Canada to Sweden is a transatlantic move that crosses a customs border in both directions: you are leaving Canada, a non-EU country, and entering Sweden, a member of the EU customs union. That means two separate sets of rules apply — the Canadian export and tax-exit side, and the Swedish import, registration and immigration side — and getting either half wrong can strand your shipment or leave you with an unexpected tax bill. This guide walks a Canadian resident through both halves, plus a short note on the reverse journey for anyone who may one day return. It is written for individuals and families relocating with household goods and, where relevant, a pet or a car.

Key takeaways

• Your Swedish immigration status drives everything: as a Canadian (non-EU/EEA) citizen you normally need a residence permit before you can register or clear goods, applied for via the Swedish Migration Agency.
• Sweden grants duty and VAT relief on personal belongings if you have lived outside the EU continuously for at least one year, have owned and used the goods for at least six months, and intend to live in Sweden for at least one year (Tullverket).
• The Swedish relief is claimed on customs form Tv 740.45, "Declaration for obtaining relief from customs duty and tax on personal belongings when migrating to Sweden" (Tullverket PDF).
• On the Canadian side, an emigrant’s household effects are specifically excluded from the personal-effects export exemption, so a mover typically files an export declaration in the Canadian Export Reporting System (CERS).
• Leaving Canada triggers a departure tax: the CRA treats you as having disposed of most property at fair market value on the day you become a non-resident (CRA).
• Sweden classifies Canada as a country where the rabies situation is documented and monitored, so pets need a microchip, valid rabies vaccination and a 21-day wait; a rabies antibody blood (titre) test is not legally required, though Jordbruksverket strongly recommends one (Jordbruksverket).
• Carrying EUR 10,000 or more in cash or equivalent assets into Sweden must be declared to Swedish Customs (Tullverket).
• To live in Sweden for one year or more you must register in the population register (folkbokföring) with the Swedish Tax Agency, which issues your personal identity number (Skatteverket).

1. Your immigration status decides your customs treatment

Sweden’s customs relief for personal belongings is built around the concept of migrating — genuinely transferring your normal residence. As a Canadian citizen you are outside the EU/EEA, so you normally need a Swedish residence permit before moving: most people arrive on a work permit tied to a job offer, applied for through the Swedish Migration Agency. That permit — or other proof of a right of residence — is exactly what Swedish Customs asks to see when you claim duty-free entry for your household goods. In short, the immigration decision comes first, and it is the document that unlocks the favourable customs and registration treatment described below. Tourists and short-stay visitors get no such relief.

2. The Canada export side: CBSA, CERS and the CRA exit

Canada’s border authority is the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). For most travellers, non-restricted personal and household effects can leave the country without an export declaration. Crucially, though, the CBSA’s exporter-reporting rules carve out an exception: the exemption covers personal effects "other than those of an emigrant." Because a permanent move to Sweden makes you an emigrant, your household shipment falls under the regular export-reporting regime rather than the traveller exemption (CBSA Memorandum D20-1-1). In practice, goods valued at CAD 2,000 or more destined for a country other than the U.S. must be reported to the CBSA through the Canadian Export Reporting System (CERS), the free web-based portal for electronic export declarations. A household move almost always exceeds that value threshold, so your freight forwarder or moving company normally files the CERS declaration on your behalf as part of the export paperwork. There is no Canadian "deregistration" step equivalent to the Nordic population-office sign-out — Canada has no single national residents’ register.

What Canada does have is a tax exit. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) treats you as an emigrant once you sever your residential ties, such as giving up your home and having your spouse and dependants leave. On that departure date you generally become a non-resident, and the CRA applies a deemed disposition: you are treated as having sold most of your property at fair market value, triggering a "departure tax" on the resulting capital gains (CRA — Leaving Canada). If the total fair market value of the reportable property you owned on departure exceeds CAD 25,000, you must list it on Form T1161, List of Properties by an Emigrant of Canada (CRA), and you report the deemed gains on Form T1243, Deemed Disposition of Property by an Emigrant of Canada (CRA). Certain property, such as Canadian real estate, is excluded from the deemed disposition; the CRA’s dispositions page sets out the exceptions. Practical housekeeping — cancelling provincial health coverage and updating benefit programs — is separate from, and in addition to, this federal tax filing.

