U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

1 

59–011 2007

110th Congress, 1st Session – – – – – – – – – – – – – House Document 110–21 

AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF 

AMERICA AND THE KINGDOM OF SWEDEN ON SOCIAL SECURITY 

COMMUNICATION 

FROM

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES 

TRANSMITTING

A SUPPLEMENTARY AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES 

OF AMERICA AND SWEDEN ON SOCIAL SECURITY SIGNED IN 

STOCKHOLM ON JUNE 24, 2004, PURSUANT TO 42 U.S.C. 433(d)(1) 

MARCH 20, 2007.—Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means and 

ordered to be printed 


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To the Congress of the United States 

Pursuant to section 233(e)(1) of the Social Security Act, as 

amended by the Social Security Amendments of 1977 (42 U.S.C. 

433(d)(1)), I transmit herewith the Supplementary Agreement on 

Social Security between the United States of America and the 

Kingdom of Sweden. The Supplementary Agreement was signed in 

Stockholm on June 22, 2004, and is intended to modify certain provisions of the original United States-Sweden Agreement, which was 

signed May 27, 1985, and that entered into force January 1, 1987. 

The United States-Sweden Agreement, as revised by the Supplementary Agreement, remains similar in objective to the social security agreements that are also in force with Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, 

Italy, Korea, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, 

Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Such bilateral agreements provide for limited coordination between the United States 

and foreign social security systems to eliminate dual social security 

coverage and taxation, and to help prevent the loss of benefits that 

can occur when workers divide their careers between two countries. 

The United States-Sweden Agreement, as revised by the Supplementary Agreement, contains all provisions mandated by section 

233 and other provisions that I deem appropriate to carry out the 

purposes of section 233, pursuant to section 233(c)(4). 

I also transmit for the information of the Congress a report prepared by the Social Security Administration explaining the key 

points of the Supplementary Agreement with a paragraph-by-paragraph explanation of the provisions of the Supplementary Agreement. Annexed to this report is the report required by section 

233(e)(1) of the Social Security Act on the effect of the Supplementary Agreement on income and expenditures of the U.S. Social 

Security program and the number of individuals affected by the 

Supplementary Agreement and a composite text of the United 

States-Sweden Agreement showing the changes that will be made 

as a result of the Supplementary Agreement. The Department of 

States and the Social Security Administration have recommended 

the Supplementary Agreement and related documents to me. 

I commend to the Congress the Supplementary Agreement to the 

United States-Sweden Social Security Agreement and related documents. 

GEORGE W. BUSH. 

THE WHITE HOUSE, March 20, 2007. 


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REPORT TO CONGRESS TO ACCOMPANY THE SUPPLEMENTARY AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND SWEDEN

ON SOCIAL SECURITY

INTRODUCTION

The proposed supplementary Social Security agreement between 

the United States and Sweden is intended to modify certain provisions of the original U.S.-Swedish Social Security agreement (TIAS 

11266) that entered into force on January 1, 1987. The supplementary agreement, like the original agreement, was negotiated 

under authority of section 233 of the Social Security Act. The supplementary agreement also amends the administrative arrangement in force since January 1, 1987, for implementation of the 

principal agreement. 

U.S.-SWEDISH SOCIAL SECURITY AGREEMENT

The Social Security agreement between the United States and 

Sweden is one of 20 bilateral agreements the United States has 

concluded with foreign countries to provide limited coordination of 

the U.S. old-age, survivors, and disability insurance (OASDI) program with the comparable programs of those countries. Like the 

other agreements, the U.S.-Swedish agreement has three main purposes. First, it eliminates dual Social Security coverage and taxation, the situation that occurs when a worker from the United 

States or Sweden works in the other country and is required to pay 

Social Security taxes to both countries on the same earnings. The 

agreement includes rules that assign a worker’s Social Security 

coverage and tax liability to just one country. 

The second purpose of the agreement is to help prevent gaps in 

Social Security benefit protection for workers who divide their careers between the two countries. Under the agreement, workers 

may qualify for partial U.S. or Swedish benefits based on ‘‘totalized’’ (i.e., combined) work credits from both countries. When a person qualifies for U.S. or Swedish benefits based on totalized credits, 

the benefit amount is proportional to the amount of coverage credit 

earned in the paying country. 

The third purpose of the agreement is to eliminate restrictions 

that either country might impose on benefit payments based on 

residence in the other country. 

SUPPLEMENTARY AGREEMENT

The proposed supplementary agreement would amend the original U.S.-Swedish agreement to update and clarify several of its 

provisions. The primary purpose of the supplementary agreement, 

however, is to take account of recent changes to Swedish law. The 

supplementary agreement would also conform the original agreement more closely to later Social Security agreements that the 


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United States and Sweden have each concluded with other countries. 

New Swedish Social Security Laws 

When the original agreement was concluded, Sweden had a twotier Social Security system that consisted of an earnings-related, 

defined-benefit program and a residence-based, flat-rate benefit 

program. Recent Swedish legislation restructured the system. People born after 1953 are now covered by a program consisting of 

three components. It includes an earnings-related, defined-contribution benefit program administered by the government, a program of individual investment accounts, and a guaranteed minimum pension payable if income-based pensions and certain other 

income fall below specified levels. People born before 1938 remain 

covered entirely under the old system, while those born between 

1938 and 1953 are covered partially under the old system and partially under the new system according to a sliding scale that varies 

with the person’s year of birth. 

Supplementary Agreement Provisions 

Under the original agreement, a person who has not worked long 

enough or recently enough to qualify for Swedish benefits can have 

his or her U.S. and Swedish coverage credits ‘‘totalized,’’ i.e., combined, in order to meet the applicable eligibility requirements and 

qualify for prorated Swedish benefits. Other provisions in the 

agreement allow a person to become eligible for prorated U.S. benefits based on totalized credits. The supplementary agreement revises the Swedish benefit provisions to allow people to qualify for 

benefits under the new Swedish system based on totalized credits. 

It also revises the U.S. benefit provisions by specifying that SSA 

will count periods under Sweden’s new system (but only periods 

under the earnings-related program). The supplementary agreement makes no other changes in the U.S. benefit provisions of the 

agreement. 

The new Swedish social security law allows people to qualify for 

most benefits with very little coverage credit. It is not expected, 

therefore, that many people will need to have their U.S. and Swedish coverage credits totalized to become eligible for most Swedish 

benefits. For example, a person can qualify for old-age and survivors benefits under the new earnings-related pension program 

with just one year of Swedish coverage, and a contributor to an individual investment account under the new system is immediately 

vested. On the other hand, the Swedish program still includes recent-coverage requirements for entitlement to disability benefits, 

and it is expected that the totalization provisions of the supplementary agreement will be especially important for purposes of 

meeting these requirements. In addition, the supplementary agreement provides that U.S. Social Security benefits will not be counted 

in applying pension offsets that normally reduce the amount of 

Swedish disability benefits. Thus, the supplementary agreement 

will provide U.S. workers enhanced disability benefit protection 

under the Swedish system at little, if any, additional cost to the 

U.S. Social Security system. 


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Under the supplementary agreement’s transitional provisions, 

people who have been partially or fully covered by the old Swedish 

pension program will still be able to qualify for benefits under the 

old system based on totalization. The transitional provisions will 

also allow people with coverage credits under Sweden’s old pension 

program to qualify for U.S. benefits based on totalization. 


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