Moving from Peru to Sweden (2026): Relocation Guide

Moving from Peru to Sweden (2026): Relocation Guide

Key takeaways

• Plan your pet first. Peru is not an EU-listed third country, so a dog or cat must have a rabies antibody titration test (blood taken at least 30 days after vaccination, result of at least 0.5 IU/ml) and then a three-month wait before it may enter the EU. This is the longest-lead item in the whole relocation.
• Swedish Customs (Tullverket) grant duty- and VAT-free relief on removal goods if you have lived outside the EU for at least 12 consecutive months and have owned and used the items for at least six. A packing list is mandatory.
• The residence sequence is strict: a residence permit from Migrationsverket comes first, then population registration (folkbokföring) at Skatteverket, which assigns your personnummer.
• Sea freight from Callao to Gothenburg runs roughly six to nine weeks door to door, because there is no direct Pacific-to-Baltic service and cargo transships via Panama and a European hub.
• The personnummer is the master key to banking, healthcare, work and daily life in Sweden.

1. Leaving Peru: what to close out

Moving from Peru to Sweden is an intercontinental, non-EU relocation with paperwork at both ends. Allow three to four months and build the schedule backwards from your pet’s rabies-titre dates (section 5), because that is the one deadline you cannot shorten.

Before you leave Peru, close out your civil and tax affairs. Settle balances with SUNAT, keep proof of your Peruvian address history, and gather originals and certified copies of birth, marriage and academic certificates. Anything you will show Migrationsverket or Skatteverket should carry a Hague apostille (Peru is a member) and a sworn translation into Swedish or English where required. Arranging apostilles in Lima before departure is far simpler than doing it from Sweden.

Your household goods leave under a Simplified Export Declaration for luggage and household effects (menaje de casa). SUNAT’s customs assistant states that a natural person exporting menaje de casa presents a simplified export declaration (free format), a passport, a sworn statement listing the contents and confirming there is no cultural heritage or prohibited merchandise, and a copy of the carrier’s transport document. No export tax applies. Take the cultural-patrimony clause seriously: pre-Columbian artefacts, colonial art and certain antiques may need clearance from Peru’s Ministry of Culture, and exporting protected items without authorisation is an offence. Your remover prepares the declaration, but the sworn inventory is yours to sign truthfully.

Finally, handle exit admin for people: confirm passports have at least six months’ validity, verify your Swedish entry visa or permit decision before flying, and cancel Peruvian utilities, insurance and subscriptions only once the shipment has departed and your arrival plan is firm.

2. How your household goods ship to Sweden

Peru’s principal deep-sea port is the Port of Callao beside Lima, and your container will normally sail from there. Sweden’s main cargo gateway is the Port of Gothenburg on the west coast, the largest port in the Nordics. There is no direct liner service linking the Peruvian Pacific coast to the Baltic and North Sea, so containers are routed through the Panama Canal into the Atlantic and transshipped at a European hub before the final leg to Gothenburg. That extra handling is why realistic door-to-door transit is about six to nine weeks, sometimes more when a transshipment connection is missed. Be sceptical of any quote promising a short, fixed ocean transit.

Three service levels cover most moves:

• Full-container load (FCL) — your own 20ft or 40ft container. Best value for a larger home and the least handling, so lower risk of damage.
• Shared container (LCL / groupage) — you pay only for the volume you use. Cheaper for a flat, but slower, as the container waits to fill and is deconsolidated on arrival.
• Air freight — for a small, urgent shipment. Days rather than weeks, but far more per cubic metre, so most people fly only essentials and ship the rest by sea.

Prepare a “first weeks” bag or air box with chargers, seasonal clothing, medication and your document folder (passport, permit, titre result, pet certificate, packing list). Insure on an all-risk, itemised basis with agreed values, and photograph valuables before wrapping. Sweden’s climate is a genuine planning factor: if you arrive in winter, make sure warm clothing and bedding travel with you rather than in a container still at sea.

3. Sweden customs & transfer-of-residence relief

Used personal effects moved from Peru to Sweden normally qualify for duty and VAT relief on removal goods (flyttsaker). Tullverket, the Swedish Customs authority, sets the conditions: you must be moving your permanent residence to Sweden; you must have lived outside the EU for at least 12 consecutive months; the goods must have been owned and used by you or your household for at least six months; and the items must be for private use, not for sale. You must import the goods within 12 months of being registered in Sweden.

Documentation is central to a smooth clearance. A packing list is mandatory, and you may be asked to submit documents proving you lived outside the EU — typically your Peruvian address registration, employment records or tax records. Keep alcohol, tobacco and any commercial goods off the removal declaration, as those follow normal import rules rather than the relief.

Use an international mover experienced with Swedish clearance so the declaration and supporting evidence are presented correctly to Tullverket. A precise, valued inventory prepared in Peru is your best protection against delays and queries at Gothenburg.

4. Arriving: registration, residence, driving, healthcare

Residence permit first. As a Peruvian (third-country) national, you must hold a residence permit from Migrationsverket (the Swedish Migration Agency) before you can settle. Non-EU citizens generally cannot obtain a personnummer without a permit, and a permit shorter than one year usually does not qualify you for population registration. Start the Migrationsverket application well ahead of departure, usually with an employer, university or family sponsor.

