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In depth · Övertorneå

Immigration and foreign background in Övertorneå

Key facts

  • Övertorneå ranks 45 of 290 municipalities for Share of residents with a foreign background (2025).

    Source: SCB BE0101Q2 · 2025

  • Övertorneå ranks 2 of 14 in Norrbottens län for Share of residents with a foreign background (2025).

    Source: SCB BE0101Q2 · 2025

Latest statistics: 2024–2025 depending on indicator

Övertorneå: 1,147 residents (28.7%) had a foreign background in 2025, out of 3,995 residents. Source: Statistics Sweden. Sweden, foreign background: 27.7%; difference +1.0 percentage points (2025). 969 residents were born abroad (24.3%, 2025).

Foreign background means born abroad or born in Sweden to two foreign-born parents. These are population stocks, not annual immigration flows.

Location of the municipality in Sweden

Last updated: View changelog

Övertorneå in brief

Share with foreign background, 2025
28.7 %
Change 2002–2025
+5.2 pp
Absolute change in percentage points.
Sweden, 2025
27.7 %
Difference: +1.0 pp.
Rank (highest share = 1)
45 of 290
Same definition and year (2025) for all ranked municipalities.

Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB), BE0101Q2 — observed population composition (stock). People received further down are a flow and measure something else. Stock vs flow

Trend 2002–2025

Share of the population in Övertorneå with a foreign background. Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB), BE0101Q2. The 2025 observation uses the CKM disclosure-control method.

0%20%40%60%80%100%20022005200820112014201720202023Foreign background
Foreign background — 2002: 23.6 %; 2003: 24.1 %; 2004: 24.6 %; 2005: 24.9 %; 2006: 25.3 %; 2007: 26.3 %; 2008: 26.8 %; 2009: 26.9 %; 2010: 27.6 %; 2011: 28.2 %; 2012: 28.5 %; 2013: 28.8 %; 2014: 29.7 %; 2015: 30.1 %; 2016: 30.8 %; 2017: 30.8 %; 2018: 31.1 %; 2019: 30.1 %; 2020: 29.9 %; 2021: 29.7 %; 2022: 29.5 %; 2023: 28.7 %; 2024: 28.7 %; 2025: 28.7 %
How to verify this figure
Source
Statistics Sweden (SCB)
Period
2025
Definition
Share of the population with a foreign background (born abroad, or born in Sweden with two foreign-born parents).
Geography
Övertorneå
Unit
%
Retrieved/verified
2026-10-11
  1. Open the original source and find the same table or report.
  2. Select the same period, geography and unit as above.
  3. Compare the definition — for own calculations, recompute with the formula.

Changelog

Country/region of birth (2024)

Residents by region of birth, 2024. This block uses 2024 data and may differ in year from the introduction above. Foreign-born are persons born outside Sweden. Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB), FolkmRegFlandK.

Country of birth
2024
Foreign-born residents
984 people
24.3% of the population · 2024
Foreign-born = born outside Sweden (narrower than "foreign background").
Born in Sweden75.8 %(3,073)
Nordics excluding Sweden17.8 %(720)
Other Europe2.1 %(87)
Outside Europe4.4 %(177)
Thin line = national average. Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB), FolkmRegFlandK.

People received, vulnerable areas & marginal cost

Received 2020–2024 (a flow), the Police's vulnerable areas and a own illustrative scenario.

Reception & illustrative scenario
2020–2024
Foreign-born (20–64)
26.2 %
Received, 5 years
36
8.9 / 1000 (national 7.0)
Vulnerable areas
—
Swedish Police 2025
Scenario / resident / yrAnalysis/model
−131 kr
Range −94 kr → −167 kr
Model: Ruist (ESO 2018:3; calculations based on 2015 public finances), unadjusted amount from the report (low/mid/high)

Analysis/model Own illustrative scenario: mean annual reception 2020–2024 × Ruist’s national refugee life-cycle estimate using 2015 public finances, divided by 2024 population; no price adjustment. Assumes the national estimate applies locally. Not an observed municipal cost; not everyone with a foreign background. Formula, assumptions and limitations

No vulnerable areas in this municipality according to the Swedish Police situational report 2025.
Compare Övertorneå with other municipalities →

Compare Övertorneå with other municipalities

Övertorneå is preselected. Add up to 5 other municipalities — or use the shortcuts for the top/bottom 5.

