Response to interpellation 2025/26:379 on unused transition study support
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
1 L believes that the government has introduced the transition student support according to agreements and that CSN has received sufficient funds, including 160 million kronor, to facilitate the administration 1. L argues that processing times have been shortened and that the government has simplified the rules 1 2. L advocates for increased advertising for the system 3 2. L argues that the government acted when the money was insufficient 4, that the development is moving in the right direction 4 and that more are granted support because they are entitled to it 4. L believes that the support is one of the most interesting ideas in recent years 4. 5 S argues that money risks being frozen because the government is not providing sufficient funds 5 6. 6 S claims that CSN warns of worsened figures during the autumn of 2026 if more funds are not allocated 6 7.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
Gymnasie-, högskole- och forskningsministern Lotta Edholm (L)
Mr. Speaker! Niklas Sigvardsson has asked me what measures I intend to take to ensure that the transition study support is used to the extent intended by the Riksdag and that more people who are entitled to the support also apply for it. Niklas Sigvardsson has also asked me if I intend to take any measures to ensure that CSN has sufficient resources and administrative conditions to process applications for transition study support without funds risking being frozen.
The government has introduced the transition study support in exactly the way that was announced in the bill Flexibility, transition capability and security in the labor market (prop. 2021/22:176), which was adopted by the Riksdag with a large majority. The bill, in turn, is based on the agreement reached with the parties. That the government introduces the reform in the way that was announced in the bill means, among other things, that the support is introduced in stages in such a way that funds for the support are added and scaled up gradually. The support shall be fully expanded by 2026.
The transition study support (omställningsstudiestödet) is a new type of study support, and the administration of the support has been complex and time-consuming. The Government has therefore taken a number of measures to facilitate CSN's handling. The Government has, for example, worked intensively to implement rule simplifications of the support. CSN has also received extensive funds for development and administration to ensure that the support can function as intended. It is important to emphasize that CSN has received as much money as was initially calculated, and the Government has, in addition to this, allocated an additional 160 million kronor. CSN shall also, according to the agency's regulation letter, take necessary measures to ensure an efficient handling of the support. CSN also continues to implement a digital system support, which further facilitates the handling.
That the number of students who have studied with transition study support has been lower than estimated can largely be explained by previously long processing times and a high rejection rate. The processing times at CSN have now been shortened significantly, which means that more people are given the opportunity to study with transition study support. The regulatory simplifications that the government has implemented mean that more students meet the conditions for the support. The proportion of applicants who are granted transition study support has also increased successively since the support was introduced.
The government's extensive work, together with the great work that CSN is doing to streamline the processing, means that there are good conditions for a positive development ahead. The government also considers it important that the labor market parties and the transition organizations in the labor market continue their work in informing their members about the transition study support. The government continuously follows how the reform is implemented and has a close dialogue both with CSN and with the parties on how the reform develops.
Niklas Sigvardsson (S)
Mr. Speaker! I thank the Minister for the answer.
Once again, I stand here with a minister to talk about the transition study support. In the years 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026, regardless of who has been the Liberal minister responsible for the issues, the messages have been the same, namely that money risks being frozen. The number of applications that are granted is pleasingly rising, but still, too few are utilizing the system.
The Minister was in his answer that it is a matter of that with a somewhat chaotic implementation, where few applications were granted in time, the system was hit by a lingering reputation which is partly undeserved and which we must work on together.
The reason I have submitted this interpellation was an article in Arbetsvärlden on March 4, which addressed the fact that half of the transition study support is being frozen. In times when unemployment is still high – 100,000 more people are unemployed now than when the government took office – the work should be intensive so that more people can strengthen their position on the labor market and from the individual's perspective. It is the very purpose of the transition study support, that is to say that we should have a workforce that is more ready and equipped for the jobs of the future than today.
CSN says that the support is working well right now. They are satisfied that the pace is increasing, but at the same time, they include the caveat that they must see how it turns out in the autumn. The concern that half of the support will burn out is due to the fact that staff are currently being laid off at the agency CSN because the government has not provided as many funds as the agency has requested for 2026.
