Cold Calling Laws in Sweden

Which laws cover cold calling in Sweden?

• The Marketing Act (2008:486). Section 21 lets you phone a person unless they've clearly objected, and section 19 requires prior consent for marketing to individuals by email, text, fax or automated calls.
• The Distance Contracts Act (2005:59), chapter 2, section 3 a, which makes phone sales to consumers valid only once the consumer accepts in writing.
• GDPR, which covers the names and numbers on your call list.
• The rules of NIX-Telefon, Sweden's do-not-call register, and the Kontakta and SWEDMA ethical rules for phone sales to consumers. These are industry rules, not laws.

Is B2B cold calling legal in Sweden?

Yes. Section 21 of the Marketing Act protects people who have clearly objected to calls, and NIX-Telefon is a register of private numbers. Calling a company about its business doesn't need consent.

Two cases need care. If a company-owned number that someone also uses privately is on NIX, the NIX rules still allow calls about the company's business, but only during the company's normal working hours, usually office hours. And if a sole trader's number is on NIX, you can call about products for their business only if they're active: registered for VAT, as an employer or for F-tax.

NIX-Telefon: Sweden's do not call register

Private individuals register their numbers on NIX-Telefon to opt out of sales, marketing and fundraising calls. Sweden's Market Court has described it as a simple way for consumers to object to marketing calls, and the Swedish Consumer Agency tells companies to check numbers against it.

Under the NIX rules, check a number before you call a private person. After a check, you can call that person within two months. You can still call someone on NIX who gave you explicit consent, for up to 3 months after they gave it, or an existing customer, for up to one year after their contract ends.

Selling to consumers by phone

If you call a consumer and make an offer, you must confirm it afterwards in a form they can keep, such as an email or a letter. The contract only exists once the consumer accepts that offer in writing after the call. If they don't, the contract is invalid and they owe nothing.

The Swedish Consumer Agency also says the salesperson must give the company's name, the purpose of the call, and their own name and relationship to the company, and must tell the consumer about the 14-day right of withdrawal.

Are there legal calling hours in Sweden?

No law sets calling hours. The ethical rules from Kontakta and SWEDMA, the industry bodies, allow calls to consumers from 8am to 9pm on weekdays and 10am to 6pm at weekends, and none on Christmas Eve, Easter Eve or Midsummer Eve. They also allow at most two call attempts a day to the same number in a campaign, at least four hours apart.

For business numbers, call during office hours. The NIX rules require it for company numbers that are on the register.

Fines for breaking Sweden's marketing rules

A company that breaks any provision of the Marketing Act, on purpose or through negligence, can be ordered to pay a market disruption fee (marknadsstörningsavgift). The fee is at least SEK 10,000 and at most 4% of the company's turnover in the previous financial year (sections 29 and 31).

Could Sweden ban telephone sales?

On 27 August 2025, the Swedish Consumer Agency proposed to the government that all telephone sales be banned or, as a second option, that NIX be replaced by an opt-in system, so only consumers who had said yes in advance could be called. It's a proposal, not law, and the report is about protecting consumers. We'll update this page if the rules change.

Emails and texts after the call

Section 19 of the Marketing Act requires a person's consent before you market to them by email or text, with a narrow exception for your existing customers. Ask on the call whether you can send details, and give a valid address for opt-out requests in every marketing email (section 20).

Before you call Swedish businesses: a checklist

• Call company numbers about the company's business, during office hours.
• Check any private or mixed-use number against NIX-Telefon, and call within two months of the check.
• For sole traders on NIX, call only if they're registered for VAT, as an employer or for F-tax, and only about their business.
• Say who you are, who you're calling for and why at the start of the call.
• Never call again anyone who has asked you not to, and ask before you follow up by email.

Can you call a lead in Sweden who asked you to?

Allowed for 3 months after explicit consent · 3 months from consent, 1 year after a customer relationship ends

• Under the NIX rules, you can call someone on NIX for up to 3 months after they gave you explicit consent, or until they withdraw it.
• Existing customers can be called during the relationship and for up to one year after their contract ends.

Source: NIX-Telefon: Rules for the register (Swedish) · Do not call exemptions by country