee compensation is the lowest sickness compensation for those who cannot work. The national standard is the social assistance norm for a single adult, excluding housing, electricity and other costs the municipality pays at actual cost, and it is reduced by all other income.
How much of your pay is replaced?
Share of gross pay after 100 days for . Choose a wage with the buttons or the slider under Work it out.
Unemployment insurance after 100 days Unemployment insurance after one year Sickness benefit Parental benefit
The rule in force at the end of the year, against that year's wage. If the wage is above the cap, the share falls every year wages grow faster than the cap. Wages before 1992 are spliced from a different survey, at the dashed line.
How many earn more than the cap?
Unemployment insurance Sickness benefit Parental benefit
Share of all full-time wages that are higher than the wage at which the benefit hits the cap. Estimated by us from SCB's percentiles (P10, median and P90) with a lognormal distribution; the highest wages spread out more than that, so the share is more likely too low than too high. Applies to full-time wages, not everyone receiving benefits. Before 1992 the percentiles are based on annual earnings from the Household Finances survey, spliced to 1992 at the dashed line.
The big changes.
| When | What |
|---|---|
| 1991 | Sickness benefit is cut to 65 percent for the first three days and 80 percent for days 4 to 90. |
| 1992 | Employers pay sick pay for the first two weeks. |
| 1993 | Unemployment insurance is cut from 90 to 80 percent. A qualifying day in sickness insurance and 70 percent after one year. |
| 1996 | Unemployment insurance, sickness benefit and parental benefit are cut to 75 percent. |
| 1997 and 1998 | Back to 80 percent, unemployment insurance in 1997 and sickness and parental benefit in 1998. |
| 2001 and 2002 | The unemployment insurance cap is raised to 680 and then 730 kronor a day for the first 100 days. |
| 2006 | The cap for sickness and parental benefit is raised to 10 price base amounts. |
| 2007 | The unemployment insurance cap becomes 680 kronor for the whole period, 70 percent after 200 days and 65 percent after 300. The sickness benefit cap goes back to 7.5 price base amounts. |
| 2008 | Sickness benefit becomes 75 percent after one year, with a time limit. Benefit is calculated on 97 percent of income. |
| 2015 | The unemployment insurance cap is raised to 910 kronor for the first 100 days and 760 after that. |
| 2016 | The time limit in sickness insurance is abolished. |
| 2018 | The sickness benefit cap is raised to 8 price base amounts. |
| 2019 | The qualifying day becomes a qualifying deduction. |
| 2020 | During the pandemic the unemployment insurance cap is raised to 1,200 kronor and the basic amount to 510 kronor a day. The increases are later made permanent. |
| 2022 | The sickness benefit cap is raised to 10 price base amounts. |
| 2025 | New unemployment insurance on 1 October: benefit is calculated on at most 34,000 kronor a month, 80 percent for 100 days, then 70 and 65 percent. The basic amount disappears and the lowest activity support is raised from 223 to 365 kronor a day. |
Everything that catches you when something happens.
Unemployment insurance, sickness benefit and parental benefit are the big ones, but the safety net is much more. Here are all the benefits, allowances and guarantees in Sweden in 2026, grouped by what has happened. Amounts are before tax and apply to those who meet the conditions.
