Immigration
People immigrate to Malmö for different reasons. To study, work, seek protection or to reunite with family members.
Malmö´s reception of newly arrived
The reception of newly arrived individuals, meaning those granted residence permits as refugees, those in need of protection, or their family members, has varied over the years. Stockholm and Gothenburg generally receive more people than Malmö. In relation to its population, Malmö received approximately the same number of people as Gothenburg but fewer than Stockholm in 2024.
In 2023, Malmö received a total of 875 people, which corresponds to about 2.4 people per 1,000 residents. (2023: 299, 2022: 304, 2021: 252 people).
The largest group in Malmö's municipal reception in 2024 were individuals with temporary protection under the mass influx directive. This group was given the opportunity to register as residents during the year, partly due to the extension of the EU's mass influx directive until March 2026, and partly due to a change in the law allowing earlier registration for those with temporary protection. In previous years, the municipal reception has been dominated by people who have been granted residence permits after living in their own housing during the asylum process and people who have arrived as family members.
Reception in accordance with the Swedish Reception for Resettlement Act
In 2024, Malmö received 405 people under the Settlement Act. The Settlement Act was introduced in March 2016 and aims to evenly distribute newly arrived individuals with residence permits to municipalities across Sweden. The reception of these individuals also includes a municipal responsibility to arrange housing. In 2025, Malmö's allocation target is 159 people.
Asylum seekers and persons with temporary protection
As of January 1, 2025, 848 people were registered in Malmö in the Swedish Migration Agency’s reception system. Of these, 530 were asylum seekers, and 318 had temporary residence permits under the mass influx directive. 176 were children (under 18 years old).
The majority of those registered, 550 people (65 percent), lived in so-called own accommodation (EBO). However, the proportion living in EBO varies significantly between asylum seekers and those with residence permits under the mass influx directive. Three out of four asylum seekers lived in EBO. Among those registered under the mass influx directive, just under half lived in EBO, with roughly the same number living in accommodations provided by the City of Malmö.
Unaccompanied minors
Malmö is both an arrival municipality and a receiving municipality for unaccompanied minors. This means that the municipality is responsible for unaccompanied minors who have applied for asylum and are waiting to be assigned to a municipality, as well as those who are assigned to Malmö while awaiting decisions on their residence permits, and those minors who are later granted residence permits.
In 2024, 100 unaccompanied minors arrived in Malmö as asylum seekers or protection seekers under the mass influx directive and were in transit in the city while awaiting municipal assignment. A total of 11 unaccompanied minors were assigned to the municipality, and 8 were granted residence permits.
By mid-February 2025, the City of Malmö was responsible for a total of 65 unaccompanied minors. Some of these children had been in the country for several years, while others had arrived more recently.
Work and studies
People who move to Malmö to work or study, either alone or with family members, are part of migration from abroad. Within the EU/EEA area, no special permits are required for this, but for citizens from countries outside the EU/EEA, a specific residence permit is needed.
In 2024, 6,956 people moved to Malmö from abroad. The Swedish Statistics Agency (SCB) has not yet made information available regarding the countries of birth of these individuals. Of these, 856 people, including 365 family members, were granted residence permits for work-related reasons. Additionally, 796 people, including 300 family members, were granted residence permits related to studies.
New arrivals in Malmö
Newly arrived children between the ages of three and five are offered a place in Malmö's preschools, regardless of whether their parents have applied or not, starting in the fall of 2023. Thirty of the families who received this special offer in 2024 accepted the preschool placement.
In 2024, 470 children were received into primary schools and adapted primary schools through Skolstart Malmö. Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, approximately 195 Ukrainian children have been received into Malmö's primary schools and adapted primary schools. This can be compared to 2023, when the number was 572, and 2022, when 857 newly arrived schoolchildren were received. The majority of those received are younger children and children of labor migrants.
There has been a shift from refugees to more labor migrants and family reunification migrants attending Swedish for Immigrants (SFI) courses. For several years now, there has been increased demand for flexible teaching formats, as well as evening and distance learning. The proportion of SFI students with higher educational backgrounds continues to rise.
In 2024, the City of Malmö started its own courses in societal orientation for newly arrived individuals.
The number of people accepted into language introduction programs in Malmö has decreased in recent years.
As of January 2025, 403 individuals were part of the establishment program in Malmö.