Subletting a rental apartment — how to work out a fair rent

Basic rule: the primary rent is the ceiling

For rental apartments, the rule is simple: as a starting point, you may not charge more in sublet rent than what you yourself pay in primary rent. The primary rent is the rent set by the landlord that you pay each month.

However, you may add certain surcharges to the primary rent if they are justified and relate to actual costs that benefit the subtenant.

Allowed surcharges

Furnishing surcharge

If you rent out the apartment furnished, you may add up to 15% of your own rent for furniture and equipment. 15% is the statutory ceiling (Chapter 12, § 55, fourth paragraph, of the Land Code) — the ceiling does not mean the full surcharge is always fair, and if you provide only a few pieces of furniture a lower surcharge is more reasonable. You do not need to show the exact costs caused by the furnishing.

Electricity, internet and other costs

You may add actual costs for electricity, internet, parking and other services that the subtenant uses. The costs must correspond to the actual expenses — you may not make a profit on these surcharges.

Permission from the landlord

You must have the landlord’s approval to sublet. Subletting without permission can lead to losing your lease. If the landlord refuses, you can turn to the Rent Tribunal (Hyresnämnden). It grants permission if the landlord has no justified reason to refuse, the rent is not higher than your own rent plus permitted surcharges, and you have valid reasons (Chapter 12, § 40 of the Land Code), such as:

• Temporary work or studies in another city
• Age or illness
• Extended travel abroad

Partial rental

If you only rent out part of the apartment, for example a room, the rent may not exceed the share of your own rent that matches how much of the apartment is let, plus surcharges (Chapter 12, § 55, fourth paragraph, of the Land Code). The calculator works that share out by area. If you continue to live in the apartment and rent out part of it, the tenant counts as a lodger (inneboende) — in that case you normally do not need the landlord’s permission, as long as it is not to an extent the landlord cannot reasonably be expected to accept (Chapter 12, § 41 of the Swedish Land Code). If you do not use the apartment yourself to a significant extent, even a partial letting counts as a sublease (Chapter 12, § 39).

Consequences of excessive rent

If the subtenant considers the rent unreasonable, they can apply for a review at the Rent Tribunal. If the Tribunal determines that the rent is too high, the subtenant may be entitled to a refund of the excess rent, plus interest, for up to 2 years (24 months) counted back from the date of application. If the subtenant has already moved out, the application must arrive within 3 months of them leaving.

Notice periods

For open-ended agreements, a mutual notice period of at least three months applies (Chapter 12, § 4 of the Swedish Land Code). A fixed-term agreement expires at the end of the agreed term without notice as a starting point — but if the tenancy has lasted longer than nine consecutive months, the agreement must always be terminated by notice in order to end (Chapter 12, § 3), otherwise it is extended indefinitely. The tenant, however, may always terminate early on three months' notice, even when the term is fixed (Chapter 12, § 5). The landlord, by contrast, is bound by the agreed term and may terminate early only on the grounds set out in the act, for example forfeiture of the tenancy.

Tax on rental income

Income from subletting a rental apartment is taxed as capital income at 30%. You are entitled to a standard deduction of 40,000 SEK per property per tax year. In addition, you may deduct the primary rent you pay during the rental period. In practice, this means that most people who sublet a rental apartment pay little or no tax at all, since the rental income rarely exceeds the own rent plus the standard deduction by much.