Enjoying Parenthood in Sweden

Being a parent in Sweden comes with more support and benefits than you may be used to. Sweden has one of the highest number of parental leave days in the world, where the childs caretakers are entitled to 480 days of paid parental leave when a child is born or adopted. As a new mum experiencing parenthood in Sweden, I found the culture and benefits here to be interesting and vastly different from where I used to live in Singapore. Here are some other benefits which I find to be enjoyable as a new parent living here in Stockholm.

Parents with prams can board all buses for free

Yes, it’s true! Traveling everywhere with babies in a prams is a common sight in Stockholm, so I actually found this to be amazing as it allows the parents to board the buses quickly from the middle doors, and skip the hassle of paying the bus drivers.

Free health check-ups when pregnant in Sweden

Healthcare costs are high where I come from, so much so that people often say we just can’t afford to fall sick. It surprised me when I was pregnant in Stockholm and all medical check-ups and the childbirth itself was free-of-charge. Infant care is also free and they provide free Vitamin D drops until the age of two.

Child-friendly public areas

Stockholm has no shortage of public playgrounds, pram ramps and designated parking spots for prams. In most shopping malls, it’s quite easy for us to find a nursing room or diaper changing tables in the bathrooms.

Free Education in Sweden

In Singapore, education for a child is really costly even from infant care onwards so it’s a relief to learn that we have the choice to send my child to a preschool for a maximum amount of SEK 1,287 a month, which we will be able to offset using the monthly child allowance. And we won’t have to worry so much about setting aside a huge sum of money for my child’s future education as schools for children aged 6-19 is totally free of charge.

Four seasons

Another reason why we enjoy parenthood in Stockholm is due to the changing seasons every few months. Its not only beautiful to look at but also the baby generally sleeps better in the cold weather and we all get to rest more too!

Do you have any experiences about parenthood in Sweden, please share those in the comment section below.

Written by June Low

Hi, I am June and I am a newbie in Sweden! I arrived in Stockholm from Singapore together with my husband and our little French Bulldog named Mochi in March of 2017 and it has been our home sweet home ever since. We’ve just welcomed a little human in our lives, so we’ll be looking forward to more adventures and future travels! Follow me on Instagram @junilicious or our dog @mochifrenchie for more updates!