On this page:

1. Preliminary tax
2. Standard deduction
3. Report changed income
4. A self-employed person’s social insurance contributions
5. Reduction of self-employed contributions
6. Choose number of qualifying days
7. Lower employer's contributions for younger people
8. Lower employer's contributions for older people

General partnerships are obligated to pay VAT, property tax/property fees, and special payroll and policyholder tax on employee pension costs. General partnerships also handle social insurance contributions and preliminary tax on behalf of employees.

Preliminary tax

As a partner in a general partnership, you are responsible for paying tax and social insurance contributions from a share of the profit. Your preliminary tax is calculated by the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket). As a partner, you need to file a preliminary income tax return to the Swedish Tax Agency detailing your share of the general partnership’s profit. You then pay an equal amount of preliminary tax every month during the tax year, normally on the 12th of each month. Consequently, the size of the payments is not affected by your profit/loss in the relevant month. The preliminary tax is made up of income tax (municipal and, if applicable, state tax) and social insurance contributions.

Your share of the business’s real income is recorded in the income statement. Once you have filed your return for the year you will receive a final assessment notice specifying your final tax liability.

Standard deduction

General partnership partners can make deductions for self-employed contributions and special payroll tax in their tax return. In the first year you make what is called a standard deduction. Your exact self-employed contributions for the year will then be detailed in your final assessment notice. In the next year’s tax return, you will include your exact self-employed contributions. The standard deduction is made only in your tax return and no corresponding amount is paid to the Swedish Tax Agency.

Report changed income

If, over the course of the year, you realise that the general partnership’s profit will be higher or lower than you first stated, you should report this change to the Swedish Tax Agency. If you fail to do so, you risk under or overpaying tax over the course of the year. At the end of the year you will then either be liable to pay the difference or receive a refund when your preliminary tax payments are checked against your final tax liability. You can make changes by filing a preliminary income tax return

Preliminary tax at the Swedish Tax Agency

File a preliminary income tax return at the Swedish Tax Agency (in Swedish)

A self-employed person’s social insurance contributions

If you run a general partnership you must pay social insurance contributions in the form of self-employed contributions. The self-employed contributions should be paid from income from an active business activity. Special payroll tax is paid from income from passive business activities.

The self-employed contributions are calculated based on the profit from the business activity. The social insurance contributions are administered by the Swedish Tax Agency and provide basic coverage in the form of, for example, sickness benefit and pension. They are tax deductible. The self-employed contributions below apply to seven qualifying days.

Reduction of self-employed contributions

If you pay the entire self-employed contribution, you will receive a reduction of 7.5 %  if you receive income in excess of SEK 40,000 from your business. You can receive a reduction of SEK 15,000 at most. The Swedish Tax Agency counting automatically of your redaction.

Choose number of qualifying days

You can choose how many qualifying days you wish to have. You can increase or decrease the number of qualifying days and thus alter your self-employed contributions. You can choose 1, 7, 14, 30, 60 or 90 qualifying days.

The self-employed contribution to health insurance for the 2023 income year is calculated based on the following income percentages up to eight times the base price amount at the start of the year:

• For insured with 1 qualifying day: 29,17 %
• For insured with 7 qualifying days: 28,97 %
• For insured with 14 qualifying days: 28,92 %
• For insured with 30 qualifying days: 28,69 %
• For insured with 60 qualifying days: 28,42 %
• For insured with 90 qualifying days: 28,24 %

Lower employer's contributions for younger people

For young people born between 2005 and 2007, you will pay a retirement pension of 10.21 percent. The lower fee applies to benefits up to a maximum of SEK 25,000 per month and employer. For compensation over SEK 25,000, you pay employer contributions of 31.42 percent.

For young people born between 2000 and 2004, you will pay 19.73 percent. The lower fee applies to benefits up to a maximum of SEK 25,000 per month and employer. For compensation over SEK 25,000, you pay employer contributions of 31.42 percent. 

Lower employer's contributions for older people

For people born between 1939 and 1956, you will pay only a retirement pension of 10.21 per cent. The same applies if you have received full sickness benefit or full activity compensation for part of the year.

For people born in 1938 or earlier, you do not have to pay any self-employment contributions or similar.