Chapter 5 of 13 in Sverige i fokus

Swedish fundamental laws: the four grundlagar, the justice system and rättssäkerhet

Quick answers

How many fundamental laws does Sweden have?

Four: the Instrument of Government (regeringsformen), the Freedom of the Press Act (tryckfrihetsförordningen), the Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression (yttrandefrihetsgrundlagen) and the Act of Succession (successionsordningen).

What is a fundamental law (grundlag)?

A law that describes how the country is governed and what rights citizens have. Fundamental laws are harder to change than other laws.

What is the Instrument of Government (regeringsformen)?

The fundamental law that says all public power comes from the people, that the Riksdag makes laws and that the government governs the country.

How is a fundamental law changed?

The Riksdag must make two identical decisions, with a Riksdag election in between.

What court levels are there in Sweden?

Three: the district court (tingsrätten), the court of appeal (hovrätten) and the Supreme Court (Högsta domstolen).

The citizenship test (medborgarskapsprovet) is written in Swedish, so learn the Swedish key words in brackets as you read. This page is also available in Swedish: Lag och rätt.

Chapter 5 of Sverige i fokus is about the laws everyone must follow, and about the fundamental laws (grundlagarna) that stand above all other laws. It also describes the justice system (rättsväsendet): the police, the prosecutors, the courts and what happens from a police report to a judgment. Here you get the chapter explained in our own words.

What is a fundamental law?

A fundamental law (grundlag) is a law that decides how Sweden is to be governed and what rights citizens have. Together the four fundamental laws form Sweden’s constitution. They are harder to change than other laws. That is the point: they are meant to protect democracy even when the political majority changes.

What are Sweden’s four fundamental laws?

Sweden has four fundamental laws:

1. The Instrument of Government (regeringsformen): how the country is governed and the citizens’ freedoms and rights.
2. The Freedom of the Press Act (tryckfrihetsförordningen): the free word in printed form.
3. The Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression (yttrandefrihetsgrundlagen): the right to express yourself freely on radio, television and other media.
4. The Act of Succession (successionsordningen): who becomes king or queen.

The test often asks which fundamental law does what. Learn the four Swedish names and one key word for each.

What is the Instrument of Government?

The Instrument of Government (regeringsformen) is the fundamental law that describes the form of government (statsskicket). It says that all public power comes from the people, that the Riksdag (riksdagen) makes laws and that the government (regeringen) governs the country. It guarantees the citizens’ basic freedoms and rights, describes the role of the head of state and how the public authorities work.

Sverige i fokus quotes the first sentence of the Instrument of Government: “All offentlig makt i Sverige utgår från folket” (p. 16), which means that all public power in Sweden comes from the people. Public power must also be exercised with respect for the equal worth of all people and for the freedom and dignity of the individual.

The right of public access (allemansrätten) is also protected in the Instrument of Government. It gives everyone the right to be in nature, no matter who owns the land. You may walk, cycle, paddle, camp, make a fire and pick berries, mushrooms and flowers. But you may not damage nature or disturb the landowner. For example, it is not allowed to walk on a farmer’s fields, enter someone else’s garden or throw litter in nature. You may not pick rare plants that are protected by law.

What do the Freedom of the Press Act and the Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression protect?

The Freedom of the Press Act (tryckfrihetsförordningen) protects the free word in printed form. Everyone has the right to freely publish books, newspapers and magazines.

The Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression (yttrandefrihetsgrundlagen) gives everyone the right to express their thoughts and opinions freely, for example on radio, television and in daily newspapers. Everyone who lives in Sweden has the right to form and join associations and to demonstrate.

But some statements are forbidden by law. It is forbidden to insult and defame people or groups. Such crimes are called defamation (förtal), incitement against an ethnic group (hets mot folkgrupp) or hate crime (hatbrott). It is also forbidden to spread information that could harm Sweden’s security, for example secrets about the armed forces.

The Act of Succession (successionsordningen), the fourth fundamental law, decides who becomes king or queen after the current one. Today Crown Princess Victoria is first in line.

How is a fundamental law changed?

Sverige i fokus only says that the fundamental laws are harder to change than other laws. The rules are in the Instrument of Government (chapter 8, section 14). A fundamental law is changed through two identical decisions in the Riksdag. Between the decisions there must have been an election to the Riksdag, and the new Riksdag must have assembled. So the voters get to have their say before the change is complete.

Which authorities make up the justice system?