Unemployment
| Safety net | Who | What you get in 2026 | Paid and run by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment insurance | People who have lost their job and have had an income for at least four months. | 80 percent of income up to 34,000 kronor a month, at most 27,200 kronor, and less after 100 and 200 days. Those who have been members of an unemployment fund for less than twelve months, or not at all, get 60 or 50 percent. 66 to 300 days depending on how long you have worked. | The state and membership fees. The unemployment funds pay out, IAF supervises. |
| Activity support and development allowance | People taking part in a programme at the Public Employment Service. The development allowance is for young people aged 18 to 24. | Activity support 365 to 1,236 kronor a day. Development allowance 57 or 206 kronor a day, tax free. | The state. The Public Employment Service decides, the Social Insurance Agency pays out. |
| Establishment allowance | Newly arrived refugees and their family members in the introduction programme. | 231 kronor a day during the initial assessment, then 335 kronor. | The state. The Public Employment Service decides, the Social Insurance Agency pays out. |
| Transition support and transition study support | People who are laid off or want to change careers mid life. The study support is for ages 27 to 63 with at least eight years of work. | Advice and help finding a new job, often with extra pay on top of unemployment insurance. The study support gives 80 percent of your wage, at most 5,773 kronor a week, for up to 44 weeks. | Employers through the job security councils in collective agreements, Kammarkollegiet for those without an agreement. The study support is paid by the state through CSN. |
| Wage guarantee | Employees whose employer goes bankrupt or into reconstruction. | Unpaid wages, at most 236,800 kronor (four price base amounts) and at most eight months. | The state. The bankruptcy administrator decides, the Tax Agency pays out. |
Illness, injury and disability
| Safety net | Who | What you get in 2026 | Paid and run by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sick pay | Employees who are sick, days 1 to 14. | 80 percent of your wage, minus a qualifying deduction of 20 percent of a week's sick pay. | The employer. |
| Sickness benefit and rehabilitation benefit | People who are sick from day 15, or from the first day without an employer. Rehabilitation benefit during work oriented rehabilitation. | Just under 80 percent of income, at most 1,259 kronor a day, after a year at most 1,180. Jobseekers at most 543 kronor. | The state and employer contributions. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Sickness compensation and activity compensation | People who cannot work in the long term. Activity compensation for ages 19 to 29, sickness compensation from age 19 when the ability to work is reduced for good. | 64.7 percent of an assumed income, at most 23,939 kronor a month. The guarantee compensation for those with low or no income is 12,235 to 13,715 kronor. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Work injury insurance | People who are injured or made ill by their work and lose income permanently. | An annuity that replaces the lost income up to 7.5 price base amounts, 444,000 kronor a year. With a collective agreement, TFA is added. | Employer contributions. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Assistance allowance | People with severe disabilities who need personal assistance more than 20 hours a week for their basic needs. | 347.70 kronor per granted hour, at most 389.42 kronor. | The municipality for the first 20 hours a week, the state for the rest. The Social Insurance Agency, and the municipality for those with smaller needs. |
| Additional cost allowance | People with extra costs because of a disability. Replaced the disability allowance in 2019, which those who already have it keep. | 1,480 to 3,453 kronor a month, 30 to 70 percent of the price base amount a year. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| High cost protection for care and medicines | Everyone living in Sweden. | Over twelve months you pay at most 1,450 kronor for outpatient visits and at most 3,800 kronor for prescription medicines, after that it is free. | The regions, with a state grant for medicines. |
| Dental care support | Adults from age 20. Up to age 19, dental care is free. | A grant of 300 kronor a year, 600 kronor for ages 20 to 23 and from age 67. Above 3,000 kronor the state pays half the cost, and above 15,000 kronor 85 percent. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Disease carrier's allowance | People who may not work because they could spread an infection. | Same as sickness benefit, but without the qualifying deduction. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Close relative care allowance | People who stay off work to care for a seriously ill relative. | Just under 80 percent of income, for up to 100 days per ill person. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
Children and family
