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2026 | LikeSweden.com

Tag: YouTube

Swedish bank account horror stories – LikeSweden

Swedish bank account horror stories

1 Min Read

Road Tour 2024 - Episode 2 - Vienna – LikeSweden

Road Tour 2024 – Episode 2 – Vienna

0 Min Read

Road Tour 2024 - Episode 1 - Berlin – LikeSweden

Road Tour 2024 – Episode 1 – Berlin

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Swedish banana curry pizza test – LikeSweden

Swedish banana curry pizza test

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🇸🇪 As an immigrant living in Sweden, I’ve had a lot of time to observe how things work here.

And one thing I keep thinking about is this:
Sweden has so many genuinely good businesses, smart people, beautiful brands, strong ideas and serious quality.

But sometimes the marketing feels weirdly disconnected from all that 🫣

Especially on Instagram.

Can`t count how many times I land on a profile and think:
this business might be great… but why are they making it so hard to understand what they do, who it’s for, and what I’m supposed to do next?

And that matters here, because people in Sweden often won’t make a big scene. If something feels unclear, they just leave.

And I’m saying this with love, because I actually want to see more businesses in Sweden thrive.

So I’m hosting a FREE live webinar:
👉 The most common Instagram mistakes that make you lose clients
🗓 Saturday, March 28, 2026
⏰ 18:30 CET (Stockholm time)

What we’ll cover:
✅ the common mistakes that push clients away on Instagram
✅ why good content still doesn’t always convert
✅ what makes a business profile feel passive, vague, or hard to trust
✅ what to improve first if you want your Instagram to support your business better

Want to join?
Comment JOIN and I’ll DM you 👇

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2️⃣ Share with a business owner in Sweden
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more Sweden, business, and real-life observations
—
Sweden · business in Sweden · Instagram mistakes · Swedish business culture · entrepreneurs in Sweden · marketing in Sweden · Instagram webinar · lead generation · expat perspective · small business Sweden

75 12

😵 Trying to open a bank account in Sweden can feel weirdly dramatic for something so basic

Part of it are Know Your Customer and Anti-Money Laundering policies.

That basically means banks have to:
🪪 verify who you are
📄 understand why you want the account
👀 assess risk
🚩 watch for suspicious activity

The checks themselves are not some uniquely Swedish invention. Banks across the EU have customer due diligence and anti-money-laundering obligations too. But where Sweden often feels different is the experience.

A lot of people here describe the process as slow, inconsistent, and sometimes just bizarrely hard, including people who already live in Sweden or are Swedish citizens. And no, people are not just exaggerating. Sweden’s financial regulator has acknowledged complaints about people being denied bank accounts and has pushed for better tracking of those refusals.

On paper, AML and identity checks are normal. Other EU countries do them too. But in practice, Sweden can still make opening an account feel like you’re applying for access to a secret society instead of basic financial services. Also, consumers residing in the EEA are generally entitled to a payment account with basic functionality, which makes the whole experience feel even more absurd when people keep hitting walls.

💬 Comment BANKACC and I’ll send you the full post about opening a bank account in Sweden.

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Send it to someone dealing with Swedish bureaucracy
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more things Swedish
—
Sweden · opening a bank account in Sweden · Swedish bank account · BankID · Swedish bureaucracy · life in Sweden · expat in Sweden · moving to Sweden · banking in Sweden

124 28

😵 Trying to open a bank account in Sweden can feel weirdly dramatic for something so basic

Part of it are Know Your Customer and Anti-Money Laundering policies.

That basically means banks have to:
🪪 verify who you are
📄 understand why you want the account
👀 assess risk
🚩 watch for suspicious activity

The checks themselves are not some uniquely Swedish invention. Banks across the EU have customer due diligence and anti-money-laundering obligations too. But where Sweden often feels different is the experience.

A lot of people here describe the process as slow, inconsistent, and sometimes just bizarrely hard, including people who already live in Sweden or are Swedish citizens. And no, people are not just exaggerating. Sweden’s financial regulator has acknowledged complaints about people being denied bank accounts and has pushed for better tracking of those refusals.

On paper, AML and identity checks are normal. Other EU countries do them too. But in practice, Sweden can still make opening an account feel like you’re applying for access to a secret society instead of basic financial services. Also, consumers residing in the EEA are generally entitled to a payment account with basic functionality, which makes the whole experience feel even more absurd when people keep hitting walls.

💬 Comment BANKACC and I’ll send you the full post about opening a bank account in Sweden.

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Send it to someone dealing with Swedish bureaucracy
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more things Swedish
—
Sweden · opening a bank account in Sweden · Swedish bank account · BankID · Swedish bureaucracy · life in Sweden · expat in Sweden · moving to Sweden · banking in Sweden

😵‍💫🇸🇪 Opening a bank account in Sweden sounds simple… until you actually try to do it

In theory, it’s “just a bank account”. But in reality?

You move to one of the most digital countries in the world… and suddenly one of the most basic things becomes confusing, slow, and weirdly stressful.

You need the system to start working for you. But first, you need to get into the system.

And that’s where many immigrants hit the wall.
👉 paperwork
👉 waiting
👉 ID requirements
👉 personnummer issues
👉 banks asking for more than you expected

So if this process made you feel frustrated, stuck, or like you were doing something wrong… no. You’re not crazy. And you’re definitely not the only one.

That’s exactly why I made this carousel and wrote the full blog post too 🤍

💬 Comment BANKACC and I’ll send you the link to the full post.

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Share with someone moving to Sweden
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more real-life Sweden content
—
Sweden · moving to Sweden · bank account in Sweden · immigrants in Sweden · life in Sweden · Swedish bureaucracy · Swedish banking · personnummer · BankID · Swish

145 23

😵‍💫🇸🇪 Opening a bank account in Sweden sounds simple… until you actually try to do it

In theory, it’s “just a bank account”. But in reality?

You move to one of the most digital countries in the world… and suddenly one of the most basic things becomes confusing, slow, and weirdly stressful.

You need the system to start working for you. But first, you need to get into the system.

And that’s where many immigrants hit the wall.
👉 paperwork
👉 waiting
👉 ID requirements
👉 personnummer issues
👉 banks asking for more than you expected

So if this process made you feel frustrated, stuck, or like you were doing something wrong… no. You’re not crazy. And you’re definitely not the only one.

That’s exactly why I made this carousel and wrote the full blog post too 🤍

💬 Comment BANKACC and I’ll send you the link to the full post.

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Share with someone moving to Sweden
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more real-life Sweden content
—
Sweden · moving to Sweden · bank account in Sweden · immigrants in Sweden · life in Sweden · Swedish bureaucracy · Swedish banking · personnummer · BankID · Swish

🚬 Sweden and the EU are fighting over snus again

A new EU rule bans certain smoke flavourings in food because of possible health risks. And since snus is classified as food in Sweden, that rule now affects Swedish snus too.

Snusbolaget is furious and says this is the EU’s fault.

But the EU says no, the real reason is that Sweden itself classifies snus as food.

So who is actually to blame? 👀

What is clear is this:
some smoke-flavoured snus products will now be phased out, and the flavouring will be fully banned by July 1, 2029.

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Share with someone in Sweden
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more things Swedish
—
Sweden news · News from Sweden · European Union · snus · EU laws · life in Sweden

234 12

🚬 Sweden and the EU are fighting over snus again

A new EU rule bans certain smoke flavourings in food because of possible health risks. And since snus is classified as food in Sweden, that rule now affects Swedish snus too.

Snusbolaget is furious and says this is the EU’s fault.

But the EU says no, the real reason is that Sweden itself classifies snus as food.

So who is actually to blame? 👀

What is clear is this:
some smoke-flavoured snus products will now be phased out, and the flavouring will be fully banned by July 1, 2029.

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Share with someone in Sweden
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more things Swedish
—
Sweden news · News from Sweden · European Union · snus · EU laws · life in Sweden

🎭 This week in Sweden’s theatre and musical world:

✅ Göteborg announced a new Grease revival at Rondo from @2entertain and @vicky_nojesproduktion, with Anton Ewald @the_anton_official and Lovisa Bengtsson @bengtssonlovisa leading the cast.

✅ In Jönköping, Farbror Erik brought the story of Erikshjälpen founder Erik Nilsson to the stage in a new original music theatre production.

✅ Malmö added a major local premiere with Det var en gång ett hus, a new music theatre piece about everyday life, loneliness and the strange poetry of shared spaces.

✅ Soweto Gospel Choir announced their return to Sweden in 2026 with JOY, a new concert production celebrating music, community and hope.

✅ And Gothenburg also got another big title back, with Så som i himmelen officially returning this autumn at Lorensbergsteatern.

Swedish stages are serving new premieres, big comebacks and serious main character energy 🎉

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Send it to your theatre bestie
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more Nordic Curtain Call
—
Sweden · theatre news · musicals · Göteborg · Malmö · Jönköping · Nordic culture · LikeSweden

13 0

🎭 This week in Sweden’s theatre and musical world:

✅ Göteborg announced a new Grease revival at Rondo from @2entertain and @vicky_nojesproduktion, with Anton Ewald @the_anton_official and Lovisa Bengtsson @bengtssonlovisa leading the cast.

