Thousands of Swedish ex-students who live abroad with big loans from the state do not bother to pay there debts.
CSN is the body that organise the schoolarships and loans that every university student are entitled to. Before 2001 the former students only had to pay four percent of their income until the loan was paid off. Now they have to pay back everything within twenty years, notwithstanding a low income.
Swedes living in USA or England can easily escape paying back their debts since it is to expensive for CSN to chase them there. They have to hire expensive domestic lawyers and take every single case to court separately. This is not worth it says Ulf Ståhl at CSN’s department for debt collection abroad. Instead CSN focus on the other nordic countries where they easier can work with the authorities.
According to Metro, 28 000 Swedes with a joint debt on 3.3 billion crowns, is “hiding” abroad avoiding to pay back their debts. They would however get problem if they move back to Sweden and gets back into the national registration register. The debt is still there and the interest rate is ticking.