Then register at Skatteverket. Once your permit is granted, you register in the population register (folkbokföring) at Skatteverket (the Swedish Tax Agency). Registration is expected shortly after arrival if you intend to stay a year or more, and it assigns your personnummer — the personal identity number that underpins banking, healthcare, employment, insurance and public services. Bring your passport, your residence permit, and evidence of your address and family relationships (apostilled and translated where needed). Some people first receive a coordination number (samordningsnummer) before full folkbokföring; the personnummer is the one that unlocks everything.

Healthcare. Once you are registered and have a personnummer, you gain access to Sweden’s public healthcare system through your region, paying subsidised patient fees. Register your address with your regional healthcare provider (vårdcentral) as your first contact point.

Driving. A Peruvian licence can be used for a limited period, but non-EU licences generally cannot be exchanged for a Swedish one — most newcomers must take Swedish theory and practical tests to obtain a Swedish licence. Check Transportstyrelsen (the Swedish Transport Agency) for the current rules for Peruvian licence holders and act early, because the period during which a foreign licence is valid is short once you are resident.

5. Pets

Start here — before anything else in your move. Peru is not on the EU’s list of approved third countries, so a dog or cat faces the strictest entry route. The required order is:

1. Microchip (ISO 11784/11785), read before or at the moment of vaccination.
2. Rabies vaccination, given after the microchip. A vaccination that predates the chip does not count.
3. Rabies antibody titration test. Blood taken by an authorised vet at least 30 days after vaccination and tested at an EU-approved laboratory, with a result of at least 0.5 IU/ml.
4. Three-month wait. You must wait three months (90 days) from the successful blood-sample date before the animal enters the EU. (This is waived only for a pet re-entering the EU whose passport already records a valid pre-departure titre.)
5. EU animal health certificate from an official vet just before travel, plus the SENASA export certificate to leave Peru.

Stacked together, the pet timeline runs to roughly four to five months from first vaccination to lawful EU entry — longer than the sea freight. If the rabies vaccination is already current and documented, you may not need to re-vaccinate, but the titre and 90-day wait still apply in full.

On the Peruvian side, SENASA (the national agricultural health service) issues the export health certificate. Apply at a SENASA office (in Lima, centres are at Callao, Ate Vitarte and Lurín, with offices across the regions) roughly 72 hours before travel. SENASA requires current vaccinations — including rabies from three months of age — and internal and external deworming performed within 15 days of travel. Your pet must enter the EU through a designated traveller entry point, and airlines apply their own crate and booking rules for live animals, so confirm the pet’s flight alongside yours.

6. Money, banking & tax basics

In Sweden, the personnummer is effectively the key to financial life, so the practical sequence is permit, then folkbokföring, then bank account. Once you have a personnummer and a Swedish address, opening an account with a major bank is straightforward, though banks apply their own identity checks. Some digital banking services can bridge the first weeks, but full access follows registration.

On tax, Sweden taxes residents on worldwide income, and you generally become tax-resident when your home and life are in Sweden. Because you are arriving from a non-EU country, take advice in your first year on the treatment of any Peruvian income, assets or pensions to avoid double taxation and to time the move well. Sweden operates certain reliefs for incoming key personnel (expert tax relief); check whether you qualify. Keep your Peruvian exit documents, as they help establish when your Swedish residence began.

How Flyto handles your Peru to Sweden move

Flyto Relocation runs the corridor end to end: SUNAT export clearance and the menaje de casa declaration in Callao, ocean freight to Gothenburg, and the flyttsaker removal-goods relief presented to Tullverket with the mandatory packing list and proof of 12 months outside the EU. We sequence the pet pathway around the titre-and-90-day rule so nothing is left to chance, and we prepare you for the Migrationsverket-then-Skatteverket order and the personnummer before you land. With our own hubs across Northern, Central and Southern Europe, one team stays accountable from Lima to your Swedish home. Get a quote and we will build the plan backwards from your pet’s blood-test date.

Frequently asked questions

Does my dog or cat need a rabies titre test?
Yes. Peru is not an EU-listed country, so a rabies antibody titration test is required: blood taken at least 30 days after vaccination, a result of at least 0.5 IU/ml, then a three-month wait before entry. See the European Commission on bringing a pet from a non-EU country.

How long should I allow for the pet process?
About four to five months. The microchip, vaccination, 30-day wait, titre test and mandatory 90-day wait must all be completed before the pre-travel health certificate is issued. Begin before any other step.

What does Swedish Customs need for my removal goods?
Proof you lived outside the EU for at least 12 consecutive months, that you owned and used the goods for at least six months, and a mandatory packing list, per Tullverket.

Which comes first, Migrationsverket or Skatteverket?
Migrationsverket. You need a residence permit before Skatteverket will register you in folkbokföring and assign a personnummer, per Migrationsverket.

How long is the shipment at sea from Callao to Gothenburg?
Roughly six to nine weeks door to door, because there is no direct Pacific-to-Baltic service and cargo transships via Panama and a European hub.

Can I swap my Peruvian driving licence for a Swedish one?
Generally no. Non-EU licences usually cannot be exchanged, so most newcomers must pass Swedish theory and practical tests. Check Transportstyrelsen for the current position.

Sources

• Tullverket — Duty and VAT relief when moving to Sweden from outside the EU
• Tullverket — FAQ on customs exemption for personal belongings
• Migrationsverket — Swedish Migration Agency (residence permits)
• Skatteverket — Moving to Sweden and population registration
• European Commission — Bringing a pet into the EU from a non-EU country
• European Commission — Designated rabies antibody titration laboratories
• SUNAT (Peru) — El menaje de casa
• SENASA (Peru) — Requisitos sanitarios para viajar con tu mascota