The justice system (rättsväsendet) consists of the authorities that make sure the laws are followed and that the state uses its power according to the law:

• The Police (Polisen) prevent, investigate and fight crime. The police also issue passports and national ID cards and give permits, for example for demonstrations.
• The Prosecution Authority (Åklagarmyndigheten) decides whether a suspect is to be brought before a court.
• The courts (domstolarna) examine the evidence and decide on a sanction (påföljd), such as a fine or prison, or acquit.
• The Crime Victim Authority (Brottsoffermyndigheten) takes care of people who have been victims of crime.
• The Prison and Probation Service (Kriminalvården) is responsible for the prisons, among other things.

The courts exist on three levels. The district court (tingsrätten) is the first instance, where criminal cases and civil disputes begin. The court of appeal (hovrätten) tries cases that have been appealed from the district court. The Supreme Court (Högsta domstolen, HD) only tries certain important cases that have already gone through the district court and the court of appeal. The courts also help in disputes, for example custody disputes between parents.

How do a criminal investigation and a trial work?

When someone is suspected of a crime, a process in several steps follows:

1. Police report (polisanmälan). The victim reports the crime to the police.
2. Questioning (förhör). The police find out what happened.
3. Preliminary investigation (förundersökning). The police collect evidence and talk to witnesses.
4. Arrest (anhållan). If the suspicions are strong, the person can be apprehended. A prosecutor (åklagare) can hold the person under arrest for up to 72 hours.
5. Detention on remand (häktning). If the evidence becomes stronger, a court can decide that the person is to be kept locked up for a longer period.

After the investigation, the prosecutor decides whether there will be a trial (rättegång). There the prosecutor tries to prove that the accused is guilty. The accused has the right to a defence lawyer (försvarsadvokat) who can question the evidence and present their own. The judge (domaren) decides whether the person is guilty and what sanction to give, for example a fine or prison. If the person is judged not guilty, they are acquitted.

In the district court, lay judges (nämndemän) also judge together with the judge. They represent the public and give insight into the legal process. The lay judges are appointed by the political parties.

What does rättssäkerhet mean?

Rättssäkerhet, often translated as legal certainty or the rule of law, means that everyone is treated equally before the law and gets a fair trial. Nobody is convicted without a process where evidence and facts are examined carefully. A suspect is to be seen as innocent until convicted. The courts are independent: the government and the Riksdag cannot decide how they should judge. Everyone has the right to defend themselves with a lawyer and to appeal (överklaga) a judgment they think is wrong.

In Sweden a person can be prosecuted for crimes (is straffmyndig) from the age of 15. During 2026 the government has proposed lowering the limit to 13 for serious crimes. When a younger child does something criminal, the social services (socialtjänsten) decide what happens.

Anyone convicted of certain serious crimes ends up in the criminal record (belastningsregistret). That can make it harder to get a job, a driving licence or citizenship.

What the test usually asks about

• How many fundamental laws Sweden has and what they are called.
• What the Instrument of Government says: power comes from the people, the Riksdag makes laws, the government governs.
• Which fundamental law protects printed publications and which protects radio and television.
• What the Act of Succession decides.
• What is forbidden despite freedom of expression: defamation, incitement against an ethnic group, hate crime.
• What the right of public access allows and does not allow.
• The authorities of the justice system and what each of them does.
• The three court levels and the steps from police report to trial.
• What rättssäkerhet means and that the courts are independent.
• The age of criminal responsibility, 15, and what the criminal record can affect.

Practise chapter 5

Test yourself with three open questions on chapter 5; the rest are in the course. We wrote the questions in the style of the test; they are not UHR’s questions. The chapter is one of the longest in the material, so do the questions twice. Then try the practice test with all chapters.

Difficult words in this chapter

grundlag

fundamental law, one of the four laws that decide how Sweden is governed; harder to change than ordinary laws

stifta

to make or enact a law

förtal

defamation, spreading false or offensive claims about a person

hets mot folkgrupp

incitement against an ethnic group: threatening or expressing contempt for a group, for example because of ethnic background

allemansrätten

the right of public access, the right to be in nature even on land that someone else owns

åklagare

prosecutor, a state lawyer who decides on prosecution and tries to prove crimes in court

påföljd

sanction, the punishment for a crime, for example a fine or prison

överklaga

to appeal, to ask a higher court to try the judgment again

häktning

detention on remand, when a court decides that a suspect is to be kept locked up for a longer period

straffmyndig

old enough to be prosecuted for a crime; in Sweden 15 years

The course

The full course, all 13 chapters

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or 499 SEK for a full year

• Lessons for every chapter of Sverige i fokus
• Practice questions with explanations and page references
• A mock test in the same form as the August test
• Difficult words explained in plain Swedish

Coming soon

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Sources

• Sverige i fokus, UHR (2026): pp. 16–19
• Regeringsformen (1974:152), chapter 8, section 14, riksdagen.se: how a fundamental law is enacted: two identical decisions with a Riksdag election in between