Sweden to pay immigrants $34,000 for voluntary return home

By Leila Nezirevic

LONDON (AA) - The Swedish government announced on Thursday that it will increase grants for immigrants who choose to return to their home countries voluntarily, despite a government-appointed inquiry's recommendation last month against a significant increase.

Starting in 2026, immigrants who choose to leave the Nordic country voluntarily will be eligible for financial assistance of up to 350,000 Swedish kronor (approximately $34,000), up from the current 10,000 kronor.

Under the current law, migrants returning home can get a maximum of 10,000 kronor per adult, or 5,000 kronor per child, with a maximum of 40,000 kronor per family, according to local broadcaster SVT Nyheter.

“We are in the midst of a paradigm shift in our migration policy,” Migration Minister Johan Forssell said at a press conference in Stockholm.

According to Ludvig Aspling of the anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats, the grant has been available since 1984 and "is relatively unknown, small, and used by a few people."

However, he now believes that heavily promoting substantially increased financial assistance would encourage more people to accept the offer to leave the Scandinavian country.

During his campaign, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, who came to power in 2022 with a minority right-wing coalition supported by the populist Sweden Democrats, has promised to address immigration and crime.

The Nordic country, known for its national narrative of "Swedish Exceptionalism" and its welcoming refugee policy since the 1990s, has accepted many migrants from war-torn countries such as the former Yugoslavia, Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, Iran, and Iraq.