Taxation on your sublet in Sweden

How are you taxed when subletting your Swedish home? It varies depending on a combination of several factors. Taxation laws varies as much as Swedish rental law and it is determined on criteria such as if you rent your home to several different tenants, if it is a condo or council flat and if it is through a letting agent or not. It is rather complex and confusing so we have compiled the most frequently asked questions about taxation of subletting. 

I heard that all platforms like AirBnb, Qasa and Samtrygg report all their clients to Skatteverket? Does Residensportalen report as well?

Residensportalen does not report to Skatteverket as we do not process rents or act as contractual parties on leases. Any platform that takes a part of your rent and/or is on the lease on your property is now bound by law to report all rental income to Skatteverket. (DAC 7 law)

What % do I pay in taxes for my sublet? 

Regardless if you rent out a house, condo, co-op or council flat you pay 30% of the capital gains. In other words, after you deduct costs, capital gains is what you have earned on your sublet. 

How is capital gains determined on a Swedish sublet?

The capital gains is determined by what kind of rental you are doing and to whom. Regardless of the type of ownership you have you get a standard deduction of SEK 40.000 before determining capital gains. The standard deduction is per property, regardless of how many own the property. 

How are you taxed if you own a "bostadsrätt"?

The Swedish tax authority bostadsrätt differentiates the rules regarding this on how long you sublet and under what circumstances. Due to the rise of hotel like rentals such as AirBnb, the authorities have tightened the rules.  See the first point about new rules for platform businesses. 

How are you taxed if you have a hyresrätt?

The Swedish tax authority also differentiates the rules for hyresrätter, depending on circumstances of the rental of the hyresrätt. 

How are you taxed if you sublet to your own employer or your own company?

Unfortunately, this is the worst scenario as the standard deduction cannot be applied to this scenario. The same goes if you rent your home to your own company. Hence, this is the scenario that results in the highest level of taxes on your sublet. 

If I rent my apartment through a letting agent that takes a part of my rent for their service (we abhor that model for many reasons) how am I taxed then?

Per our legal advisors you will be taxed on the income that the letting agent gets, not the part that ends up in your pocket for the sublet as the tax authority does not consider you "involved" in your rental when choosing this type of letting agent. The tax authority considers you involved if you have prepared the property for showings, opened up the door and handled keys. This is also not an ideal scenario for your taxes, you essentially get taxed for money you never got. Read much under section  4.1 on Skatteverket's webpage. 

Should I apply VAT (Moms) on my sublet?

If you sublet to several different tenants for more than 16 weeks in one year you must apply to the Tax Authority to be able to apply VAT. Unless this scenario applies to you, you should not apply VAT to your rental.

Above is a compilation of information and our legal advisors interpretation of the taxation rules, it is always your responsibility to contact Skatteverket to see what is relevant for your specific rental. For more FAQS on taxation of subletting in Sweden go to Skatteverket