3. Ports and transit times (freight-industry estimates)

Canada ships to Europe primarily from three container gateways: the Port of Halifax on the Atlantic (the shortest crossing to Europe), the Port of Montreal on the St. Lawrence, and the Port of Vancouver on the Pacific for western Canada. Most sea freight to Sweden routes through the Port of Gothenburg, the country’s largest seaport, or via a transhipment hub such as Rotterdam or Bremerhaven. Air freight typically departs from Toronto Pearson (YYZ), Montréal-Trudeau (YUL) or Vancouver (YVR) and arrives at Stockholm Arlanda (ARN) or Gothenburg Landvetter (GOT).

The following transit figures are freight-industry estimates, not official government figures, and they vary with season, sailing schedules, transhipment and customs clearance. As a rough planning guide, port-to-port sea transit from Halifax or Montreal to Gothenburg is often around two to four weeks, and from Vancouver considerably longer (typically five to eight weeks) because of the routing. Realistic door-to-door timelines for a full container, including packing, export filing and Swedish clearance, commonly run six to twelve weeks. Air freight is a matter of days in transit but far more expensive per cubic metre. Treat any single number a mover quotes as an estimate and confirm it against live sailing schedules.

4. The Sweden import side: Tullverket and form Tv 740.45

When your goods arrive in Sweden they must be declared to Tullverket (Swedish Customs). If you qualify, you pay no customs duty and no VAT on your personal belongings. The core conditions are that you must have had your normal residence outside the EU for a continuous period of at least one year; the items must have belonged to you for at least six months before departure; you (or a household member) must have used them for at least six months; and you must intend to live in Sweden for at least one year (Tullverket). "Personal effects" is broad — furniture, household goods, clothing, and even your car and pet — but alcohol and tobacco are excluded from the relief (Tullverket FAQ).

The relief is claimed by submitting a customs declaration together with the dedicated form Tv 740.45, Declaration for obtaining relief from customs duty and tax on personal belongings when migrating to Sweden (Tullverket PDF). Be ready to prove the move with a residence permit or right of residence, and to show the goods were owned and used by you. A guarantee for duties and taxes may be required in some cases, and goods can be sent ahead of you or after you and still qualify. If you hire a moving company or customs representative, they normally lodge the declaration for you. Separately, if you plan to live in Sweden for one year or more, register in the population register with Skatteverket — an in-person step that gives you your personnummer, the key to healthcare, banking and public services. Non-EU citizens must hold their residence permit before this registration.

5. Pets

Sweden lists Canada among the countries where the rabies situation is documented and monitored, which puts pets on the simpler track. A dog or cat must be identified with an ISO microchip implanted before the rabies vaccination, be vaccinated against rabies (the primary vaccination is valid only once the animal is at least 12 weeks old), and then wait 21 days after vaccination before travelling. Animals from listed countries such as Canada are not legally required to have a rabies antibody blood (titre) test — but Jordbruksverket strongly recommends taking a blood sample anyway to confirm the animal has developed sufficient antibody protection (Jordbruksverket). You also need an EU animal health certificate signed by an official veterinarian, and the animal must enter the EU through a designated traveller’s point of entry (in Sweden, Arlanda or Landvetter airports).

On the Canadian side, the export certificate must be endorsed by a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) veterinarian, and the microchip must predate the rabies vaccination, titre test (where applicable) and any parasite treatment (CFIA — export of dogs, cats and ferrets to the EU). Because of the vaccinate-then-wait sequence, start the pet process well ahead of your move date.

