The first civics test for Swedish citizenship will be offered to up to 1,000 people on August 15th in Stockholm, according to the Swedish Council of Higher Education, the agency administering the test.
On May 6th, the council released a 48-page PDF booklet, called Sverige i fokus, to help applicants prepare for the test, which will be offered in a multiple choice format.
How much of the content do you think you can get right? Take The Local's – completely unofficial – quiz below to find out!
Answers are at the bottom. And if you want an overview of the study material before taking the quiz, check out our breakdown the contents of the booklet, chapter-by-chapter.
And please, again, note that we don't yet know what the actual test is going to look like, so this is just our made-up version.
1. What are the three historical geographical divisions of Sweden?
A) Stockholm, Skåne and Norrbotten
B) Svealand, Götaland and Norrland
C) Stockholm, Skåne and Västergötland
D) Västra Götaland, Stockholm and Norrbotten
2. When did Sweden join Nato (the North Atlantic Treaty Organization)?
A) 1949
B) 1997
C) 2002
D) 2024
3. Who is allowed to vote in national elections in Sweden?
A) All legal residents of Sweden aged 18 or older.
B) Swedish citizens aged 18 or older who meet a certain income threshold.
C) All Swedish citizens aged 18 or older.
D) All Swedish men who speak fluent Swedish.
4. Sweden is one of five countries in northern Europe that together form an area known as:
A) The Nordics (Norden)
B) Scandinavia (Skandinavien)
C) The Germanic countries (de germaniska länderna)
D) Svealand
5. Which area of the welfare state is administered by the regions (regioner)?
A) Healthcare (sjukvården)
B) Parental leave (föräldraförsäkring)
C) Healthcare, parental leave, and elder care (sjukvården, föräldraförsäkring och äldreomsorg)
D) Public schools and childcare (skolor och barnomsorg)
6. What is the official religion of Sweden?
A) Christianity (kristendomen)
B) Christianity and Islam (kristendomen och islam)
C) Christianity, Islam and Buddhism (kristendomen, islam, och buddhism)
D) There is no official religion in Sweden. The state is secular (sekulär) and everyone is free to practise their own faith, or to have no faith.
7. Sweden's gender equality policy (politik för jämställdhet) means that:
A) Women and men are equal at work, but at home a wife should obey her husband.
B) Women and men should have the same rights and obligations and the same power to influence society and their own lives.
C) Parental leave is for both men and women.
D) Both B and C
8. What is "the Swedish model"?
A) The system and practice of state daycare and preschool (förskolor) for all children.
B) Sweden's commitment to political neutrality throughout the Second World War (andra världskriget).
C) A method where employment wages and working conditions are determined by employers (arbetsgivare) and unions (fackförbund) in collective agreements between them, not decided by politicians.
D) A tall person, usually blonde, who poses for photos professionally.
9. According to the constitution (grundlagarna, particularly regeringsformen), where does political power come from in Sweden?
A) The King or Queen (kungen eller drottningen).
B) Whoever is the current prime minister (statsminister).
C) The people (folket).
D) The wealthiest landowning members of society.
10. What is a luciatåg?
A) A special train that runs during the summer to the famous southern Swedish town of Lucia.
B) A candlelit procession held at the darkest time of the year led by someone playing Saint Lucia, wearing a crown of candles.
C) A Christmas bun containing saffron.
D) A dance held around a pole at Midsummer.
Scroll down past the picture for the answers!
Answers:
1. B) Svealand, Götaland and Norrland
These three large "regions" are historical and have no role in governing modern Sweden. Götaland, "country of the Geats," is in the south (both Malmö and Gothenburg are in Götaland), Svealand, "country of the Swedes", is in the middle (Stockholm is in Svealand; "Svea" is also where the Swedish name for Sweden, Sverige, comes from), and Norrland, "north country", is in the north.
Any area called landskap is also a historical region with cultural meaning rather than governing power. There are 25 of them. Answers A and C have examples of landskap. The modern provinces, or counties, with actual governing responsibilities in modern Sweden are relatively recent and are called regioner in Swedish. There are 21 of them; answers A and D have examples.
This information (minus the bit about "Svea" and "Sverige", which we just think is interesting) is in Chapter 1 of the study booklet.
2. D) 2024
Sweden stuck to its longstanding policy of political neutrality in international affairs throughout the 20th century. Nato was joined, after intense public debate in Sweden, in 2024. This information is in Chapter 11 of the study booklet.
3. C) All Swedish citizens aged 18 or older
While only Swedish citizens are allowed to vote at the national level, registered residents of Sweden who have lived in the country for at least three consecutive years can vote in regional and local elections. This information is in Chapter 4 of the study booklet.
4. A) The Nordics (Norden)
Sweden, Finland Denmark, Norway, and Iceland are the five Nordic countries. The Nordics are often confused with Scandinavia, which is just Sweden, Norway and Denmark. Svealand is one of the historical areas of Sweden (see: Question 1).
You can find this information in Chapter 1 of the study booklet.
5. A) Healthcare (sjukvården)
Healthcare is currently the primary responsibility of regioner in Sweden. Parental leave money/benefits (föräldraförsäkring) are administered at the national level (staten, literally "the state"), while elder care (äldreomsorg), public schools (skolor), and childcare (barnomsorg), including preschools (förskolor) are handled by the municipalities (kommuner). You can find this information in Chapter 9 of the study booklet.
6. D) There is no official religion in Sweden. The state is secular (sekulär) and everyone is free to practice their own faith, or to have no faith
This information is in Chapter 12 of the study booklet. That chapter also goes over the right to religious freedom in Sweden, and gives brief details on the major religions practised in modern Sweden: Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam (kristendomen, judendom, hinduism, buddhism och islam).
7. D) Both B) Women and men should have the same rights and obligations and the same power to influence society and their own lives and C) Parental leave is for both men and women
This information is in the chapter on human rights, Chapter 7, which covers the UN Declaration on Human Rights, with special sections on gender equality (jämställdhet mellan könen); gender-based violence, including intimate partner violence (könsrelaterat våld), and the rights of children(barns rättigheter), minorities and indigenous peoples, and LGBTQ (Hbtqi) people.
8. C) A method where employment wages and working conditions are determined by employers (arbetsgivare) and unions (fackförbund) in collective agreements between them, not decided by politicians.
"The Swedish model" of labour negotiations and collective agreements (kollektivavtal) began in 1938 as a way of resolving decades of sometimes violent disputes over labour rights. This information can be found in Chapter 10 of the study booklet.
9. C) The people (folket)
This information comes from Chapter 5 of the study booklet, where the relevant section of the constitution is quoted. It can also be found in Chapter 2, which defines democracy in Sweden as a government "by the people" (folkstyre)
10. B) A candlelit procession held at the darkest time of the year led by someone playing Saint Lucia, wearing a crown of candles.
Lucia processions (luciatåg) are held across Sweden on Lucia, which is observed on December 13th. This information, along with other basic facts about Swedish holidays and traditions, can be found in Chapter 12 of the study booklet.
Richard Orange, Nordic Editor, The Local
Emma Löfgren, Editor, The Local Sweden
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