From Healthcare to Education: Understanding the Benefits of Swedish Tax
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- čas přidán 19. 06. 2024
- 🇸🇪 In this video, we take a closer look at the high taxes in Sweden and what taxpayers get in return. From free healthcare and education to generous parental leave and social benefits, Sweden's tax system funds a range of public services and supports. Whether you're a Swedish resident or simply interested in learning more about tax policies around the world, this video offers an informative and thought-provoking perspective on Swedish taxes.
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Barnbidrag is also worth mentioning.
Barnbidrag is silly as most families pay much more in taxes, why not deduct from taxes as in many other countries.
One thing to remember is that taxes also includes an insurans. If yuo later in lafe need hartsurgery it will be free.
Just take into account that if your children studies at a private school they won't have their potential transport paid/taken care of.
If they study at a school run by the government and they live further than 2 km away they will receive a bus card or whatever for free.
This I believe is the case for grade 0-5. Beyond that up to the last year of the Gymnasium the distance for the same benefit is 5+ km.
Might differ depending on the municipality.
That the private schools artificially might be increasing the students grades to market their schools as a "better option" for the parents is another matter.
Give a private company _any_ incentive to take advantage of the system and they will do it...
Yep, they advertise "benefits" but when you read the fine print it's not that easy to get the "bang for your buck" here. They use those "benefits" as reasoning for the high taxes collected from us but we are hardly able to receive those benefits. I am shocked they have a minimum distance between school and home to give children's free public transportation, and it's not even a school bus to collect them from your door, considering the weather can be pretty harsh there. If the system were good, it would be optional. We can't choose to pay much lower taxes to get all those "optional services" like child related stuff, "free medical" and "welfare" removed from our package because they're basically scamming people, making us always pay much more than what we get in return. So far I see people around me always having a very difficult time receiving benefits and having to wait months to see a medical expert is just absurd when you think it takes a few days when you're paying privately elsewhere. Medical care might be atrociously expensive in the United States but I remember back in Brazil you can get very good health insurance that covers 100% of everything without co pay, you are seen usually in less than 30 min by a doctor when going to the ER even for non urgent cases, you can see experts without referral, doctors aren't shy to prescribe tons of tests "just in case" and you can see as many "second opinions" as you want and all that for much less than what we pay here. And Brazil is known as a corrupt country. European countries have much higher GDP and Incomes per capita. Where does all that money go? 🤔
@@TheSimArchitect Yeas,Brazil is a great country especial for the people living in the favelas....
@@coole6825 Yes. They have low costs so you don't need to pay them as much to work for you either. That's efficiency. If you work just a bit harder than doing the bare minimum you can surely afford much better, or if you move to a smaller city.
I'm sure you already know this as well but higher education is free in the sense that it does not have any tuition fees but of course you still need to pay for living expenses so there is a government facility to help with that as well. "CSN" that you apply for and get both as a grant (about 25% of the cost) and the option to take a low interest loan for the rest. If needed.
I graduated in 2001 and this year is finally the year I will pay off my student loans. Yay!
First of all, congrats! That's a big achievement. And thanks for the clarification! I didn't know that you can apply for living cost support as well. Great info!
Free? Nothing is free. Paid by me and millions of others.
@@AceOfBased Sure. And it is also payed for by me. I also make more than I would have otherwise which means I pay higher taxes. As a percentage and in total.
brother don't mind me I have just started to study these taxes thing in Europe but you stated it got you 22 years to pay for student loan?
Also, medication like for cancertreatment, diabetes (insulin) are capped at 2000 SEK ($200) a year
That's amazing!
Thanks, you explain the swedish system better then me!
Its this, there is no such a thing as a free lunch!
I have said it befor.. sweden is a middle class, family oriented society.. becuse we are a very manufacturing and export dependent country!
Yes we pay a lot of taxes, but frome high wages.. so there is still a lot of money left for a comfortably life!
Im not going in to it further, becuse you explain it much better then me.. its this thing that not even swedes know/feel, one get benefits every day!
:)
Though many of the support systems you mention like "unemployment insurance" you have to pay for yourself through a union. And depending on the industry you work in the amount you have to pay can be pretty high per month. Of course part of what you get when unemployed is payed by taxes through government, but its not that you get anything for "free" when you first have to pay high taxes+pay high fees privately for insurance.
