Family
Swedish society is very family-friendly, offering many benefits for families with children. This facilitates achieving a healthy work–life balance.
Preschools and schools
Childcare services/ Preschool (förskola) are available for all children from one year of age, provided they have a Swedish personal identity number or that all family members are EU citizens with employer/student certificates and proof of a future address. If you have not received your personal number you can still apply for pre-school but must add documents that prove your working assignment and tenancy agreement in Sweden and also add a letter explaining the situation.
Parents pay a fee linked to the family’s income and the child’s attendance (max 1 688 SEK/month 2024). Contact your municipality to find out more about preschools in your area and to enroll your child. Use 'Translate' or 'Language' function on the following websites.
City of Stockholm
City of Solna
Municipality of Huddinge
Companies offering nanny/childminding: Nannyakuten, Upgrades Kids, Babysits, Yepstr, Hey Kiddo Nanny – Bilingual child care
Compulsory school is mandatory and is open to all children aged 6-16. It is composed of 1 preschool class and 9 school years. Each school year consists of a fall and spring semester.
Upper secondary school is for young people aged 16-20. The school is free, non-compulsory schooling that young people can choose after completing compulsory school. Upper secondary consists of national programmes, specially designed programmes and individual programmes.
Contact your municipality to find out more about schools in your area and to enroll your child. Use 'Translate' or 'Language' function on the following websites:
City of Stockholm
City of Solna
Municipality of Huddinge
Parental leave and benefits
Sweden has one of the most generous parental leave (föräldraledighet) systems in the world. According to the Parental Leave Act employees are entitled to be absent from work to take care of their children until the child is 8 years of age. During parental leave, the parents’ allowance is paid by the Social Insurance Agency, (Försäkringskassan). You need to register with Försäkringskassan to qualify for benefits.
If you are employed, you have a right to stay at home to care for your child until he or she is 18 months old. You must apply for parental leave at least two months in advance, see Parental leave
Parental benefit is money you receive to be able to be at home with your child instead of working, seeking work or studying. Parents are granted 480 days of leave per child. 390 of these days are income based and 90 days are at the minimum level. It is not your employer who covers the cost of your parent benefit butthe Swedish Social Insurance Agency (Försäkringskassan). Children who live in Sweden start receiving a child allowance (barnbidrag) the month after their birth. The allowance is paid until the child turns 16. You need to be registered with Försäkringskassan and qualify for the benefits.
If you have a scholarhip from KI, according to KI policy you can retain your scholarships in the event of illness and/or parental leave. However, the maximum period for the distributions of scholarships, two years for postdoc education, cannot be extended due to illness or parental leave.
If you are a stipend-funded doctoral student admitted to KI, there is an insurance policy provided by Kammarkollegiet for those cases your stipend is reduced due to absence from studies in the case of illness or parental leave. More information on Kammarkollegiet homepage
Pregnancy and maternity
The maternity clinic (MVC mödravårdscentralen), is primarily for pregnant women. You go to the maternity clinic throughout your pregnancy to check that both the child and you yourself are doing well. Visits to the maternity clinic are free.
More information about provisions that regulate how and when Pregnant and breastfeeding co-workers are allowed to work at KI.
At the child health centre (BVC barnavårdscentralen), you can get tips about your child’s development, breast-feeding, food and illnesses. When you come home after the childbirth, you can contact the child health centre yourself to make an appointment for a first meeting. The first meeting is often held at home. At the meeting the nurse tells you about the child health centre and looks to see how your baby is doing.
Spouses
The Stockholm Dual Career Network (SDCN) is a network for partners and spouses of international employees working at the network’s affiliated organisations.
The aims of SDCN are to provide support for international individuals and families moving to Stockholm, assist in the job searching process, provide information about Swedish culture, and broaden the members’ social and professional networks. More information and registration at SDCN homepage
Activities
Sports:
Norrtulls sportklubb: football, table tennis, floorball, handball, bandy
Sports activities in Stockholm