Reader accuses Christian Democrats of misleading voters over capital gains tax

The Christian Democrats’ call to abolish Sweden’s capital gains tax is presented as help for older people, but reader Kent Eklund says it would instead be a major windfall for the wealthy.

In a submission to Dagens Nyheter, Eklund criticizes the party’s election message about an “unfair moving tax.” He argues that Sweden does not have a moving tax, but a 22% capital gains tax applied only to any profit from a property sale. He describes the party’s wording as unserious, misleading and populist.

Eklund also points to the existing option to defer payment when homeowners buy another property. In many cases, he says, the tax can be deferred without interest on the outstanding amount. He calls it striking that the state effectively lends money to wealthy residents without charging for it.

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Abolish the unfair moving tax.

He links the debate to the former Alliance government’s decision to abolish the property tax in 2008. That change reduced annual taxes for villa owners in metropolitan areas with high assessed values, while also increasing the value of their properties, he writes. Those owners would naturally welcome a proposal that removed capital gains tax on profits that can reach several million kronor.

Eklund rejects the Christian Democrats’ claim that abolition would set moving chains in motion. The tax is hardly the obstacle preventing older people from moving to more suitable homes, he argues. Instead, he says, wealthy people should contribute to funding a functioning welfare system, and proposals presented as support for older people should be aimed exclusively at them. He warns that abolishing the tax could lead to large sums moving from welfare to affluent property owners and encourage complex arrangements around major gains.

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We do not have a moving tax. We should say and write what it is.