Amen! They take with both hands and give us back with a couple of fingers, just a little tip, and call us ungrateful. They only seem to care about children in Northern Europe (future profit). Bad health care, bad welfare, lack of affordable housing or help finding a job if you can't get hired. I don't know about Sweden but in The Netherlands I hear they make you work as "volunteer" as a condition to receive welfare while they keep treating you as if you were abusing the system if nobody hires you. If the system were great, it would be optional. We'd be given the choice of paying ultra low taxes just to have police and emergency services while paying for our own health insurance premiums and whatever our potential children might need out of our own pockets as well (so child free people would not pay for other people's kids). That would likely result in less child births and further population shrinkage, but you can deal with it by offering temporary work visas to immigrants from poor countries who would love the chance of coming to work here and send money to their families "back home". They'd come already able to do things we need (or available to do things natives don't want to do) and would ease pressure and lower costs. Sorry for the rant. 😬
You can actually choose what A-kass you want to be a member of. Just because metal wants you to be in their A-Kassa dont mean you cant join Unionens or another one with better prices and more benefits.
@@magnusb6311 Not true, but a-kassor are specified for your industry.
Taxes are high, but it goes to making sure everyone in society is taken care of, able to get education and if something happens, roof over your head, food and other stuff to live. Wouldn't have it any other way. Not a perfect system, we still have lots of problems, but it's better than anything else I've seen.
Absolutely! :)
I would just like to add that you do pay around 150 SEK for children at the emergency room. Also, even though tuition at university is paid for by taxes you do have to pay for textbooks and supplies, which is something you don’t have to pay for in elementary school and in high school you only have to pay for supplies.
Oh, really? I didn't pay anything when I was at the emergency with my 3-months old baby. And yes, you still have to pay for materials and accommodation. Not completely free :D
@@LivingSwedish And you didn’t get an invoice? They probably spared you since you had been there for quite a long time because of something that wasn’t that serious. I used to do that sometimes ☺️
I have never paid to go to emergency room with my son.
@@ronnylindell7955 I guess you’ve gotten lucky then 😊
@@E-jit in Region Kronoberg the fee is 0 kr
Are taxes in Sweden still high compared to other similar countries? They were insanely high in the 70s, but that is nearly 50 years ago now.
BTW, hoping to see a video on life in some Swedish ski resort soon. 😀
Not as high as Palme and Sträng had them, I think taxes peaked at 65% of GDP sometime in the 80s.
Currently, we have the fifth highest taxes in the world if I'm not mistaken. Just coming off a social democratic government that spent two terms mostly raising taxes.
All but some 3% the working population pay around 30% tax. On salaries over 613900 SEK ($60.000) you pay an additional 20% on the amount over 613.900-
@@Jonsson474 And of course, the way we are taxed is carefully designed to make us believe that we "only" pay around 30%. Which is simply not true. Not even just on salary (11% of "arbetsgivaragviften" is pure tax for example. Only it's payed by your employer. You never see that money.) . In total a person who makes average salary in Sweden pays around 54% in tax. That includes everything.
People making more money than the average pays more. Since our system is progressive.
@@Jonteponte71 That’s not your money, that’s your employers money and it works like that all over the world. Otherwise you should say that your salary is twice of what it it is today. It’s just a stupid argument that a is used among people who believe taxes is the devils work because they don’t understand the mechanism.
hello good day to you! hope you dont mind but there is nothing mentioned in this video worthwhile for which i should pay 52% of income (that i saw on a website which brought searching me here ). plus i actually wasn't expecting that will say sometime you have to wait 90 days? what wait for 3months then you will be treated? please guide me if im wrong but i don't think that 52% are justified!!! you lived in germany can you make a comparison video? like quality of life and this taxation factor comparison.
thanks for the video actually it was very informative.
Thanks for your feedback and question! I will make a comparison video at some point. In Germany it can be similar in terms of paying tax depending on how much you earn. I remember when I researched my partner's job - he had a job offer in Sweden and in Germany - he would have paid more taxes in Germany than in Sweden. But, of course, there are also other factors.
