Sweden announces plan to deport migrants who do not adhere to ‘honest living’

The proposed changes would enable authorities to deport migrants for avoiding fines or working without paying taxes.

The Swedish government has propose a bill requiring migrants to adhere to an ‘honest living’ - or face deportation.

The centre-right Moderate Party, backed by Sweden’s anti-immigration Democrats, came into office in 2022 after vowing to implement strict immigration legislation.

Ahead of legislative elections in September, the government is introducing a wave of reforms across various areas but are currently third, according to recent Politico polling .

Migration minister Johan Forsell told reporters: “Following laws and rules is a given, but it must also be a given that we do our best to live responsibly and not harm our country.

“If, for example, you ignore paying your debts, if you don't comply with decisions from Swedish authorities, if you cheat the benefits system, if you cheat your way to a Swedish residence permit...

then you do not have the right to be here.”
The government said working without paying taxes or neglecting to pay fines would also see migrants fall short of the new requirement.

If adopted, it would go into effect on July 13 and enable authorities to withdraw residence permits for migrants.

The Democrats’ migration policy spokesman Ludvig Aspling said: “Statements - that is, things a person says or expresses - should not in themselves be regarded as evidence of lack of honest living, but they may be an indication of, for example, links to violent extremism, which can then be a sign of deficient character.”
The move has prompted criticism from some human rights groups, including Civil Rights Defenders, who said it could undermine democratic principles including legal equality and freedom of expression.

The Stockholm-based group’s legal director John Stauffer said, “The fact that non-criminalised statement may also be taken into account, even if they cannot constitute an independent ground for a lack of honest living, raises particularly serious concerns.

“Such an arrangement may have a chilling effect on freedom of expression and lead to increased self-censorship.

In practice, this creates different rules depending on who you are, which runs counter to fundamental principles of equality before the law.”
Ms Mahood has also sought to double the time required for most migrants to gain permanent residency rights in the UK from five to 10 years, or up to 20 years for refugees.

Similar policies have been introduced across Europe in recent months, including by Denmark’s centre-left Social Democrats government, which announced in January it would expel non-Danish citizens who have served prison terms of a year or more for serious crimes.

In February, Ms Mahmood undertook a fact-finding mission to Denmark, where Labour’s sister party recently defeated an electoral challenge from a right-wing populist party by introducing tougher immigration laws.

According to the Swedish Migration Agency, Sweden granted 79,684 residence permits in 2025, 6 per cent of which for asylum-related reasons, down from 18 per cent in 2018, when 133,025 permits were approved.

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies