Bodelning is the Swedish process for dividing certain property after a relationship ends. The starting point is whether you were married or living together as sambor.
Sweden · Checked 17 September 2026
Most marital property is normally included. Some property is separate, for example because of a valid marital agreement or conditions in a gift or will. Pensions and personal belongings have special rules.
After the permitted debt deductions, the net value is normally divided equally, with possible exceptions. The date the divorce application reached the court is important for identifying assets and debts.
Sambor means partners who lived together as a couple without being married. The division normally concerns the shared home and household goods acquired for joint use.
Savings, cars and holiday homes are normally outside that division. A home one person already owned for their own use does not automatically become shared property when a partner moves in.
A sambo must request property division within one year after the relationship ends. The request must be made within that time; the division does not have to be completed by then.
Divorced spouses do not have the same fixed one-year deadline, but a long delay can create difficulties and sometimes affect a claim.
An agreed division is recorded in a document signed by both people. It does not automatically remove a borrower from a mortgage; the lender must deal with that separately.
If you cannot agree, the district court can appoint a bodelningsförrättare—a property-division administrator. A challenge to the administrator’s division has a four-week deadline from service.
This guide explains general rules and services. It does not assess your individual case.
Information checked on 17 September 2026.
Based on the original article by Linda Ljunggren Syding.
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