6. Vehicles, money and things people forget

Vehicles. Bringing a car from Canada means dealing with two Swedish authorities. First you clear it through Tullverket (paying any duty and VAT unless it qualifies as part of your personal-belongings relief), then you register it with the Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen): apply for verification of origin, present the Tullverket release document and original registration certificate, and book a registreringsbesiktning (registration inspection) at an accredited station (Transportstyrelsen). North American vehicles often need modifications to pass, so weigh the cost against selling in Canada.

Money. Declare EUR 10,000 or more in cash or equivalent assets (including investment gold) to Swedish Customs on entry (Tullverket).

Easy to forget. Alcohol and tobacco never ride along duty-free with your household goods; a residence permit must be in hand before both customs relief and population registration; and the CRA T1161/T1243 filings are due with your departure-year return, not deferred indefinitely.

How Flyto handles your Canada to Sweden move

Flyto runs strong in-house European operations — our own offices, warehouses, teams and vehicles across Northern, Central and Southern Europe — which we combine with a carefully chosen network of vetted partners and subcontractors for the legs we do not cover directly. For a Canada-to-Sweden move that means we coordinate the Canadian export and CERS filing through trusted freight partners, handle the ocean or air leg, and rely on our in-house European reach together with trusted local partners in Sweden to clear customs on form Tv 740.45 and deliver to your door.

Frequently asked questions

Do I pay Swedish VAT or duty on my furniture?
No, provided you meet Tullverket’s conditions — one year of residence outside the EU, six months’ ownership and use, and an intent to live in Sweden for at least a year — and declare the goods on form Tv 740.45 (Tullverket).

Is there a Canadian exit tax when I leave?
Effectively yes. The CRA deems you to have disposed of most property at fair market value on the day you become a non-resident, and the gains are taxed; reportable property over CAD 25,000 goes on Form T1161 (CRA).

Does my mover file anything in Canada?
Yes. Because an emigrant’s effects are not covered by the traveller exemption, a household shipment of CAD 2,000 or more is reported through CERS — usually filed by your forwarder (CBSA).

Does my dog need a blood test?
Not as a legal requirement. Canada is a listed country, so a microchip, valid rabies vaccination and 21-day wait suffice; a titre test is not mandatory, though Jordbruksverket recommends one to confirm protection (Jordbruksverket).

When do I get my personnummer?
After you hold a residence permit and register in person with Skatteverket for a stay of one year or more (Skatteverket).

What about moving back to Canada later?
Returning residents and settlers declare owned, used goods to the CBSA on Form BSF186 (Personal Effects Accounting Document) for duty-free entry (CBSA), while leaving Sweden for a non-EU country is handled as an export through Tullverket.

Sources

• Tullverket — Moving to and from Sweden
• Tullverket — Duty and VAT relief when moving to Sweden
• Tullverket — FAQ on customs exemption for personal belongings
• Tullverket — Form Tv 740.45 (Declaration for relief when migrating to Sweden)
• Tullverket — Travelling with cash and/or equivalent assets
• Tullverket — Moving from Sweden to a non-EU country
• Migrationsverket — Work permit for employees
• Skatteverket — Moving to Sweden / population registration
• Jordbruksverket — Dogs, cats and ferrets from countries where rabies is documented and monitored
• Jordbruksverket — Movement of dogs, cats and ferrets to Sweden
• Transportstyrelsen — Import from countries outside the EU
• CBSA — Memorandum D20-1-1: Exporter Reporting
• CBSA — Exporting commercial goods
• CBSA — Form BSF186 (Personal Effects Accounting Document)
• CRA — Leaving Canada (emigrants)
• CRA — Dispositions of property for emigrants
• CRA — Form T1161, List of Properties by an Emigrant of Canada
• CRA — Form T1243, Deemed Disposition of Property by an Emigrant
• CFIA — Export of dogs, cats and ferrets to the EU (non-commercial)