Tuition fee income increases reflect strong market position

Some 46,690 international students were registered in Swedish universities and colleges in 2024 and 2025, the highest number since 2011, and they constituted 10% of all students in the country.

These 11,280 paid tuition fees, worth a total of SEK1.5 billion (US$163 million), represent an increase over the past decade of 275%, and now account for 4.5% of universities’ income, up from 2.2% in 2015, according to the annual statistics report just released by the Swedish Higher Education Authority.

Dr Per A Nilsson, affiliated research fellow at the Centre for Regional Science at Umeå University, told University World News: “The global market for international student mobility is highly competitive, and Sweden holds a strong position within it.”

Large cohort from Asia

Asia accounted for 33% of incoming freemover students, and 14% of incoming exchange students. Of these, 3,440 came from China, an increase of 39% from the previous year. While the number from Sri Lanka was 910 in 2024 and 2025, up from fewer than 100 students in 2019 and 2020.

In the autumn of 2011 Sweden became the second Nordic country to introduce tuition fees for freemover students from countries outside the EU-EEA and Switzerland.

The size of the fees is set by the higher education institution, but full cost coverage must be achieved for the entire activity financed by the tuition fees. Doctoral students do not pay tuition fees, regardless of country of origin.

A larger number of freemover students than usual began their studies in the academic year before the introduction of the fees, and a total of 46,690 incoming students studied in Sweden in the academic year 2010 and 2011.

The number then decreased sharply in the following academic years. Since then, the number of incoming students has gradually increased again, and in the 2024 and 2025 academic year there were more of them for the first time since before the introduction of tuition fees.

Largest increase since fees introduced

Of the 46,920 international students registered, 70%, or 32,630 students, belonged to the group of freemover students. The remaining 30%, or 14,310 students, were exchange students who studied in Sweden within the framework of collaborations between foreign and Swedish higher education institutions.

Within the group of freemover students, 21,350 students studied free of charge, while 11,280 students paid tuition fees to study in Sweden.

The total number of incoming students increased by 3,970 students in the academic year 2024 and 2025, up by 9% on the previous academic year.

Apart from the increase immediately after the pandemic, this is the largest increase since tuition fees for students from countries outside the EU-EEA and Switzerland were introduced in the autumn semester of 2011.

The number of freemover students increased by 10% in total in the 2024 and 2025 academic year. Paying freemover students increased relatively the most, by 17%, while the number of freemover students who did not pay tuition fees increased by 7%.

Incoming exchange students increased by 8% in the same academic year. This group decreased sharply during the pandemic, but has increased every academic year since 2021 and 2022. Incoming exchange students were at their highest in the 2011 and 2012 academic year, at 15,300, but then decreased gradually until the pandemic.

Over the past ten years, the total number of incoming students has increased by 41%. The increase is greatest among freemover students, who have increased by 65%, whereas incoming exchange students increased by 6% during the same period.

Sweden currently a ‘good option’

Magnus Hallbåter, analyst at the Swedish Council for Higher Education (UHR) considers that the increase in international students is positive and shows that the Swedish HEI’s are well seen at international level and Sweden continues to be an attractive study destination.

“As a national agency for Erasmus+, UHR can see how student mobility not only benefits the individual but also HEI’s and society at large. Incoming students, whether credit mobility or degree mobility, conclude their studies to a very high extent and many stay to seek employment in Sweden afterwards.

Nilsson said: “Student mobility is quite sensitive and can shift rapidly. We have seen this in response to events such as COVID-19 and 9/11.

“In recent years, policies in many countries have become less welcoming toward international students. Many prospective students face growing challenges when trying to enter a country, including stricter migration regulations and difficulties in obtaining study visas.

“For students in China, Singapore and the United States, Sweden is a good option when studying abroad,” Nilsson noted.

Hallbåter said Work in Sweden, UHR and several other authorities, have been tasked by the Government to further improve the conditions for highly qualified persons, including international students, to settle and work in Sweden.

“The overall mission for this work is to create a clear, predictable and coherent system that makes choosing Sweden as a career destination attractive, and that supports in-demand international competence in a successful establishment in the labour market and in society.”

Increase in EU exchange students

In the 2024 and 2025 academic year, 14% of all incoming exchange students, corresponding to 2,000 students, came from Asia, while 12% came from other continents.

The three largest countries of origin outside Europe were China (520 students), Singapore (500 students) and the United States (450 students). Together, these three countries accounted for 40% of all incoming exchange students from countries outside Europe.

During the academic years before the pandemic, the proportion of incoming exchange students from the different continents was relatively stable. In the 2019 and 2020 academic year, 17% of exchange students came from Asia and 8% from North America. In the same academic year, a total of 62% of all exchange students came from Europe. Most of these came from EU countries.

During the pandemic, the number of incoming exchange students from all geographical areas decreased, with the largest decline from countries outside Europe.

Although the influx of students from these countries has started to increase again, the number for several countries is still below pre-pandemic levels. The number of exchange students from Europe, however, has fully recovered and is now higher than before the pandemic. This means that the proportion of exchange students coming from European countries has increased.

Almost all incoming exchange students study free-standing courses. The most common is to study courses in social sciences, law, commerce and administration – in total, 34% of all exchange students during the 2024 and 2025 academic year were registered on courses in these areas.

The second most common were courses in technology and manufacturing (22%), humanities and arts, and natural sciences, mathematics and information and communication technology (17% each).

Europe registers most freemover students

Among the freemover students who studied in Sweden in the 2024 and 2025 academic year, the largest group, 37%, came from Europe.

Students from Asia made up the second largest group, with 33%. Overall, 10% came from Africa, North America, South America and Oceania. Just over 20% of the freemover students have an unknown country of origin. These students probably come mainly from EU-EEA countries and Switzerland.

Students from these countries have the right to study in Sweden without a residence permit, and since they do not always register, in some cases data is missing from the statistics. This means that the number of students from the EU-EEA and Switzerland may be underestimated.

The EU countries from which the most freemover students came were Germany and Finland, with 2,200 and 1,410 students respectively. The number of freemover students from Finland has decreased steadily over the past eight academic years.

During the academic year 2016 and 2017, 2,440 Finnish freemover students studied in Sweden, while the number had decreased to 1,410 students in the academic year 2024 and 2025 a reduction of 42%.

China registers biggest freemover increase

Although Europe is the region from which the most freemover students came overall, the individual countries from which the most students come from are China and India. Students from the two countries accounted for 19% of all registered freemover students.

Over the past ten years, the number of freemover students from several countries in Asia, especially from China, India and Sri Lanka, has increased. In particular, the number of students from Sri Lanka has increased sharply in recent years. In the academic year 2019 and 2020, there were fewer than 100 students from Sri Lanka studying in Sweden. By the academic year 2024 and 2025, the number had increased to 910.

Freemover students make up a large proportion of all students enrolled in advanced-level programmes – in the 2024 and 2025 academic year, they accounted for 43% of all registered students in masters programmes.

At the same time, only 13% of freemover students studied in a programme leading to a bachelor degree. It is less common for them to study in a vocational degree programme or a programme leading to an artistic degree – five and two per cent respectively, in the 2024 and 2025 academic year. The remaining part of the freemover students – 22% – studied independent courses.

Lund University was the higher education institution with the most new incoming students, 3,760. This was followed by Stockholm University with 2,860 and the Royal Institute of Technology with 2,740. The Stockholm School of Economics had the highest proportion of new incoming students out of the total number of freshmen, with 76%. At the Royal Institute of Music in Stockholm, which had the second highest proportion, the proportion was 65%.