Total defence duty

There are three types of total defence duty:

• Military service within the Swedish Armed Forces (Conscription)
• Civilian service, for example in the emergency rescue services and the electricity supply sector
• General service within sectors that must continue to function even when there is a threat of war or during wartime

Conscription

As a conscript, you defend Sweden militarily. You complete basic training as part of your conscription with the Swedish Armed Forces. After basic training, you are allocated to a wartime post and must join your unit if the government decides to heightened the state of alert or mobilisation.

A conscript’s wartime posting is valid for 10 years after the most recent military exercise or after employment, and at the latest until the year in which you turn 47.

Enlistment

To determine who is required to undertake conscription or civilian service, almost everyone who turns 18, is a Swedish citizen and is registered in Sweden must answer the enlistment questionnaire from the Swedish Defence Conscription and Assessment Agency. Based on the answers provided in the questionnaire, the Swedish Defence Conscription and Assessment Agency assesses who is required to enlist.

Enlistment takes one to two days and consists of various tests, examinations, assessments and interviews. Based on the results, a decision is made on who will do basic training as part of civilian service or military service.

If you are enlisting and are certain that you are unable to use weapons against another person, you can apply for doing your total defence duty without weapons. You can still undertake basic training.

If you are not called for enlistment but are interested in undertaking basic training as part of military service or civilian service, you can submit your own application to the Swedish Defence Conscription and Assessment Agency.

The Swedish Defence Conscription and Assessment Agency: About

Civilian service

Civilian service is the civilian counterpart to military conscription and involves ensuring that key parts of society continue to function during a heightened state of alert or during wartime. Those who are liable for civilian service are assigned to wartime posts by the Swedish Defence Conscription and Assessment Agency. To be placed in a wartime post under civilian service, you must have the relevant skills. You can get this either through basic civilian service training or other education within your profession.

As of now, people with basic knowledge of emergency rescue services and electricity supply can enrol and be assigned to a wartime posts with civilian service. However, civilian service is currently being developed in several other areas, including healthcare. It is the Government that decides in which sectors civilian service is to be carried out.

General compulsory national service

In the event of a heightened state of alert, the Government may declare general compulsory national service if this is necessary to ensure that essential services continue to function. This may apply to a specific part of the country or a specific service. For general compulsory national service to be applied at an individual level, a decision specifically concerning that individual is also required.

You who are subject to general compulsory national service, fulfil your duty by:

• continuing in your employment or completing a mission,
• serving under an agreement on voluntary service within the total defence, or
• carrying out work assigned to you by the authority designated by the Government.

Anyone subject to general compulsory national service may not resign.