Global Daily Tax News, Sweden To Enhance R And D Tax Incentives, (Aug 20, 2026)

Draft legislation has been proposed in Sweden to enhance the nation's research and development tax incentives.

Under existing law, when calculating an employer's contributions and the general payroll contribution on the remuneration paid to a person working in research or development, a deduction of 20 percent of the contribution base may be made from the sum of these contributions.

The deduction may not result in the contributions being less than the old-age pension contribution under Chapter 2, Section 26 of the Social Contributions Act (2000:980).

The total deduction for all persons working in research or development may not exceed SEK3m per calendar month.

The deduction is primarily made from the employer's contributions.

The proposal would substantially increase this deduction to 200 percent of certain salary costs for personnel working on research or development under the aforementioned legislation.

Separately, legislation has also been proposed to amend the nation's Pillar Two multinational top-up tax regime. The legislation includes a series of simplification measures, the extension of transitional safe harbors, and provisions to recognize equivalent regimes in other nations.

The legislative amendments are proposed to enter into force on January 1, 2027.