Criticism of the Swedish Migration Agency because notifications of decisions on the repayment of daily allowance failed to fulfil the requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act concerning service

Summary of the decision: The Parliamentary Ombudsman has reviewed the formulation of repayment notifications sent by the Swedish Migration Agency to individuals who had been paid a daily allowance. The Parliamentary Ombudsman concludes that such notifications are non-binding decisions, and in his decision states the requirements that therefore follow from the service obligation in the Swedish Administrative Procedure Act (SFS 2017:900).

Among other things, the Parliamentary Ombudsman states that a public authority inducing an individual to make a repayment must explain its position so that the individual can understand why the authority considers them to have a payment obligation. It must also be clear that this is the authority’s opinion and that the matter has not yet been finally decided. The request must not be formulated so that it can be taken for a decision whereby the authority orders the individual to repay a certain amount.

The Parliamentary Ombudsman criticises the Swedish Migration Agency because the notifications failed to meet the service obligation placed on public authorities in their contacts with private persons.