  • Övertorneå28.7 %
0%20%40%60%80%100%20022005200820112014201720202023Övertorneå
Övertorneå — 2002: 23.6 %; 2003: 24.1 %; 2004: 24.6 %; 2005: 24.9 %; 2006: 25.3 %; 2007: 26.3 %; 2008: 26.8 %; 2009: 26.9 %; 2010: 27.6 %; 2011: 28.2 %; 2012: 28.5 %; 2013: 28.8 %; 2014: 29.7 %; 2015: 30.1 %; 2016: 30.8 %; 2017: 30.8 %; 2018: 31.1 %; 2019: 30.1 %; 2020: 29.9 %; 2021: 29.7 %; 2022: 29.5 %; 2023: 28.7 %; 2024: 28.7 %; 2025: 28.7 %

Max 6 municipalities. Source: SCB BE0101Q2 (UtlSvBakgGrov). · Övertorneå

Övertorneå vs nearby municipalities

Nearest municipalities (distance between municipal centre points) and municipalities in the same county with a similar share, plus county and national averages. Not all share a border with the municipality.

Övertorneå

Share 2025
28.7 %
Δ 2015→2025
-1.3 pp
Immigration page

Sweden

Share 2025
27.7 %
Δ 2015→2025
+5.5 pp
Immigration page

Norrbottens län

Share 2025
16.3 %
Δ 2015→2025
+4.0 pp
Immigration page

Foreign background, all ages/sexes. County and national shares: own ratios of SCB published geographic counts; change 2015–2025 in percentage points. CKM method break 2025; subgroup cells may not sum to the published total. SCB

Most common countries of birth in Övertorneå

Links to the national page for each country of birth. Source: SCB BE0101E.

Municipal election 2026

Final · Source: Valmyndigheten
Turnout
72.18 %
Seats
25
Valid votes
2,391
Blank votes
34
Result per party, municipal council election 2026
PartySharevs 2022Seats
22.00 %–6
21.62 %–5
21.16 %–5
12.13 %–3
11.25 %–3
6.36 %–2
4.06 %–1
Other parties (3)1.42 %––

Latest actual election: 13 September 2026 (final count). Turnout figures in Kolada series elsewhere on this page refer to an earlier election and are labelled with their series year.

Full municipal election result →Results by voting district →

Earlier election results in Övertorneå (2014–2022)

Open Övertorneå on the mapAll 290 municipalities →

Everything about Övertorneå

Schools, crime, economy, tax rate and elections are on the municipality's main page.

Open Övertorneå municipality in figures →

Frequently asked questions

›What share of the population in Övertorneå has a foreign background?

In 2025, 28.7 % of the population in Övertorneå had a foreign background according to Statistics Sweden (BE0101Q2) — 1.0 percentage points above the national average (27.7 %). "Foreign background" is the broader Statistics Sweden definition and includes both people born abroad and people born in Sweden to two foreign-born parents. The share is a stock measure and does not show annual immigration (inflow).

›How many residents of Övertorneå have a foreign background?

1,147 residents of Övertorneå had a foreign background (2025). Source: Statistics Sweden, UtlSvBakgGrovCKM, published count. CKM-protected component cells need not sum exactly to the published total.

›How has the share with a foreign background in Övertorneå changed since 2002?

The share has risen from 23.6 % (2002) to 28.7 % (2025), a change of +5.2 percentage points. Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB), BE0101Q2.

›What is the difference between "foreign background" and "born abroad"?

Born abroad = a person born outside Sweden. Foreign background = born abroad, or born in Sweden to two foreign-born parents. Both measures are official; foreign background is at least as large for the same population and year.

›Where were the foreign-born residents of Övertorneå born?

See the "Country/region of birth" section on this page. Foreign-born residents are people born outside Sweden, reported in three aggregated groups: the Nordic countries excluding Sweden, the rest of Europe, and outside Europe. Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB), FolkmRegFlandK.

Sources and method

  • BE0101Q2Foreign/Swedish background — share by municipality (UtlSvBakgGrov)

    Reference period: 2002–2025 · Retrieved: 2026-10-11

    Open source ↗
  • FodelselandArKCKM / FolkmRegFlandKCKM; history FodelselandArKPopulation by region, region/country of birth and sex

    Reference period: 2000–2025 · Retrieved: 2026-10-11

    Open source ↗
  • BE0101N1Population by municipality, age, sex and year (31 Dec)

    Reference period: 2002–2025 · Retrieved: 2026-08-13

    Open source ↗
  • ME0104General elections — votes per party and municipality (Election Authority via SCB)
    Open source ↗

Each figure on this page is traceable to the dataset listed above. Missing data is left out — never shown as zero. Definitions, model and sources