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Laws and regulations

Reviewed: 17 March 2025

When you build a building you need to follow the building code. The building code in Sweden contains mandatory provisions and general recommendations. Boverket publishes the Swedish building code.

How Sweden is governed

Sweden has three levels of government: national, regional and local. On entering the EU, Sweden acquired a further level of government: the European level.

Swedish regulations for building works

When you build a building you need to follow the building code. The building code in Sweden contains mandatory provisions and general recommendations.

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Climate declaration for new buildings

The act on climate declarations for new buildings came into force 1 January 2022. The purpose is to reduce the climate impact from the construction stage. This means that the climate declaration regulation applies to new buildings that require building permits.

Planning process

Physical planning is a matter of deciding how land and water areas are to be used. Pursuant to the Planning and Building Act (PBL), different public interests must be weighed against each other in an open and democratic process, taking into account the rights of individuals. In Sweden, the municipalities have the main responsibility for planning.

Permits and notifications

Construction, demolition or site improvement may require a permit or registration. A registration or permit application is made with the local building committee in the municipality where the measure is to be carried out.

Building process

In the construction process, a number of steps shall be carried out and a number of decisions made before you may implement a measure for which you applied for a permit or submitted a registration.

Source reference to this webpage

Boverket (2025). Laws and regulations. https://www.boverket.se/en/start/laws-and-regulations/ Fetched 2025-03-22