Swedish Chambers

The Swedish Chamber “family” consists of 11 Swedish regional chambers and over 35 foreign chambers in Sweden, and over 50 Swedish chambers abroad.  The chambers are private member driven business organizations with a joint vision of promoting trade and investment with Sweden. Most chambers also provide a variety of services and networking opportunities for member companies and the business community.

If you are a Swedish company interested in expanding your business internationally or a foreign company interested in doing business with Sweden, make use of the Swedish chamber network

 

Swedish Regional Chambers

The 11 Regional Swedish Chambers of Commerce constitute one of the largest business networks in Sweden. Founded in 1902, they have 11,000 member companies drawn from all sectors of the economy. A majority of the members are small and medium sized businesses. The chambers serve local business and members through policy advocacy, a variety of business services and networking activities. The chambers also offer third party trusted services including mediation and arbitration and trade documents, i.e. certificates of origin and ATA Carnets.

The Swedish regional chambers are also part of the global family of chambers of commerce, giving exporters and importers a unique network to make use of when doing international business. The Swedish Chambers are members of Eurochambres, the joint organisation for chambers of commerce in Europe and members of ICC, the International Chambers of Commerce. These organisations are valuable networks for our member companies giving unique opportunities for influencing European and international policy and trade promotion.

The chambers provide a powerful voice for business. Through our members we provide grassroot business opinions and have strong influence on local, national and international levels.

Legal basis

The 11 regional Swedish chambers are private law chambers which means that membership is voluntary for the business community. The regional chambers do however have a legal foundation for their operations in Swedish law. The main purpose of this legal base is to ensure that the chambers work within a democratic framework and to regulate the third party function that the chambers have tied to the trade document services provided to the business community. The regional coverage of each of the 11 chambers is defined in the statutes of the chambers, which in their turn must be approved by the government.

Serving the local business community

The overall aim of all activities of the regional chambers is to serve and promote the business in their regions. The chambers main task is to represent the business community in contacts with national, regional or local authorities as well as internationally through Eurochambres and ICC. Market economy, free competition and free trade are important cornerstones in the policy of the Swedish Chambers. The chambers advice their members on government contacts and business policy. The chambers are active promoting infrastructure projects within their regions, which are of prime importance to the business community. Chambers are actively engaged in trade fairs and other commercial events important for their members. Several chambers have training programmes and networks in a broad range of areas important for business development. The chambers also authorise suppliers of services to the business community, such as commercial inspectors and surveyors.

The larger chambers have mediation and arbitration services.The Stockholm Chamber of Commerce has set up an international arbitration >> institute, which is one of the leading players in the world. All chambers issue trade documents like certificates of origin and ATA-carnets. The larger chambers have services to their members tied to legal services, trade facilitation, taxes, intellectual property rights and business ethics.

 

Swedish Chambers Abroad

There are more than 50 Swedish chambers of commerce, business clubs and networks abroad. Most of these chambers are legally independent organisations registered according to the national requirements of their host country. In several places there are also Nordic chambers of commerce. A critical mass of the Swedish chambers abroad forms the joint association and network, the Swedish Chambers Abroad. This association has its own statutes and meets regularly to network and benchmark services.

The Swedish Chambers Abroad offer companies professional advice and a networking opportunities tied to trading with Sweden or doing business in the country where the foreign chamber is represented. The chambers are an important part of promoting international trade with Sweden. Many of the Swedish chambers abroad run projects and activities with the individual regional Swedish chambers and the corresponding foreign chamber in Sweden.

If you are a Swedish company interested in expanding your business internationally or a foreign company interested in doing business with Sweden, make use of the Swedish chamber network. Contact a suitable regional Swedish chamber, a Swedish chamber abroad or a foreign chamber for further advice and help. Find the right chamber by checking the list on our global map.

For more details about the Association of Swedish Chambers Abroad, and how to become a Swedish chamber abroad, contact: marianne.dott@chamber.se, Stockholm Chamber of Commerce. See also more on the network for Swedish Chambers on
http://www.swedishchambers.se/ .

 

Foreign Chambers in Sweden

There are over 35 foreign chambers of commerce and networks in Sweden. Most operate independently although some may have close ties to the official trade promotion representation from the mother country. Some are overarching regional chambers initiatives covering several countries.

The foreign Chambers and networks in Sweden offer companies networking opportunities tied to trading with Sweden. Some larger chambers also offer professional services in the area of legal aid and trade facilitation and do policy advocacy towards governments. The foreign chambers in Sweden are an important part of promoting international trade with Sweden. Many of the foreign chambers run projects and activities with their corresponding Swedish Chambers Abroad or with the regional Swedish Chambers.

If you are a Swedish company interested in expanding your business internationally or a foreign company interested in doing business with Sweden, make use of the Swedish chamber network. Contact a suitable regional Swedish chamber, a Swedish chamber abroad or a foreign chamber for further advice and help. You will find all these “Sweden related” Chambers at –  http://www.swedishchambers.se/.