✅ In Jönköping, Farbror Erik brought the story of Erikshjälpen founder Erik Nilsson to the stage in a new original music theatre production.

✅ Malmö added a major local premiere with Det var en gång ett hus, a new music theatre piece about everyday life, loneliness and the strange poetry of shared spaces.

✅ Soweto Gospel Choir announced their return to Sweden in 2026 with JOY, a new concert production celebrating music, community and hope.

✅ And Gothenburg also got another big title back, with Så som i himmelen officially returning this autumn at Lorensbergsteatern.

Swedish stages are serving new premieres, big comebacks and serious main character energy 🎉

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Send it to your theatre bestie
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more Nordic Curtain Call
—
Sweden · theatre news · musicals · Göteborg · Malmö · Jönköping · Nordic culture · LikeSweden

😳 People love saying Sweden is the country of introverts.

And to be fair, the stereotype didn’t come from nowhere.

There really is a big culture here around:
✨ personal space
🗓️ planning ahead
🏡 recharging at home
☕ socialising with intention

So the joke lands for a reason.

But honestly? My own experience has been more balanced than that.

Before moving here, people made it sound like Sweden was full of humans who fear spontaneity and need to schedule coffee 14 business days in advance 💀

And sure, planning is definitely a thing.

But I’ve also found a really nice balance here between planned social life and spontaneous moments. Not cold or antisocial. Just… often a bit more respectful of people’s time, energy, and space.

So no, Sweden is not just a nation of socially exhausted people trying to escape after 30 minutes 😭

But the meme?
Still a little bit accurate 😎

What’s your experience, does Sweden feel more introverted or more social than people say? 👀

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—
Sweden · life in Sweden · Swedish culture · introverts · social life in Sweden · expat life · everyday Sweden · Gothenburg

332 7

😳 People love saying Sweden is the country of introverts.

And to be fair, the stereotype didn’t come from nowhere.

There really is a big culture here around:
✨ personal space
🗓️ planning ahead
🏡 recharging at home
☕ socialising with intention

So the joke lands for a reason.

But honestly? My own experience has been more balanced than that.

Before moving here, people made it sound like Sweden was full of humans who fear spontaneity and need to schedule coffee 14 business days in advance 💀

And sure, planning is definitely a thing.

But I’ve also found a really nice balance here between planned social life and spontaneous moments. Not cold or antisocial. Just… often a bit more respectful of people’s time, energy, and space.

So no, Sweden is not just a nation of socially exhausted people trying to escape after 30 minutes 😭

But the meme?
Still a little bit accurate 😎

What’s your experience, does Sweden feel more introverted or more social than people say? 👀

1️⃣ Save this for later
2️⃣ Share with someone living in Sweden
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more things Swedish
—
Sweden · life in Sweden · Swedish culture · introverts · social life in Sweden · expat life · everyday Sweden · Gothenburg

🇸🇪 Find someone who speaks to you the way Swedes sing about love

Seriously, if he doesn’t love me like a raging hurricane, I don’t want it 😆

Many think Swedish is cold and harsh, but then you translate the lyrics and realize it’s actually pure fire 🌪️🔥 epic melodies with lyrics that make your heart melt instantly.

In this Reel, I used a poetic, singable translation to capture the vibe, but here is the literal meaning of these lyrics:
👉 Just as violent as a raging hurricane
👉 I want to be allowed to love you with every breath
👉 Our time is now, it will never come back
👉 So let me love you until my lungs give out

The track is called „För dig” by Klaudy @klaudy.official and was one of Mello entries in 2024. Klaudy comes from Göteborg. He’s still a hidden gem on Spotify, but with lyrics like these, I have a feeling he won’t stay „hidden” for long 🇸🇪✨

Is it just me, or did it just get very emotional in here?👇

Which song should I translate next?

1️⃣ Save this for your romantic playlist
2️⃣ Send this to your person
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more Swedish lyrics that hit different
—
Sweden · Klaudy · För dig · Swedish music · Swedish culture · Life in Sweden · Learn Swedish · Stockholm · Swedish vibes · SwedenTikTok · Swedish language · Nordic music · Discover Sweden

131 2

🇸🇪 Find someone who speaks to you the way Swedes sing about love

Seriously, if he doesn’t love me like a raging hurricane, I don’t want it 😆

Many think Swedish is cold and harsh, but then you translate the lyrics and realize it’s actually pure fire 🌪️🔥 epic melodies with lyrics that make your heart melt instantly.

