Representation Office

Representation office is a general term for the legal presence of foreign legal entities which are active in Sweden without having registered a company branch or Swedish subsidiary. The representation office is not incorporated in Sweden, but if it is to have employees, corporate income or sell goods and/or services in Sweden the foreign company’s activities must be registered with the Swedish tax authorities.

As long as a representation office is not deemed to be permanently established in Sweden their obligation to pay Swedish social fees and income tax is limited, at least in comparison with a Swedish registered company. It is, however, important to remember that this form of legal presence is not meant to perform business in Sweden on a permanent basis. In recent years the Swedish tax authority has become more restrictive with which representation offices are deemed to lack a permanent establishment in Sweden, which in turn limits the benefits of this type of organization.

KagNag can assist in the tax registration of a representation office, and provide advice regarding what activities risk making the representation office’s Swedish presence into a permanent establishment.