Fundamental Laws & Rights in Sweden

What are grundlagar?

Sweden's grundlagar (fundamental laws) are the country's constitution. They stand above ordinary laws — no regular law passed by the Riksdag may conflict with them. Together they define how Sweden is governed and what rights people living in Sweden have. This is one of the most-asked themes on the medborgarskapsprovet.

Unlike many countries, Sweden's constitution is not one single document but four separate laws working together.

The four constitutional laws

Sweden's four grundlagar are:

• Regeringsformen (the Instrument of Government) — defines how Sweden is governed, the role of the Riksdag, the government, the courts, and lists basic rights and freedoms.
• Successionsordningen (the Act of Succession) — determines who inherits the Swedish throne.
• Tryckfrihetsförordningen (the Freedom of the Press Act) — protects the right to publish printed material, and includes the principle of public access to official documents (offentlighetsprincipen).
• Yttrandefrihetsgrundlagen (the Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression) — protects free expression in radio, TV, film, and online.

Rights protected by grundlagen

Regeringsformen lists rights and freedoms everyone in Sweden has. Among the most important:

• Freedom of speech (yttrandefrihet) — the right to express opinions in speech, writing, and pictures.
• Freedom of information — the right to seek and receive information.
• Freedom of assembly (mötesfrihet) — the right to gather peacefully.
• Freedom of demonstration (demonstrationsfrihet) — the right to demonstrate publicly.
• Freedom of association (föreningsfrihet) — the right to form or join organisations, parties, and unions.
• Freedom of religion (religionsfrihet) — the right to practice any religion or none at all.
• Equality before the law — public power must be exercised with respect for the equal worth of all people.
• Protection of personal integrity — including privacy and protection from unlawful surveillance.

Press freedom and public access

Sweden's Tryckfrihetsförordningen dates back to 1766, making Sweden's press freedom law the oldest in the world. It includes the unique offentlighetsprincipen — the principle of public access — which gives anyone the right to read most documents held by Swedish authorities. There are exceptions for security and personal privacy, but the default is openness.

Journalists also have the right to protect their sources (meddelarskydd). It is illegal for a public authority to investigate who leaked information to the press.

The Discrimination Act

Sweden's diskrimineringslagen bans discrimination at work, in education, in healthcare, and in shops and services. It protects against discrimination on seven grounds: sex, transgender identity or expression, ethnicity, religion or belief, disability, sexual orientation, and age.

The Equality Ombudsman (Diskrimineringsombudsmannen, DO) is the public authority that monitors compliance and can take cases to court.

How grundlagar are changed

Grundlagar are deliberately hard to change. The Riksdag must pass the change twice with identical wording, and a general election must be held between the two votes. This means voters effectively have a say before any constitutional change takes effect — a key safeguard against rushed reforms.

What else is on the test?

Fundamental Laws & Rights is just one of 20 topic areas covered on the medborgarskapsprovet. The other 19 cover democracy, the legal system, history, healthcare, education, work, taxes, housing, geography, integration, and Swedish values. See the full topic list →