Jobbskatteavdrag 2026: Sweden's earned income tax credit
Jobbskatteavdrag is the largest single tax reduction a Swedish employee receives, and most people never see it as a line on anything. It is applied automatically inside the tax your employer deducts, which is why Swedish net pay is higher than the headline rates suggest. In 2026 it is worth up to about SEK 52,390 a year.
What changed in 2026
2026 is the tenth step of the credit since it was introduced in 2007, and the most consequential change in years. Two things happened. The maximum rose, from roughly 3,900 kronor a month in 2025 to about 4,367. And the taper that used to claw the credit back from higher earners was abolished, so it no longer falls away above a certain income. That second change is easy to miss and it alters the marginal rate across the whole upper half of the income distribution.
How it is calculated
The credit is not a flat amount. Skatteverket defines it in four bands of work income, measured in prisbasbelopp (PBB), which is SEK 59,200 for 2026. In each band a base figure is computed, your grundavdrag is subtracted, and the result is multiplied by your municipal tax rate. That last step is why the credit is worth more where municipal tax is higher.
| Work income | Base used |
|---|---|
| Up to 0.91 PBB | the work income itself |
| 0.91 to 3.24 PBB | 0.91 PBB plus 38.74% of the excess |
| 3.24 to 8.08 PBB | 1.813 PBB plus 25.1% of the excess |
| Above 8.08 PBB | a flat 3.027 PBB |
What it is worth at each salary
At the national average municipal rate of 32.38%, the credit works out as follows.
| Work income | Credit | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| SEK 100,000 | SEK 12,415 | SEK 1,035 |
| SEK 200,000 | SEK 21,171 | SEK 1,764 |
| SEK 300,000 | SEK 32,537 | SEK 2,711 |
| SEK 400,000 | SEK 43,902 | SEK 3,659 |
| SEK 478,336 | SEK 52,403 | SEK 4,367 |
| SEK 600,000 | SEK 52,390 | SEK 4,366 |
| SEK 900,000 | SEK 52,390 | SEK 4,366 |
The credit climbs steeply through the middle of the range, peaks at about SEK 478,336 of work income, and then holds flat. Before 2026 it would have started falling away at that point instead.
The slight dip between the last band and the flat one is not a rounding error on our side. Extending the third formula to 8.08 prisbasbelopp gives 3.02784 PBB, while the fourth band's published constant is 3.027, so about 50 kronor of base disappears at the boundary. That step is in Skatteverket's own formula and we reproduce it rather than smoothing it over.
It is capped by your municipal tax
Jobbskatteavdrag can only be set against municipal income tax, never against state tax. At low incomes that constraint bites: if your municipal tax is smaller than the credit you have earned, the unused part is simply lost. Skatteverket's own example of a 2,600 kronor monthly salary shows municipal tax of 2,003 kronor being entirely consumed by the general pension contribution credit first, leaving the jobbskatteavdrag at zero.
Why your neighbour gets a different amount
Because the final step multiplies by the municipal rate, the same salary produces a different credit in different municipalities. Rates run from roughly 29% to 36%, so at an average salary the spread is worth several thousand kronor a year. Higher municipal tax means a bigger credit, though of course it also means more tax overall.
See it in your own numbers
The Sweden salary calculator shows the credit applied at your salary and municipal rate, and the methodology page lists the exact source for every figure here.