Children and their families 2008:

More children with foreign background

Close to 330 000 children in Sweden were either born abroad or born in Sweden with two parents from abroad. This corresponds to 17 percent of all children under age 18. Ten years ago the number was 260 000 or 13 percent.

Immigration to Sweden has been considerable in recent years. During the first years of the 2000s, about15 000 children immigrated to Sweden per year. Since 2006 the number has been over 20 000 per year, and last year 24 000 children under the age of 18 immigrated to Sweden. More than 100 000 people immigrated to Sweden during the year, and about one in four immigrants was thus under age 18.

Iraq the most common country of origin

The high levels of immigration have led to an increase in the number of foreign-born children, from slightly more than 100 000 in 2005 to nearly 120 000 in 2008. Iraq is the most common country among children who were born in another country than Sweden. One in five children, or 22 000 come from Iraq. Poland, Somalia and Thailand are also common countries of birth, with between 5 000 and 6 000 children born in each country.

Roughly 200 000 children were born in Sweden with two parents who were born abroad. This group has steadily increased in number, and was about 150 000 in 1999. Children with two foreign-born parents previously often had parents from Finland, but the number of children with Finnish background has dropped. Today it is most common that the children's parents come from Iraq or countries of the former Yugoslavia.

Children with one parent born abroad often have a connection with Finland

Some 200 000 children who were born in Sweden have one Swedish-born parent and one foreign-born parent. Among these children, it is still the most common that one of the parents come from Finland or another Nordic country.

Children with foreign backgrounds experience separations more often

Family conditions differ somewhat for children with different backgrounds. Parents of children with foreign background separate more frequently, and children live with single parents more often than children with Swedish background. It is also more common that foreign-born children and children born in Sweden with two foreign-born parents have many siblings. Nine percent of these children live together with four or more siblings, while two percent of the children with Swedish background do so.