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Subsidiary-protection status

SwedenHumanitarian protection

Explore the five recorded questions, answers and sources for this pathway.

Programme source

Explore pathways in Sweden Read the five questions ↓

What exactly is this: asylum, temporary protection, humanitarian admission, resettlement or another protection mechanism?

International protection (asylum): Sweden must grant a residence permit to a person in need of subsidiary protection according to the EU's common rules. In Swedish the term was previously "alternativt skyddsbehövande".

See recorded sources

Which population, circumstances or geographic group does the mechanism cover?

People for whom there is reason to assume that, in their country of origin, they risk the death penalty; corporal punishment, torture or other inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment; or, as civilians, serious injury due to armed conflict.

See recorded sources
  • Recorded source · www.migrationsverket.se
    Under EU rules and Swedish law, you are in need of subsidiary protection if there is reason to assume that any of the following applies to you and your situation in your country of origin: You are at risk of being punished with death. You are at risk of corporal punishment, torture, or other inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment. As a civilian, you are at serious risk of injury due to armed conflict.

Where can protection be requested, and is this a direct application, border/in-country request, referral or other process?

Protection cannot be applied for before arriving in Sweden; the person must be in Sweden or at the Swedish border. At the border, the person tells the border police (e.g. passport controls at international airports, ferry terminals, train and bus entry points), who refer them to the Swedish Migration Agency, which registers the application. A person already in Sweden applies in person at a Swedish Migration Agency Reception and Return Centre in Malmö, Gothenburg, Stockholm or Boden. The request can also be made to the police, the Swedish Migration Agency or the Swedish Prison and Probation Service.

See recorded sources
  • Recorded source · www.migrationsverket.se
    You cannot apply for international protection (asylum) before you arrive in Sweden. You must be in Sweden or on a border with Sweden.
  • Recorded source · www.migrationsverket.se
    If you encounter border police when you enter Sweden, tell them that you want to apply for international protection. Border police are located, for example, at passport controls at international airports, at ferry terminals, and wherever trains and buses enter Sweden. The border police will ask you some questions and then refer you to the Swedish Migration Agency, which will register your application for international protection.
  • Recorded source · www.migrationsverket.se
    If you are already in Sweden, please visit the Swedish Migration Agency to submit an application. You can apply for international protection at one of the Swedish Migration Agency’s Reception and Return Centres in Malmö, Gothenburg, Stockholm or Boden.
  • Recorded source · www.migrationsverket.se
    In Sweden, you can also tell the police, the Swedish Migration Agency or the Swedish Prison and Probation Service.

What happens after the request: registration, family handling, major support and rights where officially stated?

The checked official sources did not provide enough route-specific evidence to confirm what happens after the protection request is made.

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Limits of the record
  • This detail is not established in the evidence recorded here. Confirm the applicable requirement with the responsible authority.

Which competent authority, UN body or official assistance channel should the person use?

The competent authority is the Swedish Migration Agency, which is responsible for considering protection applications. Applicants are told about the right to free legal advice, which must be requested. The Agency lists organisations that can support applicants, including Amnesty International, Caritas Sweden, Asylrättscentrum, Save the Children Sweden and the Swedish Red Cross; RFSL Newcomers supports LGBTQIA+ applicants. The Agency warns that providing inaccurate identity information is illegal and that suspected fraud is reported to the police.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The captured page names no UN body (e.g. UNHCR) as an assistance channel.
  • The fraud warning concerns false identity information by applicants; no warning about third-party scams is stated.

These are the answers currently recorded in the catalogue. A missing or partial answer is not an eligibility decision.

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