Guide – for cabin personnel
This checklist applies to you if you live in Sweden but will pay your income tax in Sweden even though you are employed and working in Denmark. These rules typically apply to cabin personnel for airline companies, but also, for example, if you work with the operation of the Öresund bridge.
Order a residence certificate from the Swedish Tax Agency
You need a residence certificate (hemvistintyg) to show that you are tax resident in Sweden, so that your salary can be exempt from Danish tax.
You can apply in the Swedish Tax Agency’s e‑service or by using form SKV 2734. If you order the certificate digitally, you normally receive it within 24 hours in your digital mailbox.
Read more and apply for Hemvistintyg at skatteverket.se
Apply for a CPR number with the Danish Tax Agency
Everyone working in Denmark must have a Danish personal identification number, a so‑called CPR number. You need this to open a Danish bank account and to receive your salary.
Employed by a Danish airline
If you work for a Danish airline, you must obtain your CPR number from the Danish Tax Agency (Skattestyrelsen). You apply for tax registration even though you pay your income tax in Sweden.
On the Danish Tax Agency’s website you will find form 04.063 for tax registration and CPR number.
To apply you will need: a copy of your signed employment contract and a copy of a valid passport (or national ID card, front and back). If you are married, you must also attach a family certificate from the Swedish Tax Agency. If you are not an EU/EEA or Nordic citizen, you must attach a copy of your Danish work permit. Please note that a driving license is not accepted as an ID document.
The application is completed in the following steps:
- Apply for tax card: enter the date of your first working day.
- Employer: enter your employer’s CVR number (Danish company/VAT number, 8 digits without spaces). The name and address are filled in automatically. If possible, provide a contact person at your employer.
- Employment: enter your type of employment and your average monthly salary and upload your employment contract.
- CPR number: enter your name and, if applicable, your Swedish personal identity number (TIN). You can also provide your phone number and email address.
- Citizenship: state your citizenship. If you need a work permit, attach it here.
- Address in home country: enter your address in Sweden and how often you travel home. Skattestyrelsen needs this to assess your tax liability.
- Deductions: you can indicate if you want deductions for travel, but since you will not pay tax in Denmark, you should answer No.
You will receive a letter with your CPR number, and your employer will also receive a copy.
Apply for tax card and CPR number at skat.dk
Employed by a foreign airline
If you work for a foreign airline, your employer must apply for a CPR number on your behalf. The employer applies for your CPR number via ATP, the Danish statutory pension administrator. The employer must do this because they are required to pay Danish pension contributions.
More information on how the employer applies for a CPR number from ATP is available on virk.dk, the Danish authorities’ portal for businesses.
Read more on Business in Denmark
Apply for exemption from Danish tax
Once you have received your CPR number, you must apply for exemption from Danish tax, since you work as flying personnel and live in Sweden. You do this using form 01.016.
This is where you should attach your residence certificate (hemvistintyg) from the Swedish Tax Agency. Make sure it is clear in the form, or under “Bemærkninger”, that you are requesting exemption under the rules for flying personnel resident in Sweden.
Get MitID, the Danish e-identification
Get a MitID, the Danish electronic identification. With MitID you can log in to your bank and to public authorities’ online services.
Open a Danish bank account
When you start working in Denmark, you should open a bank account in a Danish bank to receive your salary. The account must be registered as a NemKonto.
Do this as soon as possible after receiving your CPR number, since it may take some time for payroll to register you in their systems.
Your Danish bank will probably ask you about your tax residence. Your tax residence is normally the country where you live. If you live in Sweden and your Danish bank asks for a TIN (Tax Identification Number), you should provide your Swedish personal identity number.
Apply for a Special health insurance card
When you start working in Denmark, you are entitled to use the Danish healthcare system. To see a doctor in Denmark, you need a Special health insurance card, (særligt sundhedskort).
The card entitles you to use Danish healthcare on the same terms as Danish residents, even if you are not registered as living in Denmark.
You can apply for the card at lifeindenmark.dk.
