Bygglov
Bygglov is the municipality's approval that you may erect, rebuild or change the use of a building. Without bygglov you cannot lawfully start the work, and without startbesked you cannot start even if the bygglov has been granted.
The rules are set out in chapter 9 of plan- och bygglagen (2010:900), which from 01/12/2025 has an entirely new chapter 9 with a partly new structure (Lag 2025:974). It is the byggnadsnämnden, the building committee in the municipality, that processes the application and makes the decision, not a state agency. Boverket's PBL kunskapsbanken states that the nämnden must decide cases on permits or förhandsbesked (advance rulings) within ten weeks of receiving a complete application. The deadline can be extended once by up to ten weeks if this is necessary because of the processing or the investigation in the case. A bygganmälan, the simpler notification duty for works that do not require bygglov, has a shorter deadline of four weeks, extendable by four weeks.
Not all works require bygglov. New builds, extensions and façade changes above given sizes require bygglov, while some technical installations (drainage, ventilation, load-bearing structures) only require anmälan, a simpler notification without the same full assessment. The boundary between the two changed significantly in the reform: among other things, the area limits for bygglov-exempt extensions and complementary buildings were raised, and which works require anmälan instead of bygglov now follows from a new chapter 6 of plan- och byggförordningen (PBF).
A bygglov only gives you the right to carry out the work in line with the conditions in the decision. It does not give you the right to start building. Only startbesked from byggnadsnämnden does that, under chapter 10 of plan- och bygglagen. A bygglov also ceases to apply if the work has not started within two years and has not been completed within five years, counted from the day the decision gained laga kraft (legal force). This two-year and five-year deadline was not changed by the 2025 reform.
The best-known exemptions from the bygglov duty were long called friggebod and attefallshus. A friggebod was a bygglov-exempt complementary building of up to 15 m² per plot (raised from a lower earlier limit in 2008), and an attefallshus was a bygglov-exempt complementary building or complementary dwelling of up to 30 m² (set from 01/08/2020). From 01/12/2025 both terms have been removed from the law and replaced by a single category: bygglov-exempt komplementbyggnad and komplementbostadshus, with a shared area allowance of 45 m² inside a detaljplan (detailed development plan) and 65 m² outside a detaljplan, per plot. The terms friggebod and attefallshus are still used in everyday speech about older buildings put up under the old rules.
Bygglov corresponds to the Norwegian byggetillatelse, the building permit under plan- og bygningsloven, most often split into rammetillatelse and igangsettingstillatelse. Two differences are worth noting. First, Sweden has a statutory ten-week deadline for case processing that Norwegian law does not have in the same form. Second, the two-step structure itself differs: the Norwegian rammetillatelse covers overall siting and assumes that the igangsettingstillatelse comes at a later point, while the Swedish bygglov and startbesked are two separate decisions by the byggnadsnämnden with different legal content, where the startbesked also sets the control plan for the work.
In Norwegian-language texts about Swedish property, the form "bygglovsvedtak" turns up for a granted bygglov. That is a Norwegian construction and not a Swedish word: the Swedish expression is "bygglov", or "beslut om bygglov" when you want to point to the decision itself. We write bygglov. Combify has more than 500,000 bygglov in its database, collected from all 290 municipalities in Sweden.
From Placepoint's glossary: Bygglov
More information: Boverket: Tidsfrister för handläggning, plan- och bygglagen 9 kap., Boverket: Komplementbyggnad
English: Building permit.
Frequently asked questions
What is bygglov?
Bygglov is the byggnadsnämnden's approval that you may erect, rebuild or change the use of a building in Sweden, under chapter 9 of plan- och bygglagen.
How long does it take to get bygglov?
The byggnadsnämnden must decide within ten weeks of receiving a complete application. The deadline can be extended once by up to ten weeks if the case needs more investigation.
Can I start building once I have bygglov?
No. You also need startbesked from the byggnadsnämnden under chapter 10 of plan- och bygglagen. Starting without startbesked triggers a byggsanktionsavgift, a building sanction charge.
How long is a bygglov valid?
A bygglov ceases to apply if the work has not started within two years and has not been completed within five years from the date the decision gained laga kraft.
What are friggebod and attefallshus?
They were earlier names for bygglov-exempt complementary buildings, of up to 15 m² and up to 30 m² respectively. From 01/12/2025 both have been replaced by a single category: bygglov-exempt komplementbyggnad and komplementbostadshus.
Is bygglov the same as the Norwegian byggetillatelse?
They are similar. The Norwegian byggetillatelse is often split into rammetillatelse and igangsettingstillatelse, while Sweden separates bygglov from a distinct startbesked. Sweden also has a statutory ten-week deadline for case processing.