In a bold move to reshape its migration policy, Sweden’s government announced on Thursday a substantial increase in grants for immigrants who voluntarily choose to return to their home countrie.
Starting in 2026, these individuals will be eligible to receive up to 350,000 Swedish kronor (approximately $34,000), a significant rise from the current 10,000 kronor limit.
With the current exchange rate of N1,645/$, this amount translates to N55,930,000, providing a considerable financial incentive for those considering repatriation.
The initiative, introduced by the right-wing government and backed by the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats, aims to encourage a larger number of migrants to take advantage of the offer.
“We are in the midst of a paradigm shift in our migration policy,” said Migration Minister Johan Forssell during the announcement. At present, the grant system offers up to 10,000 kronor per adult and 5,000 kronor per child, capped at 40,000 kronor per family—a policy that has been in place since 1984 but remains relatively obscure and underutilized.
Ludvig Aspling of the Sweden Democrats noted, “The grant is small and relatively unknown, so if it were better advertised and increased, we believe more people would take it.”
Despite this significant increase, the decision comes against recent advice from a government-appointed probe, which cautioned that the expected effectiveness of the grant might not justify the potential costs.
Since coming to power in 2022, Conservative Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has pledged to tackle immigration and crime, forming a minority coalition government supported by the Sweden Democrats, who emerged as the second-largest party in Sweden’s general election with 20.5 percent of the vote.
Sweden has welcomed a large number of migrants since the 1990s, primarily from conflict zones such as the
