If you want to start your own business there are two different things to keep apart. Many people mix them up.
You can take the course without getting the support. In some cases you can get the support without having taken the course. But most people benefit from both — and you apply for each separately.
We keep the Swedish names as they are. Those are the words you will meet on websites and in adverts, and the words you need to be able to say to your caseworker.
Arbetsförmedlingen decides. Both the course and the support belong to Arbetsförmedlingen (the Swedish Public Employment Service). They decide who gets to take the course and who gets the support, the conditions change over time, and the assessment is always individual. This page explains what the two things are and what they usually look like. The exact requirements that apply today are with Arbetsförmedlingen — the link is at the bottom of the page — and your handledare (caseworker) will help you read them.
There is a preparatory programme for people who have a business idea and want to learn what it takes to run it. It is procured by Arbetsförmedlingen and delivered by various providers around the country.
This is what it usually looks like:
This is what you learn:
How you get a place:
Talk to your caseworker first. Then contact Arbetsförmedlingen on 0771-416 416 — they decide whether the course suits your situation and which provider you are then referred to.
The setup, the length and which provider applies can differ between places and over time. Ask your caseworker what applies to you right now — do not guess from what someone else has been through.
It is called stöd till start av näringsverksamhet (support for starting a business) and it is decided by Arbetsförmedlingen. You receive money every month while you build up the business.
What is assessed
Arbetsförmedlingen looks at, among other things, your age, your situation on the labour market, whether you have a business idea that holds up, whether you have debts with Kronofogden (the Swedish Enforcement Authority), whether you already own or run a business, and which industry the business will operate in. How these things weigh against each other is decided case by case, and the requirements can change. Read them on Arbetsförmedlingen's own page and go through them with your caseworker before you spend time on a business plan.
This is how you apply:
1. Talk to your caseworker and to Arbetsförmedlingen about your situation 2. Submit a business plan and a budget — they are assessed 3. You get a decision once the plan has been approved
So it is not an application form you fill in within a quarter of an hour. The business plan is the application itself — and that is where the course makes the biggest difference.
Marija has sewn clothes all her life and wants to start charging for it. She does not know what to charge, or how to reach customers.
She takes the course first. There she works out what her time actually costs, and writes a business plan. With that plan she can then apply for the support.
Without the course she would not have had a plan to submit.
Josef has a good business idea, but he has had a debt with Kronofogden for a few years.
The debt is one of the things that is assessed, and it can stand in the way of the support. But he can still take the course, and he can start sorting out the debt in the meantime. It is worth raising with his caseworker early — not once the business plan has already been written.
Anna registered a company five years ago but has never used it.
That may hold her back, because owning a business is one of the things that is assessed. She needs to find out exactly what applies to her particular company before she plans any further. Ask Arbetsförmedlingen — do not guess.
The rules for the support change, and the assessment is always individual. Talk to your caseworker — they know what applies right now and can help you the whole way from idea to application.