The Sweden-to-USA corridor is one of the most paperwork-heavy relocation routes in the world, because it crosses two customs unions and two very different immigration systems. A successful move has two halves that must line up. On the departure side you deal with Swedish authorities: Tullverket (Swedish Customs) for the export of your belongings and Skatteverket (the Swedish Tax Agency) for leaving the population register and settling your tax residency. On the arrival side you deal with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), plus the CDC and USDA for pets and the EPA/DOT for vehicles. This guide is for anyone resident in Sweden — Swedish citizens, and foreign nationals who have been living there — shipping a household to the United States on an immigrant visa, a work visa, or a study visa. It also carries a short note on the reverse route (USA to Sweden) at the end.

Key takeaways

• Moving from Sweden to a non-EU country requires an export declaration to Tullverket; you can file it yourself at a border customs office or leave it to your removal/forwarding company (Tullverket).
• If you leave Sweden to live abroad for at least a year, you must notify Skatteverket (form SKV 7665) and you are removed from the population register as "emigrated" (Skatteverket).
• Household goods you have owned and used abroad for at least one year can generally enter the U.S. duty-free, declared on CBP Form 3299 (CBP Form 3299; CBP).
• Your U.S. visa/immigration status — not just what is in the boxes — drives how CBP treats the shipment (CBP).
• All dogs entering the U.S. must be microchipped, at least 6 months old, appear healthy, and have a completed CDC Dog Import Form; Sweden is not a high-risk rabies country, which keeps the paperwork light (CDC).
• Bringing in more than US$10,000 in cash or monetary instruments must be reported to CBP on FinCEN Form 105 (CBP).
• Importing a car generally requires EPA Form 3520-1 and DOT Form HS-7, and non-conforming vehicles brought temporarily by non-residents must be exported within a year (CBP).
• Gothenburg (Göteborg) is Sweden’s largest port and the only one that handles the very largest ocean container ships, with direct services to North America (Port of Gothenburg).

1. Your US immigration status decides the customs treatment

Before anything ships, be clear about how you are entering the United States, because CBP treats the same crate of furniture differently depending on who is importing it. CBP’s guidance distinguishes between returning U.S. residents, immigrants emigrating for the first time, and non-residents arriving on long-term work or study visas (CBP). Immigrants shipping the possessions they already own, and people arriving on extended-stay visas, can generally bring household effects used abroad for at least a year in duty-free — but the eligibility and the documentation you present differ by category. This is also why your visa or green-card status, entry date, and the details on CBP Form 3299 all have to be internally consistent: a mismatch between the declared importer status and your actual admission is the most common cause of a held shipment. Settle your immigration category first; the shipping plan follows from it.

2. The Sweden export side — Tullverket and Skatteverket

Customs (Tullverket). Because the United States is outside the EU, moving your belongings out of Sweden is a formal export. Tullverket states plainly that you "provide notification of exporting personal belongings by completing an export declaration," which you can either handle yourself at a customs office at the border or leave to your removal firm or forwarding company (Tullverket). Personal removal goods are declared on the Single Administrative Document using commodity code 9905 00 00 (personal property belonging to an emigrant) with export procedure code 1000 for a standard export (Tullverket). Separately, because the goods are leaving the EU customs territory, a pre-departure declaration carrying security and safety data must reach customs before the goods physically exit (Tullverket). Two special cases to flag early: vehicles must be de-registered with the Swedish Transport Agency, and certain cultural goods may need an export licence from the Swedish National Heritage Board (Tullverket).

Leaving the register and tax residency (Skatteverket). If you are moving abroad to live there for at least one year, you must notify the Swedish Tax Agency of the move and your new foreign address, using the form Notification, Moving Abroad (SKV 7665) — the notification should be made in advance of departure, and you are then removed from the population register with the status "emigrated" (Skatteverket). Tax residency is the part people underestimate. Under Sweden’s rules, if you are a Swedish citizen or have lived in Sweden for ten years or longer, the burden is on you to prove you no longer have essential (close) ties to Sweden, and this test can apply for five years after you leave; the Tax Agency weighs factors such as a home kept in Sweden, family remaining there, property, and business interests (Skatteverket). Plan to file a final Swedish return and keep evidence that your centre of life has genuinely moved to the U.S.

3. Ports and transit — realistic, and flagged as estimates

Most Sweden-to-USA household shipments leave through Gothenburg (Göteborg), Sweden’s largest port and the only one able to receive the very largest ocean-going container ships, with direct services to North America (Port of Gothenburg). Depending on routing and consolidation, cargo may also move via a large continental hub. Air freight for smaller or urgent shipments typically routes through Stockholm Arlanda or Gothenburg Landvetter.

The following transit times are freight-industry planning estimates, not official government figures, and real-world door-to-door timelines depend on sailing schedules, consolidation, U.S. port congestion, and customs clearance:

• Sea freight (FCL/LCL), Gothenburg to U.S. East Coast: roughly 3–5 weeks port-to-port (estimate).
• Sea freight to U.S. West Coast: roughly 5–7 weeks port-to-port (estimate).
• Air freight: typically a few days in transit, plus clearance (estimate).

Treat these as ranges for planning, and add buffer time for the arrival-side customs steps below.

4. The U.S. import side — CBP

Household goods and personal effects that ship separately from you (by sea or air freight) are "unaccompanied articles," and the core document is CBP Form 3299, Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles (CBP Form 3299). The key rule for duty-free treatment: household effects used abroad for at least one year by you (or your household of which you were a resident member) may be admitted free of duty — the year of use need not be continuous, nor immediately before importation (CBP). Note CBP’s distinction: "personal effects" such as clothing and jewellery are treated differently from "household effects" like furniture and books, so pack and inventory accordingly (CBP). In practice you (or your U.S. customs broker) present the completed Form 3299, a detailed packing/inventory list, a copy of your passport and visa, and the shipping documents to CBP at the port of arrival. When you personally arrive as a traveller, you also complete the standard arrival declaration, CBP Form 6059B (CBP Form 6059B). Alcohol, food, plants, and similar restricted categories are declarable and may face additional agency rules, so list them rather than hiding them.

