Background & Purpose

To help people reintegrate into society, it is often better to serve a sentence in the country where one has family or social roots. The current rules needed updating to make this process faster and more efficient between Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Norway.

The Decision

The parliament approved a new law that simplifies the transfer of prison sentences and community service between Nordic countries, ensuring faster processing and clearer rules for the individuals involved.

Does this affect you?

  • People serving sentences: Individuals with strong ties to another Nordic country can now more easily serve their sentence there, which helps with their future return to society.
  • Prison and Probation Service staff: Staff must follow new, faster procedures for handling transfers and ensure that individuals are properly informed about the consequences of their consent.

In Practice

  • Community service sentences are now included in the Nordic cooperation agreement.
  • Authorities must now process requests to transfer prison sentences more quickly.
  • If a person agrees to serve their sentence in another Nordic country, the decision can take effect immediately.
  • Individuals choosing to transfer must be informed that their consent means they cannot appeal the decision made by the Prison and Probation Service.