UPDATE: This article was updated on May 17, 2017.
Last 2015, Sweden made headlines when it announced that it will be adapting a gender-neutral pronoun, hen. Hen can be used as an alternative to han (he) and hon (she) for situations when gender in unknown or irrelevant. This step highlights Sweden’s emphasis towards gender equality, which the country is famous for, aside from the high standard of living, free day care education, and the irresistible Swedish meatballs.
If you are in the process of choosing a country to migrate to, read on to see whether Sweden or Australia is the best match for you.
Sweden is a well-designed mixed-economy whose performance and competence heavily hinges on export. Its main industries are motor vehicles, industrial machines, precision equipment, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, chemical goods, forestry, iron, steel, home goods and appliances, timber, hydropower, and iron ore.
As opposed to most European countries, there is no legal minimum wage in Sweden. Trade Unions and employers settle the salaries via collective bargaining. Although working hours are set by collective agreements and the Swedish Parliament limits it to 40 hours a week, the country enjoys one of the lowest working times in the world at 1,609 hours annually or 33.5 hours weekly.
Like Sweden, Australia is also one of the largest mixed market economies in the world. Its economy is primarily driven by its service sector, comprising 68% of its GDP. Other sectors (and biggest employers) include mining, manufacturing, agriculture, finance, tourism, media, education, and logistics. It is the 12th largest in the world in terms of GDP.
But unlike Sweden, a legal minimum wage exists in the country as determined by the Minimum Wage Panel of the Fair Work Commission, and is deemed the highest in the world. Employers cannot violate a term of award or minimum wage order. The Fair Work Act 2009 mandates that an employer cannot force an employee to work more than 38 hours a week, unless for reasonable basis. Average working hours in Australia is around 1,664 hours annually or 34.7 hours weekly.
Sweden’s health care is mostly government funded, decentralized, and operates on three levels: national, regional and local. Costs for health and medical care accounts to generally 11% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). The state finances the bulk of health care costs, with the patient paying only a small percentage of the fees.
Australia’s health care is two-tiered, the private health system and the Medicare for the public system. It is funded partly by a 2% Medicare levy (with exceptions for low-income earners), with the rest being supplied by government. An additional levy of 1% is imposed on high-income earners without private health insurance.
Medicare, the Australian government’s universal public health insurance scheme, provides residents free treatment as a public patient in a public hospital and free or subsidized treatment for optometrist, dental care, and psychology services as well as treatment by doctors.
Check here how the Australian Public Health Care System Works.
Swedish cuisine is largely divided between North and South, as the two share many regional differences. One prominent example is that the north focuses on reindeer and semi-game meat while the south has fresh vegetables playing a larger role. Their food mostly concentrates on contrasting flavours, such as the famous Swedish meatballs being paired by tart cream sauce and pungent lingonberry jam.
The dining etiquette when discussing business is that you must wait for your Swedish business associates to initiate the conversation. When eating outside, waving or calling the waiter is considered disrespectful. Eye contacts will suffice. Dinners usually start with a toast and it is considered impolite to take a drink before the toast is done. If you are invited to a social gathering, it is expected of you to write or call the host the next day to express your gratitude.
Australian cuisine is a hybrid of native aboriginal ingenuity and British colonial influences, with a mix of Asian and Mediterranean traditions contributed by the waves of post-colonial migrations. They usually take advantage of meat available in the continent, such as lamb, kangaroo, and emu, as well as pork, beef, and chickens. Australia’s cuisine is exciting as it is unique. For some of its most amazing dishes, check it here.
In formal restaurants, you are expected to make reservations first and confirm. In informal dives, you might be expected to share a table. Be open to conversations when invited. Tipping is not required, but optional.
The country’s public housing, called Allmännyttigt bostadsföretag, is composed of flats controlled by the local council, and does not impose any income restrictions. 29.1% of the Swedish population live in rental houses.
In major cities, the housing market is quite competitive, and it takes time to find a place to rent. You may utilize any of the many websites in the country to find about the costs, locations, and availability of the houses, or you may sign the municipality waiting list (which can take years). Also, when it comes to first-hand contracts, it can be challenging to sign one without a Swedish personal identity number or a guaranteed income.