You are beautiful!!!! I´m in love with Sweden!!!
so in Stockholm 2022 the kost for medical care was
200Kr for primary- house doctor
400KR for specialist doctor
in 2023 300KR for primary- house doctor
and i think specialist doctor is 500 KR
and high cost protection activates at 1 300 kronor in 2023 så free healt care for an year once activated
Thanks for the update! :)
Yes, and then you have to wait 6 months to a year before you get help. I rather pay to get help within a week, cost about the same as I'm paying in taxes, at least then I know where the money go.
When does summer begin Sweden, and when does it end ?
I would say summer starts in June and ends in August. Hence, 3 months of summer in Sweden.
It would be more interesting to do a comparison between Sweden, 44% of GDP in taxes, and Canada, 32,2% (2020, acc to Wikipedia).
What do the Swedes get for those extra 12% in taxation that the Canadians do not get? Is it worth it?
At the top of my head, I can think of childcare cost (=kindergarten) and education (=university). Both quite expensive in Canada and nearly free in Sweden.
Actually it is not good for those who looses their jobs and doesnt get a new one since they get very small amounts of money and barely enough to get around, but I do love Sweden
Yeh, I don't know how much you get when you're unemployed. I know there is additionally a company called A-Kassan like an insurance company so you get more when you pay a monthly fee as far as I know.
@@LivingSwedish omg you replied, it’s an honor cause I love seeing your videos and you really are very welcome herw
You get bad health care and so on, I feel robbed each month when it's time to pay taxes. If the tax money had stayed only for us swedes, maybe it could work. Now we send billions over seas in aid (more than USA which is insane) that 99% of the time ends up in the wrong pockets. Nothing really works as it should or how you could expect it to in Sweden.
I've not heard about this. Would be good to provide some sources so I can read about it.
@@LivingSwedish Everyone around me is a source of that. Whatever you do, don't get sick in Sweden. Because here your just a number and nothing else.
@@LivingSwedishHe is confusing development aid given per capita with total amount given by country…
But unemployment benefits are a kind of insurance, you have to join a so called A-kassa and there is a recurring fee.
I heard of that.
On another note - don't be afraid to go to a hairdresser here in Sweden Uli 💯😃🤗
The well known secret is that Swedish taxes are mainly income redistribution, welfare catering to individual needs are a small fraction of the budget.
This has a long tradition here and are a sensitive topic for Swedes, as it implies that some people are less smart (a.k.a stupid)
Thanks for sharing!
same here too high taxes
How is not paying cash higher quality of life? If the banking system stops working you are screwed.
How do you get cash if the banks aren't working?
@@toedtoed - you make a withdrawal at the ATM when it's working.
Because it's easier and you basically never have to visit the bank or stand in line to get cash at the ATM?
The downside is if you have zero trust in your government and/or banks, that is not an option I guess. But then it seems you also have other problems as well...
@@Jonteponte71 - or you could use both cash, card and other payment methods.
@@kennethsteelhammer If the banking system is down then the ATMs will not work either. What i'm trying to say if the banking system stops working then we're scewed anyway.
You barely get anything for paying takes in sweden.
You could just aks Leif Östling.
Yeh, I can see that people can feel differently about the Swedish taxes. If you're not a person who benefits from the things I mentioned in the video then it could be quite frustrating.
What should I say, Ledig, Steuer klasse 1..48%... lol
We considered moving to Germany as well and discovered you can pay even more taxes than in Sweden 😲
@@LivingSwedish You are absolutely correct. Best Regards :)
Generally speaking I don´t think the high taxation in Sweden gives any real benefits if you compare it to other European countries how people live. It´s pretty much the same but different countries gives different benefits; Sweden has generous parental leave, in Germany and UK going to hospital is totally free you never pay any fees for doctor visit or staying in the hospital (like Sweden), France, Spain and Italy has a lower pension age. UK has no taxes and food and Germany has very low taxes on food, which makes the food for customers cheaper etc.
Question is how long the healthcare will be free in the UK. And the food isn't exactly cheap either.
I knew it. You mention all the good reasons we pay high taxes. But seems to forget all the bad reasons why. Like one of the biggest bulks. Wierd sport and cultural things. I dont mind them having it. But there is something big happening in culture that doesnt really exists. It just pretends too.
Paying high taxes is quite negative so we had to look at the bright sight ;)
Dear.. Thank you for your effusive video.. actually i have some questions regarding phd study in Sweden, may i get your WhatsApp or viber or anything, please?
I'm afraid I'm not familiar with PHD studies in Sweden.