Compensation from the unemployment insurance fund (a-kassa)

Conditions for receiving compensation from the unemployment insurance fund

You must meet certain conditions to be eligible for compensation.

Basic requirements

• be at least 20 years old
• be registered with Arbetsförmedlingen
• be able and willing to take a job immediately
• have nothing that prevents you from applying for and taking a job. For example, you must have childcare if you have children, and in normal cases you must have completed any studies and be in Sweden.

Contact your unemployment insurance fund for information about what applies in your particular situation.

Income requirements

To be eligible for compensation, you must also have worked previously as well as meet a so-called income requirement. There are two ways to do this:

• You have earned at least SEK 11,000 per month before tax for at least four months during the last twelve months and have had a total income of at least SEK 120,000.
• You have earned at least SEK 11,000 per month before tax for four consecutive months during the last twelve months.

Your unemployment insurance fund obtains your income information from Skatteverket (the Swedish tax agency).

If, for example, you have been on parental leave, sick leave or studying full-time, you can include income from work further back in time.

Employer's certificate when applying for compensation

Your previous employer needs to fill in an employer's certificate. Log in to your unemployment insurance fund's website to request an employer's certificate or ask your employer to use arbetsgivarintyg.nu.

If you are not entitled to compensation from the unemployment insurance fund

If your unemployment insurance fund has informed you that you are not entitled to compensation, you can contact your municipality to apply for financial support.

How much you can receive in compensation

Your unemployment insurance fund decides on your compensation and calculates how much you are entitled to.

How much money you receive depends on how much you have earned and how long you have been a member of an unemployment insurance fund. You can receive compensation of up to 80, 60 or 50 per cent of your previous income, and a maximum of SEK 27,200 per month before tax.

If you are not a member of an unemployment insurance fund, you can apply for membership when you become unemployed. You can do this on the unemployment insurance fund's website. If you do not want to become a member of an unemployment insurance fund, you can apply for compensation from Alfa-kassan.

The compensation level decreases gradually during the compensation period

The compensation is reduced by 10 percentage units after 100 benefit days. Thereafter, it is reduced by a further 5 percentage units every hundred days.

For those who have been granted a compensation period before 1 October 2025, the compensation level is reduced after 200 benefit days.

How long you can receive compensation

How long you can receive compensation depends on how many months you had an income of at least SEK 11,000 before you became unemployed. The compensation period can be 66, 100, 200 or 300 days. Your decision from the unemployment insurance fund will state which period applies to you.

For those who have received a decision on a compensation period before 1 October 2025, the compensation period is 300 days. If you have children under the age of 18, the period is automatically extended by 150 days.

If you have not found a job when your compensation period ends, you may in some cases be offered to participate in the job and development guarantee programme.

Job and development guarantee