Costs of rental houses differ considerably depending on the region, city, neighbourhood, quality of a property, size (number of bedrooms), age, and the facilities provided.
Expectedly, rents are cheaper in rural than urban areas. It also decreases the further a property is from a large city or town, public transport or other facilities. Average rents are highest in Sydney, Melbourne and Darwin.
Letting agencies and estate agents will usually charge you a fee of two weeks’ rent for a one-year lease and one week’s rent for a six-month lease. These are the legal maximum fees. You are expected to settle one month’s rent in advance, depending on the type of property and the rental agreement, in addition to that, there is also a bond which is held against damages.
For a quick, easy -to-follow-guide on how to rent in Australia, check it out here.
The metro system (called Tunnelbana or T-Bana) operates solely in Stockholm, the country’s capital. It is comprised of 100 stations servicing the entire city. The railway system runs country wide, and is operated by Swedish Railways. Local buses and trains in each city operate typically under the same ticketing system. This means you can purchase a ticket which can be used on both buses and trains. Regional buses also run in the country, and is cheaper to ride than trains. Taxis, on the other hand, can be booked by phone, taken from a taxi rank, or flagged in the streets. Taxis here often run on fixed prices rather than on a meter, so ask for the cost first before taking the ride.
A one-way train ticket here costs US$3.08, while a monthly pass is at around US$92.52. Starting taxi tariff is US$5.34 with US$1.61 for the first one kilometre. A Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) will set you back US$23,723.95. Gasoline is at US$1.59 for every litre.
Australia also has very efficient public transport system. However, driving is the most used mode of transport here, and this number continues to rise. Trains only come second, then walking (the country has a very good culture of walking), and then buses. All Australian cities have reliable, affordable public bus networks and train lines, plus taxis operate nationwide. These train lines include commuter rail networks, trams, light rails, and rapid transits. Proper etiquette must be observed as you take these transportations. Click here for the do’s and don’ts of Australia’s commute.
A one-way ticket here sets you back by US$2.96 while going for a monthly pass will increase it to US$96.96. A kilometre ride of taxi is US$1.62 with US$2.98 as starting tariff. If you want your own car, a Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (or any equivalent new car) will cost you US$18,644.84 plus US$0.96 for every litre of gasoline.
The Gulf Stream influences Sweden’s climate. It is a warm ocean stream that flows off Norway’s west coast. In addition, the gulfs of Bothnia and the country’s many lakes give Sweden generally a relatively mild climate.
February is normally Sweden’s coldest month, with temperatures from – 22 to -3°C, while July temperatures average 13 to 17°C. In northern Sweden, winter temperatures often drop to -30°C, and sometimes it even goes lower. From December to April, snow covers the ground in southern Sweden. In northern Sweden, the first snowfall often lands in October. Most of the country is icebound during winter, but special icebreaking boats keep the major ports open.
Due to the massive land area, Australia goes through differing climates. This fact is characterized by the severely hot climate in the Kimberley region in the north-west of the continent to below zero in the Snowy Mountains in the south. Due to its size, it isn’t possible to have one seasonal calendar that covers the whole continent.
Depending upon where you are in the continent in a certain month, the seasons will vary. The weather may be defined by the temperate zone seasons or the tropical seasons. To find out more what is the climate and weather patterns in each of the states in the country, check our blog here.
Advantages to Swedish Citizenship include:
Advantages of Australian citizenship include:
For a more detailed information about these benefits, check our blog here.
As far as economy, quality of life, political stability, education opportunities, and employment benefits, Sweden and Australia are both up there on the top. It all boils down to a matter of preference.
Sweden boasts of the European facade with its natural wonders and infrastructures. Also, it enjoys free day care and after school programs, snowy winters, and closer proximity to Europe and United States. However, English is not the official language here, so you would be challenged with the language barrier. In addition, the winter season can be extremely cold and barrelled by constant rain.
Australia, on the other hand, has a lot of sunshine year-round, enjoys low unemployment rate, and has a good standard of living. However, you would have to deal with the erratic weather pattern, and traveling to Europe, US, and most parts of the world can be a bane, since the country is quite distant geographically, and the trip takes a while.