In this Reel, I used a poetic, singable translation to capture the vibe, but here is the literal meaning of these lyrics:
👉 Just as violent as a raging hurricane
👉 I want to be allowed to love you with every breath
👉 Our time is now, it will never come back
👉 So let me love you until my lungs give out

The track is called „För dig” by Klaudy @klaudy.official and was one of Mello entries in 2024. Klaudy comes from Göteborg. He’s still a hidden gem on Spotify, but with lyrics like these, I have a feeling he won’t stay „hidden” for long 🇸🇪✨

Is it just me, or did it just get very emotional in here?👇

Which song should I translate next?

1️⃣ Save this for your romantic playlist
2️⃣ Send this to your person
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more Swedish lyrics that hit different
—
Sweden · Klaudy · För dig · Swedish music · Swedish culture · Life in Sweden · Learn Swedish · Stockholm · Swedish vibes · SwedenTikTok · Swedish language · Nordic music · Discover Sweden

📲 Swish did not get bought by PayPal. And no, they’re not becoming one company.

A lot of people understood it that way, but that’s not what this news means.
*tiny product placement at the end*

👉 What is happening?
PayPal is a payment gateway that brings together different payment methods under one system.
That means a webshop can integrate with PayPal once and then offer things like:
✅ cards
✅ Apple Pay
✅ Google Pay
✅ and now also Swish

👉 Why does this matter?
For online stores, this is mostly about convenience.
If a foreign webshop sells to Sweden, offering a familiar local payment method can make a big difference, especially if they also let people pay in SEK.

👉 Will prices go up because of this?
No. Transaction fees already exist in online shopping.
Stores already pay fees to payment providers like PayPal, Stripe, Klarna, and even business Swish.

👉 So should people boycott Swish if they boycott PayPal?
Not because of this news.
Swish is not becoming part of PayPal.
It’s just being added as one possible payment method in checkouts on some international websites

👉 Real-life example
I use a similar setup on likesweden.com, just with Stripe instead of PayPal.
Because I sell internationally in multiple currencies, it’s much easier for me to have one system that collects everything in one place. So someone can pay with Klarna in euro, Swish in SEK, BLIK in PLN, or Apple Pay in USD, and it all still lands in the same system on my side.

👉 And yes, while we’re here…
Spring is coming 🌷 Which means it’s actually a great time to rediscover Swedish food.

If you want to try it yourself, my ebook Midsommar The Swedish Way is on likesweden.com and it includes Swedish recipes far beyond just Midsommar.

1️⃣ Save this
2️⃣ Share with a friend who lives on foreign websites
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—
Swish · PayPal · Sweden news · online shopping · Swedish payments · e-commerce · Swish explained · life in Sweden · Swedish culture

33 3

📲 Swish did not get bought by PayPal. And no, they’re not becoming one company.

A lot of people understood it that way, but that’s not what this news means.
*tiny product placement at the end*

👉 What is happening?
PayPal is a payment gateway that brings together different payment methods under one system.
That means a webshop can integrate with PayPal once and then offer things like:
✅ cards
✅ Apple Pay
✅ Google Pay
✅ and now also Swish

👉 Why does this matter?
For online stores, this is mostly about convenience.
If a foreign webshop sells to Sweden, offering a familiar local payment method can make a big difference, especially if they also let people pay in SEK.

👉 Will prices go up because of this?
No. Transaction fees already exist in online shopping.
Stores already pay fees to payment providers like PayPal, Stripe, Klarna, and even business Swish.

👉 So should people boycott Swish if they boycott PayPal?
Not because of this news.
Swish is not becoming part of PayPal.
It’s just being added as one possible payment method in checkouts on some international websites

👉 Real-life example
I use a similar setup on likesweden.com, just with Stripe instead of PayPal.
Because I sell internationally in multiple currencies, it’s much easier for me to have one system that collects everything in one place. So someone can pay with Klarna in euro, Swish in SEK, BLIK in PLN, or Apple Pay in USD, and it all still lands in the same system on my side.

👉 And yes, while we’re here…
Spring is coming 🌷 Which means it’s actually a great time to rediscover Swedish food.

If you want to try it yourself, my ebook Midsommar The Swedish Way is on likesweden.com and it includes Swedish recipes far beyond just Midsommar.

1️⃣ Save this
2️⃣ Share with a friend who lives on foreign websites
3️⃣ Follow LikeSweden for more things Swedish
—
Swish · PayPal · Sweden news · online shopping · Swedish payments · e-commerce · Swish explained · life in Sweden · Swedish culture

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Traditional Swedish recipes not only for the summer!

E-book “Midsommar: The Swedish Way” is now available!

Celebrate like the Swedes with 31 recipes, snapsvisor tips, and food safety know-how! Not only for Midsommar but every Swedish celebration!

Grab your copy now - €11,99 (129 kr)

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