Navigating Sweden’s Double Accommodation Tax Deduction: Your Essential Guide
- Introduction: What is Double Accommodation (Dubbel Bosättning)?
Double accommodation, known as “dubbel bosättning” in Swedish, describes a specific situation where an individual has relocated to a new location for employment purposes while simultaneously maintaining their original residence. This tax deduction is specifically designed to alleviate the increased living costs associated with operating two households concurrently due to work-related necessities. It serves as a targeted financial relief measure for individuals incurring additional expenses when their professional obligations necessitate a geographical move, yet their primary home remains elsewhere.
The deduction is applicable to individuals moving within Sweden, as well as to those relocating from other countries to Sweden for work.
- Core Eligibility Requirements: Do You Qualify?
The “Work-Related” Necessity
A fundamental requirement is that the relocation to the new place of residence must be a direct consequence of gaining new employment or having one’s work situated there.
Maintaining Your Original Home: The “Double” Aspect
A crucial component of the double accommodation concept is the genuine maintenance of a residence at the individual’s old location for themselves, their spouse, cohabitant, or family. This continued financial responsibility for the original home is what establishes the “double” aspect of the accommodation.
A significant exception applies: if the original residence is rented out, the individual is generally not entitled to a deduction for increased housing costs at the new location.
The 50-Kilometer Rule
The distance between the old place of residence and the new place of work must exceed 50 kilometers.
The Overnight Stay Condition
It is a fundamental requirement that the individual must have stayed overnight at the new residence located at their place of work. This condition serves to verify that a second accommodation is genuinely needed for living purposes due to the work arrangement.
Specific Scenario: Individuals Residing with Parents
For individuals who reside at their parental home (e.g., rent-free) and subsequently take up a permanent position in another location, their parental home is generally not considered an independent household for tax purposes.
- Deductible Expenses: What Can You Claim?
The double accommodation deduction encompasses claims related to increased living costs, accommodation expenses, and home travel. Each category has specific rules and limitations.
3.1. Increased Living Costs (Meals & Small Expenses)
Deductions for increased living expenses, specifically covering meals and minor out-of-pocket costs, are strictly limited to the first month of the stay at the new work location.
3.2. Accommodation Expenses
Individuals can deduct the actual housing expenses incurred at their second place of residence (at the place of work). It is critical to be able to demonstrate and prove these actual costs, typically through receipts or invoices.
In situations where the family home has been permanently relocated to the new work location, the individual may instead claim a deduction for the housing costs of the old place of residence that they are still maintaining.
If Employers the rent for new housing , then its not deductible for double accommodation.
3.3. Home Travel Expenses (with EU/EEA)
Individuals can deduct expenses for trips home if they are working in a different location than where they or their family lives, provided the distance is at least 50 kilometers and an overnight stay has occurred at the work location. Deductions for home travel are limited to a maximum of one round-trip journey per week , and this applies to trips home within the EU/EEA area or Switzerland.
Impact of Renting Out Old Residence
If the old place of residence is rented out, reimbursements for trips home are generally not tax-free.
- Duration Limits: How Long Can You Claim the Deduction?
The double accommodation deduction is conceived as a temporary relief measure and is therefore subject to specific time limitations.
Accommodation Expenses
- General Rule (Single Individuals): For single individuals, the deduction for accommodation expenses at the new work location can be claimed for a maximum period of two years.
- Extended Period (Married/Cohabiting Individuals): If an individual is married or cohabiting, the deduction period may be extended up to a total of five years. This extension is specifically granted when the double accommodation is a direct result of the spouse’s or cohabitant’s gainful employment, acknowledging the greater practical complexities involved in relocating an entire family.
- “Special Reasons” (Synnerliga Skäl) for Further Extension: In exceptional circumstances, it may be possible to claim the deduction for a period longer than the standard limits if “synnerliga skäl” (special reasons) exist. These cases are assessed individually and require strong justification. The fixed time limits for both single and married individuals strongly imply that the tax agency views double accommodation as a transitional phase. The underlying expectation is that, over time, individuals or families will either fully relocate to the new work location or the working arrangement will change. The extension for families acknowledges the practical difficulties of moving an entire household but still imposes a clear endpoint. This means taxpayers should not perceive this deduction as a permanent subsidy for maintaining two homes indefinitely; planning for eventual consolidation of residence is implicitly expected. The “special reasons” clause is a narrow exception, not a general loophole.
- Documentation and Evidence: What Skatteverket Expects
The Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) places a high emphasis on substantiating claims for tax deductions. Proper documentation is not merely recommended; it is often a prerequisite for receiving the double accommodation deduction. This reflects the principle that the burden of proof lies with the taxpayer. Skatteverket does not assume eligibility; it demands verifiable evidence.
General Requirement for Proof
For most deductions, particularly for accommodation costs, individuals must be able to “show their costs” or “provide proof” of actual expenses incurred. This typically necessitates meticulous record-keeping, including detailed receipts, invoices, or other
- Common Pitfalls and Important Nuances to Avoid
Misunderstanding “Temporary Work” vs. “Double Accommodation”
While related concepts, the rules for “temporary work” (tillfälligt arbete) differ from those for “double accommodation.”