| Safety net | Who | What you get in 2026 | Paid and run by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parental benefit | Parents at home with their children. | 480 days per child. 390 days at just under 80 percent of income, at most 1,259 and at least 250 kronor a day, and 90 days at 180 kronor. | The state and employer contributions. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Pregnancy benefit | Pregnant women with physically demanding or risky work who cannot be moved to other work. | Just under 80 percent of income, at most 944 kronor a day. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Temporary parental benefit | Parents at home with sick children under twelve. | Just under 80 percent of income up to 7.5 price base amounts a year, for up to 120 days per child and year. | The state and employer contributions. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Child allowance and large family supplement | All children under 16, and longer for those still in compulsory school. | 1,250 kronor a month per child. Families with several children get a supplement, so three children give 4,480 kronor in total. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Maintenance support | Children whose parent does not live with them and does not pay maintenance. | 1,673 kronor a month up to age 7, 1,823 kronor up to age 15 and 2,223 kronor after that. | The state, which reclaims part of it from the parent. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Housing allowance | Families with children and young people aged 18 to 28 with low incomes. | At most 4,200 to 6,200 kronor a month for families depending on the number of children, at most 1,300 kronor for young people. The temporary supplement ended in June 2025. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
| Care allowance | Parents caring for a child with a disability. Replaced the previous care allowance in 2019. | 3,083 to 12,333 kronor a month in four levels. | The state. The Social Insurance Agency. |
Old age and death
| Safety net | Who | What you get in 2026 | Paid and run by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guarantee pension | Pensioners with a low or no earnings related pension, from the target retirement age. | At most 11,988 kronor a month if unmarried, 10,853 if married, with 40 years in Sweden. Falls as the earnings related pension rises. | The state. The Pensions Agency. |
| Housing supplement | Pensioners and people on sickness compensation with low incomes. | At most 7,290 kronor a month, tax free. | The state. The Pensions Agency. |
| Maintenance support for the elderly | Older people who have lived in Sweden for a short time and therefore have too small a pension. | Tops up to 7,576 kronor a month plus housing, at most 7,500 kronor. | The state. The Pensions Agency. |
| Survivor's pension | Spouses, cohabiting partners with children, and children of someone who dies. | Adjustment pension, usually for a year, longer with children under 18. Child's pension or survivor's support of at least 1,973 kronor a month per child. | The pension system and the state. The Pensions Agency. |
The last resort
| Safety net | Who | What you get in 2026 | Paid and run by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Financial assistance | People who cannot support themselves in any other way, once all other benefits have been tried. | The national standard, 5,220 kronor a month for a single person and 8,510 for a couple, plus reasonable costs for housing and electricity. A benefit cap applies from 2027. | The municipality, through social services. |
| Debt relief | People with debts so large they cannot pay them in the foreseeable future. | A plan of normally five years, three for business owners, living on a protected amount of 6,243 kronor a month for a single person plus housing. The remaining debts are then written off. | The creditors, who lose the money. The Enforcement Authority. |
Insurance and guarantees
| Safety net | Who | What you get in 2026 | Paid and run by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collective agreement insurance | Employees covered by a collective agreement, most people in Sweden. | AGS pays extra during illness, TFA for work injuries, TGL a lump sum to survivors and FPT a top up of parental benefit. AGB pays a lump sum on redundancy from age 40. | The employer. AFA Försäkring for private, municipal and regional employers, other insurers for the state. |
| Home insurance | Anyone who takes one out, voluntarily. | Compensation for belongings that are stolen or damaged, liability and legal expenses cover, often assault cover. | You. The insurance company. |
| Patient insurance | Everyone injured in healthcare by something that could have been avoided. | Compensation for the injury, whether or not anyone was at fault. | Healthcare providers. Löf for the regions, insurers for private providers. |
| Motor insurance | Everyone injured in traffic, including pedestrians and cyclists. | Compensation for personal injury, regardless of who caused it. | Vehicle owners, who must have the insurance. The Motor Insurers' Bureau when a vehicle is uninsured. |
| Criminal injuries compensation | Victims of crime when the offender or an insurance cannot pay. | Compensation for personal injury and violation, for example at least 8,000 kronor for violation. | The state. The Crime Victim Authority. |
| Deposit guarantee and investor protection | People with money in an account or securities at a bank or firm that goes bankrupt. | Deposits up to 1,150,000 kronor per person and bank. Investor protection pays up to 250,000 kronor if securities have gone missing. | The banks through fees. The National Debt Office. |
Amounts are for 2026 and were taken from the Social Insurance Agency, the Pensions Agency, IAF, CSN, the National Board of Health and Welfare, the government, the Enforcement Authority and the National Debt Office in October 2026. Where a benefit is based on income, the ceiling is ten price base amounts, 592,000 kronor a year, unless stated otherwise. Regions and municipalities can have their own rules, for example a lower high cost protection.
How parental insurance and child benefit have changed since 1974 is on Family policy. The assistance allowance and LSS support are on Disability support (LSS).
How many receive benefits?
Sickness rate = days with sickness and rehabilitation benefit per insured person aged 16 to 64 over the past twelve months, here the annual average; sick pay days are not included. People on unemployment insurance = everyone who received benefit at some point during the year, summed over the municipalities. New disability and activity compensation = first-time awards during the year. Parental benefit = everyone who received it at some point during the year.
Unemployed in Sweden and in other countries.
Second month Twelfth month,
Sweden since 2001
Second month Twelfth month Dashed: average wage, solid line: two thirds of it
OECD net replacement rate: disposable income when unemployed as a percentage of disposable income in work, after tax, for a single person without children with a long work record, without social assistance or housing benefit. Modelled on each country's rules, so it assumes full unemployment insurance even where few have it. Income insurance and agreements are not included.
How many are poor in Sweden?
Below 60 percent of the median, EU Low economic standard, Statistics Sweden Below the 2008 line, fixed in prices Severe material deprivation Severe material and social deprivation
The relative line follows the median income. When most people become better off the line rises, and more people can fall below it even though their own income has also grown; a line fixed in prices instead measures whether those with the lowest incomes have more to live on, and there the share has fallen.
Income = the household's disposable income per consumption unit, after taxes and benefits. Eurostat reports by survey year, with incomes from the year before; SCB reports by income year, excluding capital gains: from 2011 from the registers, before that from the Household Finances sample survey, 1991 and from 1995. The dashed line at 2011 marks the switch; the registers give a somewhat lower share. Before 2004 the EU figures come from an older survey and are rounded, and the number of people is available from 2004. The fixed line is the 2008 poverty line adjusted for prices. Material deprivation = not being able to afford things most people have, such as an unexpected expense, a week's holiday or keeping the home warm. The old measure counted at least four of nine items and ends in 2020, the new one counts at least seven of thirteen and starts in 2015, so the lines cannot be joined. No official source still measures an absolute line over time, so it is missing here.
How many people are homeless and how many are evicted is on Homelessness.
Security, caps and incentives.
On paper, Sweden's safety net pays 80 percent of earnings, but fewer and fewer actually get that. The unemployment insurance cap is a fixed amount in kronor that only changes by political decision, and the sickness benefit cap, ten price base amounts, follows prices but not wages. As wages rise, more people end up above the cap and get a smaller share of their pay replaced. Since 1 October 2025, unemployment insurance is based on previous income instead of time worked. How long you get benefits depends on how many months you have had income, and the benefit steps down by 10 percentage points after 100 days and by a further 5 after 200 days. In May 2026 parliament decided on a benefit cap for social assistance that will apply from 1 January 2027.
The neighbouring countries are moving in the same direction. In 2026 Iceland shortened the longest period of unemployment benefit from 30 to 24 months. In 2024 Finland cut the earnings-related benefit in steps after 40 and 170 days and required a longer time in work to qualify. Finland is also the country that tested basic income for real in 2017 and 2018. Denmark has long combined easy dismissal with benefits for up to two years and active employment services, known as flexicurity, but the ceiling is so low that an ordinary wage earner gets far below the 90 percent the rules allow. Norway pays 62.4 percent of income for up to two years, and the ceiling is raised in line with wages every year.
Research gives a clear but not simple answer. Lower benefits make people find jobs somewhat faster and take less sick leave, but the effects are moderate. Nor is it obvious that it is better to cut benefits later in unemployment than early, which is exactly what the step-down does. Research on the other tools of policy, such as taxes on work and hiring subsidies, is covered on Work.
Unemployment insurance in the Nordics
| Country | Share of income kept after 2 months, 2024 | After 12 months, 2024 | Longest benefit period, 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweden | 54 percent | 46 percent | 300 days, fewer with a shorter income history since October 2025 |
| Norway | 63 percent | 63 percent | 104 weeks, 52 weeks at low income |
| Denmark | 59 percent | 50 percent | 2 years within 3 years |
| Finland | 53 percent | 53 percent | 300 to 500 days depending on work history and age |
| Iceland | 62 percent | 43 percent | 24 months for new claimants since July 2026, previously 30 |
Sources: OECD, Net replacement rates in unemployment (single person without children on an average wage, without social assistance or housing benefit, share of disposable income before unemployment), plus NAV, the Danish unemployment funds' joint guidance, Työttömyyskassojen Yhteistyöjärjestö, Vinnumálastofnun and regeringen.se for benefit periods. The OECD uses rules in force during 2024, so Sweden's reform of October 2025 and Iceland's of July 2026 are not reflected. For Finland the OECD has already lowered the value after 2 months to 43 percent in 2025. Benefit days are counted differently across countries, so the periods are only roughly comparable.
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Do people look less for work when unemployment benefit is high?
