Interest deduction in Sweden: what you get back

Check which loans give a deduction

The deduction covers interest on loans with security:

• Mortgages: interest on loans with the home as security, for both apartments (bostadsrätt) and houses.
• Car loans with the car as security: a loan from the dealer’s finance company or a bank, with the car as collateral.

Interest on loans without security gives no deduction from the 2026 tax year: personal loans, blanco loans, credit cards, instalment plans and consumer credit. If you bought your car with a personal loan, that interest doesn’t count.

Fees don’t count either — not setup fees, billing fees or the housing association’s monthly fee. Only the interest itself gives a deduction.

Add up the year’s interest

The deduction is based on the interest you paid during the calendar year, not what you will pay. If you only had the loan for a few months, those months are what count.

• Your bank reports it: it sends Skatteverket a statement of the interest you paid, and the amount is filled in on your tax return.
• Capital income is subtracted: the deduction is based on your capital deficit (underskott av kapital) — the interest minus capital income such as interest on savings accounts, dividends, gains and the standard income on an investment savings account (ISK). Large capital income makes the deduction smaller.
• Several borrowers: the interest is split by what each of you paid. The bank usually splits it equally, but if you paid different amounts you can change the split on your tax returns. The total must stay the same.

Check that your tax covers it

The interest deduction reduces the municipal and state income tax you paid during the year. It can never be larger than that tax, and whatever doesn’t fit is lost — it isn’t paid out or carried over to the next year.

For most people with an ordinary salary the tax is more than enough. It can get tight if you:

• had a low income during the year, for example if you studied or worked part time for much of it,
• have a large mortgage and also had large rot or rut work done or installed solar panels the same year — those tax reductions use the same tax, after the interest deduction.

Run your own salary through the tax refund calculator to see whether the whole deduction fits.

Check your tax return and wait for the money

The tax return for 2026 arrives in March 2027, with the interest already filled in. Check that the amount matches your bank’s annual statement, and that the split is right if you are several borrowers.

• No changes: if you approve the return digitally early without changes, the refund usually arrives in April.
• With changes: if you change anything or file later, the money usually comes in June or later.

The money is paid into your account if you have registered it with Skatteverket; otherwise you get a payment slip.

Get the deduction every month with jämkning

Instead of waiting for the refund, you can apply to Skatteverket for an adjustment of your preliminary tax (jämkning). Your employer then withholds less tax each month, so the interest deduction comes with your salary instead of the year after.

Jämkning suits a large and fairly predictable interest cost, such as a new mortgage. If you count on more interest than you pay, you get back tax to pay instead — so apply again if the rate or the loan changes.