Laws in Sweden Part 1

When moving to a new place, it is probably best to know their laws so I dont get thrown in the slammer. Also please note that I am not an expert so if anyone finds some mistakes let me know and I will correct them! Thank you in advance! Ill be covering various laws over a few blog posts just so that I can learn and share as much as possible without bogging down a single post too much!

So lets talk about the important things first...

Alcohol

Before we delve into the specifics of alcohol and alcohol related laws in Sweden, Id like to mention something I didnt even knew existed; the "Vodka Belt". The Vodka belt is defined as the regions thought of as the home of vodka as well as those peoples love of the drink! But as always, the love of vodka as well as alcoholic beverages in general has lead to its regulation...just like everywhere else. poo

Vodka Belt

The Swedes have certain categories or classes of alcohol based on their ABV content (alcohol by volume) which determines who can buy it and where they can buy it. The categories are listed here:

	alcohol content (ABV)	available in restaurants	available in supermarkets	taxed
Class I (Lättöl)	0.0% - 2.25%	yes	yes	no
Class II (Lätt Folköl)	2.8%	yes	yes	no
Class II (Folköl)	3.5%	yes	yes	yes
Class III (Mellanöl)	3.6% - 4.5%	yes	no	yes
Class III (Starköl)	4.6% +	yes	no	yes

Its not so unlike the US. Depending on the state you live in there are different laws based on alcohol content that determines where they can be sold although their system seems to be a little more intricate than ours. 

Also note there are two Class II's. Its basically a light and normal version...like light (Lätt) and normal beer.

Systembolaget

Systembolaget translates into English as "System Company". It is a government owned chain of liquor stores that is the only place you can purchase alcohol with more than 3.5% ABV (However you can purchase 3.5%+ ABV from an restaurant with an appropriate license to do so). They did this in order to enforce the purchasing age of 3.5%+ ABV alcohol which is 20. Although the legal age to buy/drink lower % ABV alcohol at places like bars and restaurants is 18. So basically, you just need to be older for the harder alcohol stuffs!

Systembolaget

There are some odd rules that go along with these Systembolget places...one of which is that things cant be sold in bulk...everything is sold as singles...even beer cans! And they arent allowed to have certain discounts like "Buy one get one half off" or other such things. Very strange. And they also have this rule where you cant treat certain types of beverages as favorites by say, putting them in the fridge. If they put one brand of beer in the fridge theyd have to put ALL of them in the fridge and thats just too difficult so things are not generally sold chilled.

Few Systembolgats are set up this way after 1990

Up until 1990, these Systembolgats were set up like a pharmacy. You would to a person behind the desk and tell them what you wanted and they would go into their stock and get the alochol for you. You would then pay at the counter. However that changed and its now more like a normal liquor store where you browse the aisle and shelves for what you want. 

Drink at 18 but buy at 20?

So this might seem a little backwards, but like I mentioned above, you can only buy alcohol with more than 3.5% ABV if you are 20 or older from Systembolget, however one only has to be 18 to drink and purchase lower ABV drinks. Drinking is allowed at any age in moderation in the home so thats nice. Thankfully none of this applies to me really since I over 20 anyways... :)

So to sum up, legal drinking age is 18. But if you want to purchase hard  liquor that is above 3.5% ABV, then you need to be 20. I havent found anything that says you need to be 20 to drink hard liquor so it seems like an 18 year old can drink it if someone else buys it. 

DUI

The limit in Sweden is considerably lower than in the US. You will get a DUI at 0.02% in Sweden but 0.08% in the US...which just means to me that you need to be extra careful and not overdo it if you know you will be driving. That is kind of nice! People may be less apt to push their limits and be more conscious of their drinking if they intend to drive soon after...at least theoretically right?




I think I covered the main points for alcohol...I hope this post wasnt as dry as a Merlot...unless you like that kind of stuff. See what I did there?