Contact Försäkringskassan (the Swedish Social Insurance Agency)
Inform Försäkringskassan when you start working in Denmark. The easiest way is via “Mina sidor” (My pages) on their website. Processing times can be long, so do this as soon as you have received the job offer.
Your social insurance coverage is determined by the country where you work, which affects which benefits you are entitled to. If you only work in Denmark, you should be socially insured there.
If you work in both Sweden and Denmark, Försäkringskassan will determine in which country you should be socially insured, based on how much you work in each country. You can only be covered by one country’s social insurance system at a time.
If you cannot log in to “Mina sidor”, you can instead use form 5459 “Information when moving to or working in another country”.
Log in to Mina sidor at Försäkringskassans website
Join (or switch to) a Danish unemployment insurance fund (a-kasse)
If you live in Sweden and work in Denmark and want unemployment insurance, you must normally be insured in the country where you work, that is, Denmark. This applies to both full‑time and part‑time work.
Register with a Danish a‑kasse from your first working day in Denmark. You transfer your membership record (anciennitet) from your Swedish a‑kassa to the Danish one; it is important that there is no gap between the memberships.
Pay tax in Sweden
As cabin personnel employed in Denmark, you pay income tax in Sweden by making your own payments to your tax account with the Swedish Tax Agency.
Submit a preliminary income tax return
To calculate how much tax you should pay each month, the Swedish Tax Agency needs a preliminary income tax return (Preliminär inkomstdeklaration 1, “PD”). You submit it via the e‑service “Preliminär inkomstdeklaration” at skatteverket.se.
Submit a preliminary income tax return at Skatteverket.se
How to fill in the form
- Go to the tab “Utland” and select “Inkomst där skatt ska betalas i Sverige, socialavgifter betalas i utlandet”.
- Enter your gross salary, benefits, daily allowances (both taxable and tax‑free) and any other reimbursements.
- Convert all amounts into SEK.
In the field “Obligatoriska utländska socialavgifter” you can deduct your ATP contribution, which you will find on your Danish payslip.
Under the tab “Anställning”, enter any salary and other income you have had in Sweden earlier in the year.
Here you can also claim deductions for:
- travel between home and work
- for increased living expenses due to business trips
These deductions are calculated under Swedish tax rules.
Make an estimate of your income
Because you do not know in advance about your exact annual income and deductions, you must make a reasonable estimate so that your preliminary tax is as close as possible to your final tax.
Do not forget to state under “Övriga upplysningar” that you work as flying personnel in Denmark.
How tax is payed
Once you have submitted your preliminary income tax return, the Swedish Tax Agency will decide how much tax you must pay each month. The amount is automatically debited from your tax account on the 12th of every month, after you have received your salary.
Read more about the tax account and how to pay on skatteverket.se
Update if your income or deductions change
If your income or deductions change during the year, you can submit a new preliminary income tax return at any time. This is particularly important if you stop working as flying personnel.
Review your pension arrangements
If you are based in Denmark, you are covered by the Danish social security system and earn pension rights there. There are significant differences between the Swedish and Danish pension systems, so it is important to understand how your pension is built up.
When you start working in Denmark, you earn state pension (folkepension) and, in many cases, an occupational pension. Check what pension arrangements apply at your workplace. Not all Danish employers offer an occupational pension, in which case you may need to arrange your own private pension savings.
When it’s time to file your tax return
The following year you must file a Swedish tax return. The deadline is 2 May, or the next weekday if 2 May falls on a weekend.
For information on the tax rules and how to file a tax return in Sweden, read our ”Guide to the Swedish income tax return” or find more information on the Swedish Tax Agency’s website.
Remember that you must also file a Danish tax return, even though you do not pay tax there. The Danish tax return is called “årsopgørelse” and must be completed no later than 1 July in the year after the income year. Log in to skat.dk and select Årsopgørelse.
In section 16 you must change your income to 0. If you do not do this, you may be charged a surcharge of 5.000 DKK.
Read more about declaring taxes on skatteverket.se
Read our Guide to the Swedish income tax return
Read our guide to the Danish tax return
