Doctor of medicine educated within EU or EEA

To be able to obtain a licence or proof of protected professional title, you need to have a Swedish personal identity number or coordination number.

If you do not have a personal identity number or coordination number when you apply for a licence, the National Board of Health and Welfare will request that the Swedish Tax Agency assign you a coordination number.

Once the National Board of Health and Welfare has requested that you be assigned a coordination number, you will normally receive a notice from the Swedish Tax Agency to appear in person at one of their service offices for an identity check. If you are not in Sweden, you can instead present yourself for an identity check at a Swedish passport authority abroad. The notice will be sent to the postal address you provide to the National Board of Health and Welfare.

You can also apply for a coordination number yourself via the Swedish Tax Agency, before you start your application for a licence.

Read more about applying for a coordination number on the Swedish Tax Agency’s website (in Swedish)

For example, you can prove your language skills by submitting a passing grade or approved results from

• Swedish at Level C1 in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.
• Swedish, level 3 or Swedish as a foreign language, level 3 for example from Komvux (upper secondary adult education).
• Another course or a test that makes you eligible for studying at a Swedish university/college, go to antagning.se.

You can also prove your language skills by letting a health care provider assess if you have the language skills that are needed in order to work in your profession. The health care provider should fill in the form and describe how the assessment has been made.

Instead of Swedish you can have equivalent skills in Danish or Norwegian.

For example, you can prove your language skills by submitting a passing grade or approved results from

• Danish or Norwegian at Level C1 in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.
• A course or a test that makes you eligible for studying at a Danish or Norwegian university or college.

You can also prove your language skills by letting a health care provider assess if you have the language skills that are needed in order to work in your profession. The health care provider should fill in the form and describe how the assessment has been made. Another alternative is to send a certificate showing that you have attended a university education in Danish or Norwegian.

When we have received your application, you will receive a confirmation, if you have filled in your email address. We review the applications in date order – no priority can be granted.

Our goal is to start handling a case within four weeks from the time the application reaches us. In order for you to receive your decision as quickly as possible, it is important that you send all documents from the beginning when you apply. If your application is not complete, we will contact you.

According to the professional qualifications directive, a decision regarding the application for identification must in any case be made within three to four months of the application being complete.

As a final step in the processing, we always do a search in the Police's charge register. If we get a hit in the charge register, the processing time will be longer.

If you have applied via e-service, you will receive the decision in the e‑service. You will receive an email from us when your decision is ready and then you log in to the e‑service to view the decision on "My page".

If you have applied via web form, you will receive the decision via email.

Once we have made a decision on identification, your details are entered into The National Board of Health and Welfare's register of certified health care personnel (HOSP). In HOSP, employers can search to see if a person has the identification required for a certain occupation.

A complete application means that we have received all the documents that are necessary for processing. If you have received a request for completion, the application is considered complete from the date when you have submitted the documents that we have requested.

If you have received a decision with compensatory measures you should perform an aptitude test or an adaptation period to have your professional qualifications recognized by the National Board of Health and Welfare. A license to practise your profession will be granted when you have submitted documentation to the National Board of Health and Welfare proving that you have successfully completed the compensatory measure. When submitting documents from the compensatory measure no fee is charged.

Recognition of your professional qualifications means that the National Board of Health and Welfare has compared your education with the Swedish education and concluded that there are no significant differences. A recognition of professional qualifications does not correspond to a credential and does not give the right to use a protected professional title.

If you already have a decision on the recognition of professional qualifications, you need to prove your language skills in order to be granted identification. You have the option of entering with a new application. Please note that the National Board of Health and Welfare charges an application fee per application for identification.

The application must contain

• a statement showing completed payment
• a copy of a valid ID document
• a copy of your language proficiency certificate or grade
• a copy and translation of the name change document, for example a marriage certificate (applies only if you have changed your name after receiving your diploma).

Read more about recognition of professional qualifications

EU

The countries included in the EU are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.

The UK is no longer part of the EU, but  if you have a diploma from the UK that has been issued before (and up to) 31 December 2020, you have the opportunity to apply for identification as an EU-educated person.

EEA

The EEA includes the EU countries and also Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.

Switzerland

Switzerland is neither an EU nor EEA member. If you qualified or have worked in Switzerland you can apply in the same way as those who qualified or have worked in an EU or EEA country.

Yes. You must show that you have the necessary language skills, even if you are a citizen of Sweden, Denmark, Finland or Norway.

If you disagree with a decision from the National Board of Health and Welfare, you can appeal it. Anyone who wishes to appeal the Board of Health and Welfare's decision must write to Förvaltningsrätten in Stockholm. The letter is therefore sent to Förvaltningsrätten, but it must be sent to the National Board of Health and Welfare.
The appeal must be in writing and it must reach the National Board of Health and Welfare within three weeks of you taking part of the decision. If the appeal is received later, it cannot be considered.

Follow these steps:

• Write in the heading of the letter: "Till Förvaltningsrätten i Stockholm – överklagande" (To Förvaltningsrätten in Stockholm – appeal").
• Indicate in the letter which decision you want to appeal (case number or record number) and which change you want.
• Send the appeal via mail or post:
  • via mail: socialstyrelsen@socialstyrelsen.se
  • via post:
    Socialstyrelsen
    Enheten för behörighet
    106 30 Stockholm

If you have applied for recognition of professional qualifications, licence to practice or European professional card, you can turn to the administrative court in Stockholm with a delay claim, if you have not received a decision in your case from us within certain time limits.

What time limits apply?

A decision on the recognition of professional qualifications must be made by the National Board of Health and Welfare within 3 months of your complete application. The time limit can, under certain conditions, be extended by one month.

How to file a complaint concerning delay in action?

To bring an action for delay, you must send a written "Request for a declaration of delay" to the Administrative Court in Stockholm. If the National Board of Health and Welfare has not complied with the deadlines stated above, the Administrative Court shall order us to decide the matter as soon as possible.

Contact information to Förvaltningsrätten i Stockholm (the Administrative Court in Stockholm)

forvaltningsrattenistockholm@dom.se

Visiting address
Tegeluddsvägen 1, 115 41 Stockholm

Postal address
115 76 Stockholm