Membership criteria

The Swedish Construction Federation promotes the professional reputation of the industry by safeguarding ethical business practices and construction quality. Membership in the Swedish Construction Federation requires the applicant company to meet the following criteria (rev 2019-03-20 and 2021-06-16):

• The company has operations in Sweden within the areas for which the Swedish Construction Federation signs collective agreements.
• All companies within a group (including authentic groups (Sw: äkta koncern) and group of companies other than as defined in the Companies Act (Sw: oäkta koncern) and, where appropriate, associated companies (Sw: intresseföretag), which have operations that qualify for affiliation to the Federation, must be members of the Swedish Construction Federation.
• The company must be registered as a limited liability company, a partnership, a limited partnership or equivalent (not sole traders). Moreover, foreign-registered companies must have a permanent establishment and branches in Sweden that are registered with the Swedish Companies Registration Office and file tax returns in Sweden.
• The company must have an authorised or approved public accountant, or alternatively an authorised accounting consultant.
• The company is registered for F-tax in Sweden. The company is registered as an employer and has paid social insurance contributions for one full-time employee for the previous six months (unless it is a holding company in a group), in Sweden and in the country where the company has its registered office.
• Owners with controlling influence, members of the Board and deputies, the Managing Director, and authorised accountants or accounting consultants meet the requirements for the fit and proper assessment*.
• The company does not have any taxes or fees owing to any public agencies.
• The company has provided accurate information regarding the number of employees and salaries in its application and undertakes to update this information in the first quarter of each year.
• The company must have prepared at least one annual report without any serious remarks in its auditor’s report or opinions from authorised accounting consultants in the latest financial year.
• The company and its representatives undertake:
  – to pay the invoices for joining, membership and service as well as other invoices for goods and services supplied by the Swedish Construction Federation or its subsidiaries;
  – to comply with the Ethical Rules of the Swedish Construction Sector;
  – to comply with the regulations of the Swedish Construction Federation and the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise;
  – to apply the Swedish Construction Federation’s code of conduct;
  – to apply the Swedish Construction Federation’s collective agreements;
  – to apply ID06 in accordance with the applicable ID06 rules at all worksites where the company has operations; and
  – to act in a manner that does not compromise the interests of the Federation.
• The company must send in a copy of its certificate of registration and any other documents requested by the Swedish Construction Federation to enable the Federation’s assessment of whether or not the company’s application for membership can be granted, or whether or not its membership can remain valid.
• The company must ensure the accuracy and correctness of the documents sent to the Swedish Construction Federation. Documents issued in another country must be translated to Swedish or English, affirmed by a notary public and stamped with a completed apostille.
• The applicant must, in writing, certify that all documents and information provided in the application process are accurate, and that the applicant will comply with the rules and provisions set out in the Swedish Construction Federation’s statutes/regulations and in the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise’s statutes. If the applicant has provided inaccurate information in the application process, it may lead to exclusion under the Swedish Construction Federation’s statute provision § 16.

The Board of Directors assesses and decides on the application. A decision on rejection is final during a waiting period of one year from the day of the decision. After the waiting period’s expiration, the company can apply again. The Board of Directors may approve exemptions from individual criteria and/or the waiting period if there are special reasons.

The Board of Directors may delegate the right to assess and decide on applications to the Chairman of the Board and the CEO together.

An overall assessment of the application for membership in the association is conducted based on the criteria for membership and on other circumstances found in the investigation of the applicant company.

The Swedish Construction Federation conducts necessary due diligences of both applicant companies and continuously on its members.

Change of ownership or of the Board of Directors of a member company automatically changes the membership status to a level equivalent to new membership and, in such cases, the Swedish Construction Federation has the right to conduct a new assessment in accordance with the criteria applicable for new member companies.

The applicant company and its representatives undertake to participate in an introduction meeting and to undergo the training stipulated by the Board of Directors in the first six months of the company’s membership.

If you would like to apply for membership, please contact your nearest regional office or apply for membership via medlem@byggforetagen.se or alternatively fill in the digital application form.

In the event of inconsistencies between the Swedish and English version, the Swedish version will prevail.

* The requirements for the fit and proper assessment includes the person in question acting professionally and in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations, and properly managing taxes, fees and finance as a private person and at any company in which the person is or has been active.

Use of subcontractors

• Members with employees who carry out work that is bound by the scope of the Construction Agreement shall, when using the services of a subcontractor who is the employer for such work, always comply with the provisions in the Sector agreement Appendix D.
• The corresponding obligation to comply with the provisions of Chapter 23 of the Road and Rail Agreement applies to member companies that are bound by and perform work within the scope of the Road and Rail Agreement and use the services of a subcontractor for work within the scope of the Road and Rail Agreement.
• In the case of group companies, when using the services of another group company (including authentic groups (Sw: äkta koncern) and group of companies other than as defined in the Companies Act (Sw: “oäkta” koncern)), the member company must always comply with the sector agreement in the respective collective agreement in order to secure collective agreements at the workplace for the work concerned or, if there is no collective agreement for the work concerned, to ensure that the minimum conditions for workers set out in the National Agency for Public Procurement’s conditional appendices relating to labour law conditions concerning the Construction Agreement and the Road and Rail Agreement are applied to work in these agreement areas.
• Member companies with a Swedish branch shall apply the relevant collective agreement for the work they perform in Sweden through posting, stationing or employment and pay membership dues and taxes and other statutory contributions for all workers performing work in Sweden within the scope of our collective agreements.
• A member who is covered only by the Swedish Construction Federation’s Salaried Employee Agreement shall always ensure that the contracting party/subcontractor (who is the employer) applies the current and applicable collective agreement or ensures that the minimum conditions for workers set out in the National Agency for Public Procurement’s conditional appendices relating to the Construction Agreement and the Road and Rail Agreement respectively are applied for work in these agreement areas.
• Member companies using the services of a subcontractor shall also ensure that the subcontractor engaged undertakes to comply with the above obligations if the subcontractor in turn engages a subcontractor.
• Sole traders (i.e. without their own employees) are not subject to the requirement of a collective agreement or conditions similar to a collective agreement. However, when using the services of a sole trader, they must be notified to Byggnads and included on the list of contractors. In addition, it must be ensured that the contractor works independently, under his own responsibility and is covered by liability insurance for the work to be carried out. The contract must be awarded under market conditions and in compliance with labour and tax legislation.

Questions and answers on the criteria and guidance on checking subcontractors.

These membership conditions were decided by the Swedish Construction Federation’s Board of Directors on 7 April 2022.