Mr. Speaker! There are many parts of the system that are concerning. Among other things, 3–4 billion that the Riksdag has decided not to use will not be used. They should be used for the transition study support. We also know that before the autumn application round, there is a risk that students will again end up in a situation where they do not have support granted before the start of studies.
Receiving support before the start of studies is something the Minister and I have previously debated, and the Minister thinks it is a reasonable measure and order that one receives notification before the start of studies. That is why I have submitted this interpellation.
How is the minister acting? What is the minister doing to increase the appropriations, so that we actually use the more than 7 billion SEK for the transition study support that the Riksdag has decided on? What is the minister doing to ensure that it does not turn out as the agency has warned against before the autumn, but that the figures are instead reversed so that not more applications are rejected? We risk a completely different situation this autumn.
Mr. Speaker! These are my questions. I think the Minister answered the questions in a somewhat evasive manner in his first speech. I give the Minister the chance to answer: How does the Minister act so that there will be a better situation for the transition study support (omställningsstudiestödet) this autumn?
Gymnasie-, högskole- och forskningsministern Lotta Edholm (L)
Mr. Speaker! I truly share Niklas Sigvardsson's enthusiasm regarding the system. I believe that many still do not know that the support exists, but as awareness increases, more people and employers will find it to be an interesting system.
Sweden has made a decision on a system where one can receive student aid to continue studying in the middle of life on reasonable terms, and it is an innovation that we should truly be proud of. But it has had teething problems, and it certainly still does. We see now that there is a faster pace in how individuals receive rejections or approvals of their applications, and that means the system is really heading in the right direction.
The money that was initially allocated was obviously not enough. Therefore, the government has allocated an additional 160 million so that the system will function and so that those who apply for support will receive a decision before the course they intend to take begins – but we are not quite there yet.
Now we see that the bureaucracy is being improved. What I think we should focus more on now is how we are to get individuals in the labor market to see that the system actually exists and how fantastically well it could work. I have thought a bit about that. What can we do to increase information about that this transition study support exists and about what is required to receive it? How can the employers be able to see to a greater extent that the employees might need a little extra education?
I believe that the two questions are connected. When there is a slightly faster pace in whether one is granted or receives a rejection, the interest in taking part in this important opportunity will gradually increase.
Niklas Sigvardsson (S)
Mr. Speaker! Thank you, Minister, for the answer!
The Minister and I agree that we want this system to work and that more people should use the support. It is a fantastic support, which we in this chamber have decided upon in broad agreement. It is important that we, together with the parties, both trade unions and employers, strengthen the individual's position in the future labor market.
It is true that it looks better today, and we should focus on how we are to ensure that more individuals become aware of the support and the conditions for being able to receive it. On that, we are in complete agreement.
It is, however, problematic that I hear that a strong concern still remains among representatives of both employer organizations and trade union organizations. When I meet them, I hear: Do we dare go to our member companies or our members in the trade union movement and say that this support exists? They are, in fact, uncertain about what the future looks like.
The issue is connected to the fact that the government – even though funds have been injected during these years – now chooses not to inject funds so that CSN can be assured that they have enough resources to hang in there, hold out, and continue to have positive figures when it comes to increasing the processing rate.
The basis for my interpellation is an article with an interview with Stefan Tärnhuvud, who is employed at CSN and who says: ”We must adapt the organization to the economic conditions, which means that the number of case officers will decrease. Fewer case officers means longer processing times in the long run. Longer processing times mean that not as many will manage to be granted [loans] every year. Less of the grant is paid out, quite simply.”
Mr. Speaker! That is the problematic part here. The Minister wants more people to speak positively about the support and for more eligible people to apply for it. But at the same time, the authorities are not given the conditions for that. The quote is very clear: ”Less of the grant is paid out, quite simply.” It is the message from the authority, which during this half-year and as we stand here today, actually continues to look at who must leave the authority so that they can keep the grant in balance. It is the assignment that the authority has received from the government and the Minister: to keep the grant that has been allocated in balance and complete the processing within that system.
