The Swedish government has recently announced the extension of the bans on entry to Sweden in a press release first published by the Ministry of Justice.
The bans on entry to Sweden came into effect on 31 October 2021, and the authorities of Sweden have decided to prolong them until 30 November 2021 for EU/EEA countries and until 31 January 2022 for the rest of the world except for the United States of America.
From 5 November 2021, fully vaccinated American travelers can enter Sweden only with their COVID-19 immunization certificate. If an American citizen can present proof of vaccination, he or she will be automatically exempt from the COVID-19 test requirement and all other entry restrictions to Sweden.
The Swedish government referred to the good relations between Sweden and the U.S. to justify the lift of the entry ban for U.S nationals. These relations make frequent travel between Sweden and U.S. relevant to avoid deteriorating “companies’ competitiveness” and ruining opportunities for different businesses to “conduct their activities”.
The Swedish authorities have also argued that the U.S. plans on eliminating travel and entry restrictions for fully vaccinated travelers of 26 Schengen countries by November 8th, 2021. So they’re basically reciprocating the unrestricted travel.
Other territories exempt from entry bans and COVID-19 test requirements are the Isle of Man, Guernsey, and Jersey. Previously, Sweden’s authorities had lifted bans for Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, and The Vatican. So far, this hasn’t changed.
Meanwhile, the rest of the world will remain banned from entry to Sweden due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
At first, the Swedish government intended on easing travel restrictions for EU/EEA countries, but the COVID-19 cases in these countries have increased, making it necessary to keep relying on the EU Digital COVID Certificate (DCC) or similar certificates for permitting access to Sweden in order to control the infection rates.
Essentially, travelers must be able to prove that they’ve fully vaccinated against COVID-19, successfully recovered from COVID-19 in the last six months, and/or tested negative for COVID-19 in the last 72 hours before arrival in Sweden.
As for nationals of third countries, they’re not allowed into Sweden unless they have residence rights or permits, or if they’re close relatives of someone who is a Swedish citizen or legally resides in Sweden, or if they’ve recently traveled in the Nordics, or if they’re under six years old. These are the main exceptions to the entry restrictions to Sweden.
Exceptions for entry bans encompassing all countries include air passengers with a layover in Sweden, health professionals, frontier workers, international students, diplomats and their families, commercial truck drivers and ship workers with cargo in Sweden, cruise line workers, military and civil defense staff, and other essential workers.
Professional athletes (or similar), their trainers, and other staff can enter Sweden if there is a competition. People in need of international protection will also be allowed into Swedish territory. The government of Sweden has clarified that the right to asylum is not altered by COVID-19 travel and entry restrictions.
These humanitarian reasons extend to people working for international organizations or people invited by them in the context of humanitarian relief activities, such as the distribution of supplies to those people in need.
Compassionate reasons extend to foreigners with imperative family reasons as long as they can present documentation that proves the family emergency (medical certificates, death certificates, maternity certificates, or others) and the relationship of the traveler with their relatives in Sweden.
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