Government measures in key jurisdictions 5th edition - Flipbook - Page 137
Sweden
Based on the Pandemic Act, the Swedish Government has prescribed that anyone who
professionally uses, leases or lets out premises for an event or other similar private
gathering, should only be allowed to do so for a gathering of up to eight participants.
In the same regulation, the Swedish Government authorised the Public Health Agency of
Sweden (the “PHAS”) (Sw. Folkhälsomyndigheten) to issue provisions regarding infection
control. The PHAS has announced that the number of visitors at gyms, sport facilities,
bathhouses and retail venues shall be limited to a maximum of one visitor per ten square
meters.
Temporary reductions of fixed rental costs
On 16 April 2020, the Swedish Government decided on an ordinance concerning temporary
reduction of fixed rental costs in sectors which have been negatively affected by the Covid19 pandemic. The regulation is believed to mitigate the financial consequences of the virus
outbreak. Sectors covered by the ordinance include, inter alia, hotel, restaurant and retail
sectors as well as consumer services sections such as dentists, physiotherapist practices,
and hair and beauty salons. On 2 July 2020, the Swedish Government decided on an
amendment to the abovementioned ordinance, to include several additional sectors. The
additional sectors covered by the regulation include, inter alia, driving school activities,
maintenance and repair services of motor vehicles and rental and leasing services of cars
and light motor vehicles. In total, the Swedish Government has allocated SEK 5 billion for
rent reductions.
If a landlord and a tenant (which is active in a vulnerable sector) have agreed on a reduction
of the rent for the period between 1 April 2020 and 30 June 2020, the landlord will be able
to seek support to compensate part of the reduction. The compensation provided will be a
maximum of 50 per cent of the reduced fixed rent, i.e. the discount that the landlord and
tenant have agreed on for the period from 1 April 2020 to 30 June 2020. However, the
support can never exceed 25 per cent of the original fixed rent amount. It should further be
noted that the agreement on the temporary discount must have been entered into by 30
June 2020. With regard to the new sectors affected by the amendment made on 2 July 2020,
the agreement on the temporary discount must have been entered into by 31 July 2020.
Furthermore, a tenant (where a group is seen as one and the same tenant) cannot obtain an
advantage exceeding EUR 800,000.
Compensation could have been applied for by the landlord from 1 July 2020 until
31 August 2020.
In February 2021, the Swedish Parliament announced that the time period during which it is
possible to apply for compensation for rental reductions will be extended to the first quarter
of 2021. The formal decision will be made on 25 February 2021. Please note that there is no
proposal for compensation regarding the time period between 1 July 2020 and
31 December 2020.
Temporary removal of interest on deferred rental payments
The Swedish Fortifications Agency (Sw. Fortifikationsverket) and the National Property Board
Sweden (Sw. Statens Fastighetsverk) are temporary exempted from the requirement to
charge interest when granting deferment of rental payments. Under Swedish law, public
authorities are normally required to charge interest according to the interest rate set forth
for each financial year by the National Debt Office (Sw. Riksgälden), with an addition of two
percentage points when granting credit or deferment with a payment.
The temporary exemption applies to all tenants of the two aforementioned authorities who,
in agreement with their landlord, have been allowed to postpone their rental payments in
2020, regardless of whether the tenant is active within the public or private sector and
regardless of industry, region or the size of company. The largest proportion of the tenants
are state actors. However, the authorities also have private tenants such as technology and
real estate companies, industrial companies and restaurants.
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