5. Pets — the rules on both ends

Leaving Sweden. Your dog or cat is, in customs terms, exported alongside your goods; check your airline’s live-animal requirements and carry the EU pet passport / veterinary records you already hold. The binding constraints for this route are on the U.S. entry side.

Entering the USA (dogs). The CDC requires that every dog entering the United States be microchipped (ISO-compatible), at least six months old, appear healthy on arrival, and have a completed CDC Dog Import Form receipt (filled out online before travel) (CDC). The CDC’s requirements then hinge on rabies risk. Sweden is not on the CDC’s list of high-risk rabies countries, so for a dog that has been only in rabies-free or low-risk countries in the six months before arrival, the CDC Dog Import Form is the central document and the dog may enter through any U.S. port of entry (CDC). Dogs coming from high-risk countries face far heavier requirements and a short list of designated airports — not your concern from Sweden, unless your dog has recently been in such a country. You must also meet USDA and your U.S. destination state’s rules, and cats have their own, lighter federal requirements (CDC). Always confirm on the CDC page before booking, as the online form and its details are updated.

6. Vehicles, money, and things people forget

Vehicles. Importing a car into the U.S. generally means filing EPA Form 3520-1 (emissions) and DOT Form HS-7 (safety) with CBP at entry (CBP). A vehicle that does not conform to U.S. emission and safety standards can, if imported by a non-resident for personal use for up to one year, skip conformity — but it may not be sold and must be exported within the year, with no extensions (CBP). A typical Swedish car is left-hand drive, which helps, but the EPA/DOT paperwork is unavoidable — factor the cost and timeline in before deciding to ship a car at all.

Money. There is no limit on how much currency you may carry, but bringing more than US$10,000 in cash or monetary instruments (including traveller’s cheques and bearer instruments) into or out of the U.S. must be reported to CBP on FinCEN Form 105 (CBP; FinCEN Form 105). Failing to report can mean seizure.

Easy to forget: de-register your Swedish car and cancel Swedish insurance; keep receipts proving you owned household items over a year (this strengthens the Form 3299 case); do not ship prohibited or restricted goods (certain foods, plants, wood products); and keep an inventory copy for both Tullverket and CBP.

How Flyto handles your Sweden to the USA move

Flyto runs strong in-house operations across Europe — our own offices, warehouses, trained teams and vehicles in Northern, Central and Southern Europe handle the Swedish export leg and the origin paperwork directly. For the ocean or air crossing and the U.S. arrival, we combine that European backbone with a carefully chosen network of vetted partners and subcontractors, plus trusted local partners in the United States for customs clearance and final delivery. We coordinate the whole chain end to end, and we are honest that the U.S.-side execution runs through those local partners rather than our own crews. The result is one point of contact, one plan, and no surprises about who is doing what on either side of the Atlantic.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to be present in the U.S. when my furniture clears customs?
Not necessarily — unaccompanied household goods clear on CBP Form 3299 with your documents, but your immigration status and entry details must support the duty-free claim (CBP). Many people arrive first and have the shipment follow.

Will I pay U.S. duty on my used household goods?
Generally no, if the effects were owned and used abroad for at least a year; that is the core duty-free rule CBP applies to household effects (CBP).

Do I really need to tell Skatteverket I’m leaving?
Yes. If you’ll live abroad for at least a year, you notify the Tax Agency with SKV 7665 and are removed from the population register as "emigrated" (Skatteverket).

Am I still taxable in Sweden after I move?
You can be. If you’re a Swedish citizen or lived in Sweden 10+ years, you must prove you no longer have essential (close) ties, potentially for five years after leaving (Skatteverket).

What does my dog need?
A microchip, minimum age of six months, apparent good health, and a completed CDC Dog Import Form; from low-risk Sweden that form is the central requirement (CDC).

How long does sea freight take?
As a freight-industry estimate, roughly 3–5 weeks to the U.S. East Coast and 5–7 weeks to the West Coast port-to-port — not an official figure, and schedules vary.

A note on the reverse direction (USA → Sweden)

Coming the other way, Tullverket grants duty and VAT relief on removal goods if you have resided outside the EU for at least 12 months, are now moving your permanent residence to Sweden, and the items have been owned and used by you or your household for at least six months and are for private use, not sale — keep receipts and proof of prior use (Tullverket). On the U.S. side you would file an export declaration in the automated export system for goods leaving the country.

Sources

• Tullverket — Moving from Sweden to a non-EU country
• Tullverket — Declaring goods for export
• Tullverket — Pre-departure declaration for goods exiting the EU
• Tullverket — Duty and VAT relief when moving to Sweden
• Skatteverket — Moving from Sweden
• CBP — Process to move household goods and personal effects into the U.S.
• CBP Form 3299 — Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles (PDF)
• CBP Form 6059B — Customs Declaration (PDF)
• CBP — Importing a Motor Vehicle
• CBP — Importing a Personal Vehicle for Personal Use
• CDC — Bringing a Dog into the United States
• CBP — Money and Other Monetary Instruments
• FinCEN Form 105 — Report of International Transportation of Currency or Monetary Instruments (PDF)
• CBP — How much currency/monetary instruments can I bring into the U.S.?
• Port of Gothenburg — Container services