Hey there, behind the screen! Congratulations to you admitted KTH students! What a relief, right?! So what happens next? You probably have a question in mind: How should I plan to move to Stockholm? Don’t worry, I will cover that for you in this post!
Residence permit? No, I am from the EU!
Since you are a European student, membership of the EU comes with perks, and this is one of them! Residence permit? Haven’t heard within the European Union…! This is where you will arrive to Sweden without any visas or permits!
Personal number
Are you planning to stay in Sweden for a year? Well, you will need a personal number…But that is easy to get! Once you are here in Sweden, all you need to do is book an appointment at the Swedish tax agency, apply for the number by providing particular documents, and you are half a Swede!
Having a personal number will make your life so much easier… Trust me! First, you might want to get a part-time job. So you will be able to open a bank account! Life is so beautiful when bank transactions last less than a second, right? Once you open a bank account, you can download an app and use only the phone number to make quick transactions (it’s called “Swish”, and the other person must also have the app). Sounds easy? Well, it will be!
Health insurance
To have the same costs as Swedes, you should have a European Health Insurance Card with you. If you don’t own one, you should apply for it (EHIC) in your home country before coming to Sweden! It really makes things easier. This card is necessary when applying for a personal number in Sweden.
If, for some reason, you can not get your EHIC, it gets tricky here. Since it’s quite expensive to be insured in Sweden, I recommend getting insurance in your home country.
Tuition fees-there is none!
What a relief, right? Yes, you will pay zero tuition fees. Even the application is free of charge! However, textbooks, pens, and all the small stuff you probably will need to acquire. Additional costs depend on your chosen programme, e.x., in architecture, we have to pay ourselves for the material to do the models. Printing in big sizes A1 or A2 is on your own, but the university provides each student 200KR per calendar year to print on KTH printers! That is absolutely amazing, isn’t it?
Accommodation-don’t fall
KTH, unfortunately, can not provide accommodation for all the students, so non-EU and exchange students have priority. But every cloud has a silver lining! If you are doing a joint master’s course, you have guaranteed accommodation! To find out if you are eligible for accommodation, check KTH’s post about it here!
Almost everyone in Stockholm stands in the queue to get a better and cheaper apartment. There are two main housing queues: Stockholm Housing Agency and the student accommodation queue – SSSB. SSSB is the first one you should apply for, as we all did before coming to Stockholm!
Myself, I applied for accommodation at SSSB. One of the best perks is getting June and July rent-free! You could travel or save some money! When you register in the queue, there is a limit of days you can queue. Read the rules carefully on their website, or you could miss all your points!
Facebook has another market for advertising accommodations. It’s also a great way to find accommodation for a short period. Be aware of scams, though! I recommend not paying in advance before seeing the apartment.
Blocket added an additional section to rent and lease apartments. The good thing about it is that you can sign an agreement through the company. This makes sure you have insurance!
In case you end up not finding a suitable place for yourself and you want to come to do a viewing of an apartment, you could stay at Airbnb. They are quite pricy, though, here in Stockholm! A hostel is another option.
Congratulations again! I hope we see each other in Stockholm! Upcoming webinars are opportunities for you to ask questions! Read Lorenzo’s tips and important dates you can not miss!
//Martyna