A little. When the benefit was cut from 80 to 75 percent in 1996, the rate at which unemployed people found jobs rose by about 10 percent, and the effect showed up in the months before the cut took effect. When the benefit was instead raised in 2001 and 2002, men stayed unemployed longer but women shorter, and overall no clear effect could be seen.
Carling, Holmlund and Vejsiu (2001), Economic Journal. Bennmarker, Carling and Holmlund (2007), LABOUR.
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Does it matter when in a spell of unemployment the benefit is cut?
Less than you might think. A study of unemployed Swedes found that the benefit affects job search at least as much early on as later, and that household spending falls clearly from the start and keeps falling. The researchers concluded that the Swedish benefit was too generous overall, but that there was no support for letting it decline over time.
Kolsrud, Landais, Nilsson and Spinnewijn (2018), American Economic Review.
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Do people take more sick leave when the benefit is high?
Yes, to some extent. In 1991 sickness benefit was cut from 90 to 65 percent for the first three days and to 80 percent for days 4 to 90. After the cut fewer people reported sick, and the effect was larger among men than among women.
Johansson and Palme (2005), Journal of Public Economics.
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What happened when sickness insurance was tightened in 2008?
With the rehabilitation chain of 2008, work capacity was assessed at fixed points, day 91 and day 181. Considerably more people left sickness benefit around day 181. The increase came from those who left then staying longer outside the sickness insurance, and the researcher interprets this as the stricter rules deterring some from reporting sick.
Hägglund (2013), Empirical Economics, earlier ISF working paper 2010:1.
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What did Finland's basic income experiment show?
In 2017 and 2018, 2,000 randomly selected unemployed people aged 25 to 58 received an unconditional basic income instead of their usual benefit. They did not work noticeably more than the control group, but they kept using the employment services even though the requirements were gone. In a survey after the trial they were also more satisfied with life, felt less mental strain and viewed their finances more positively, but it cannot be said for certain that the basic income was the cause.
Verho, Hämäläinen and Kanninen (2022), American Economic Journal: Economic Policy. Kangas, Jauhiainen, Simanainen and Ylikännö (2020), Suomen perustulokokeilun arviointi.
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Is benefit dependence passed from parents to children?
Partly. In Norway, appeals over disability benefit are randomly assigned to judges who differ in how lenient they are, which makes it possible to see cause and effect. When a parent was granted disability benefit on appeal, the probability that the adult child also received it rose by 6 percentage points after five years and by 12 after ten years. The study concerns disability benefit, not social assistance.
Dahl, Kostøl and Mogstad (2014), Quarterly Journal of Economics.
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Do labour market programmes work?
Often, but it takes time. A review of more than 200 evaluations from around the world shows that the effect is close to zero just after the programme and becomes clearer two to three years later. Programmes that build skills, such as training, do best in the longer run. They help women and the long-term unemployed more than others, and work better in recessions.
Card, Kluve and Weber (2018), Journal of the European Economic Association.
Where the figures come from.
- The rules: the Unemployment Insurance Act, the Social Insurance Code and the General Insurance Act, the ordinance on activity support and the National Board of Health and Welfare's regulations on the national standard, with bills and decisions, entered by hand with a source per row. The price base amount from the government's decision each year.
- Statistics Sweden, wage structure statistics (CC0): monthly wage for P10, median and P90, all sectors and occupations, 1992 to 2025. Before 1992 the annual earnings of full-year, full-time workers from the Household Finances survey, spliced to 1992. CPI from SCB for fixed prices.
- Swedish Social Insurance Agency statistics (CC BY 4.0): the sickness rate, first-time awards of disability and activity compensation and recipients of parental benefit.
- IAF (CC0): people receiving unemployment benefit by municipality and year.
- OECD, Tax-Benefit Model (CC BY 4.0): net replacement rates in unemployment since 2001.
- Eurostat, EU-SILC (CC BY 4.0): at risk of poverty (ilc_li02), with a fixed line from 2008 (ilc_li22b), and severe material deprivation (ilc_mddd11, ilc_mdsd11).
- Statistics Sweden, income and taxes (CC0): low economic standard nationally since 2011, and from the Household Finances survey 1991 and 1995 to 2010.
The benefits in the example cases are calculated by us from the rules, before tax, and apply to those who meet the conditions. Who receives the benefits, in kronor and numbers, is on Where the benefits go.