Therefore, it becomes a bit hollow to talk about that we need to focus on the future, get more people to apply and create a positive image. But at the same time, the government chooses not to give the authority the conditions to manage that, especially during the autumn. The authority is convinced of: In the spring we might manage, but we do not know how the autumn will be.
When the minister is now in negotiations regarding a health care bill, which will arrive very soon, it is therefore important to dare to give an answer. Will CSN receive more money during the current year, so that they do not need to lay off as many as they actually lay off today? That is what this is about. CSN must be able to secure its processing capacity in order to be able to grant more in time and faster.
My question therefore remains: What does the Minister intend to do to increase the processing rate and, in any case, ensure that the processing rate is maintained, so that we can market the system to everyone who should be given the chance to study within it?
Gymnasie-, högskole- och forskningsministern Lotta Edholm (L)
Mr. Speaker! This is now heading in the right direction. More people are receiving notifications quickly. It is also more people who are granted transition study support in relation to how many there are who apply. This is because CSN has taken a number of different measures to simplify the system and speed up the processes. But it has also been possible because the government has added 160 million kronor beyond the calculation that existed from the beginning of what it would cost.
I am very positive about the development regarding exactly the processing times. And there is nothing today that worries me in terms of it suddenly getting worse.
What I am reflecting on a bit is how we are to get more people to see that this opportunity exists. The parties in the labor market are, of course, responsible to a large extent. But I think we politicians should also do more advertising for this system, which is fantastic and an innovation to strengthen Sweden's opportunities to be a competitive country. I believe that in the future we will need many more individuals in the labor market who take extra courses, who perhaps change direction in their working lives late in life, and so on. In that case, this system is good and important.
It is also important that the development we have seen at CSN continues.
Niklas Sigvardsson (S)
Mr. Speaker! I and the Minister agree that the figures are better today than they were a year ago. Facts show that. There are no problems when it comes to that. We share that picture.
I can assure the Minister that on the occasions I meet students and prospective students, I speak very highly of this system. We need, in fact, to ensure together that this system shall function.
The transition study support is fantastic. We just need to ensure that more people use it and that the processing actually works. That is where it becomes obvious that the minister and I do not agree, Mr. Speaker. Despite the fact that the figures are now heading in the right direction, one cannot be particularly calm when reading the budget documents, the expenditure forecasts, and the budget forecasts from CSN. The budget documents that CSN sends to the Ministry of Education and the commented forecasts are quite clear: CSN warns that if they do not receive these funds – on a half-year effect it is currently 15 million, and on a full-year effect it is 30 million – the positive development that we have seen over the past year risks being jeopardized. It becomes very clear in CSN's reports.
That is why I am requesting documents. How does the Minister view this, and how will the Minister act so that we do not end up in a situation where we get worsened processing figures during the October round of 2026 and where the number of those who receive a decision before the start of studies decreases? That is what I want to counteract. I want to counteract students returning to a worse situation than today.
Therefore, my question remains: How will the Minister act to ensure that we do not end up in that situation during the autumn of 2026?
Gymnasie-, högskole- och forskningsministern Lotta Edholm (L)
Mr. Speaker! The government acted when we saw the problems, that the money which was originally allocated to finance the system was not sufficient. We allocated 160 million kronor more. We see now that this is heading in the right direction. Processing times have decreased. But it is also more who are granted student aid, because they have the right to it. Previously, there were many who applied but who should not have applied, as it lay completely outside this system.
The transition study support is one of the most interesting ideas we have seen in recent years in the labor market and in the education sector in Sweden, and it is well worth nurturing that system. We must also, I believe, ensure that more individuals see that it exists and dare to apply for it. The development regarding decisions in this area is moving in the right direction, and my hope is that it continues to do so in the future.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.