Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
Balance of Payments, Financial Market and National Accounts
1.3. Contact name
Confidential because of GDPR
1.4. Contact person function
Confidential because of GDPR
1.5. Contact mail address
1.6. Contact email address
Confidential because of GDPR
1.7. Contact phone number
Confidential because of GDPR
1.8. Contact fax number
Confidential because of GDPR
2.1. Metadata last certified
31 October 2025
2.2. Metadata last posted
31 October 2025
2.3. Metadata last update
31 October 2025
3.1. Data description
The Regional account data is transmitted to Eurostat in two tables 10 and 13. Each table includes the following data.
Table 10
Breakdaown by industry, (NACE A10) and by NUTS 2 and 3 regions
Gross Value Added (at current prices)
Total employment (in persons)
Employees (in persons)
Self-employed (in persons)
Population
Breakdaown by industry, (NACE A10) and by NUTS 2 regions
Compensation of employees by industry.
Gross fixed capital formation.
Total employment (in hours worked).
Employees (in hours worked).
Self-employed (in hours worked).
Table 13
Breakdown by NUTS 2 regions
Allocation of Primary Income Account of Households.
Secondary Distribution of Income Account of Households.
3.2. Classification system
Regional accounts use the same classification of industry by kind of activity as the National Accounts. The classification is based on SNI 2007 (Swedish Industrial Classification), which is the statistical standard for the classification of production units. The classification is harmonised with NACE Rev. 2 and therefore comparable with the classification applied in the European community. Regional GVA is compiled at the municipal level for 67 industrial aggregates. The NUTS division contains 21 NUTS 3-regions, which correspond to the Swedish counties. The NUTS 2 level is formed by eight regions consisting of aggregates of counties. There are also three NUTS 1 regions consisting of aggregates of NUTS 2. Furthermore, Sweden has 290 municipalities. Parts of a country's economic territory that cannot be bound to a single region, such as the activities of embassies and consulates, are reported separately under the "Extra-territorial" designation.
3.3. Coverage - sector
The regional accounts are compiled for the following variables: Value added, Employees, Self-employed, Compensation of employees, Hours worked, and Consumption of fixed capital. These are broken down by type of producer and sector, covering market producers, producers for own final use, general government, and non-profit institutions serving households (NPISH). Furthermore, regional accounts are reported by type of transaction in accordance with ESA 2010, specifically regarding the disposable income of households.
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
The regional data is compiled based on different concepts and definitions included in ESA 2020.
3.5. Statistical unit
The Swedish economy consists of economic activity undertaken by Swedish units and transactions between Swedish and foreign units. The main source of regional accounts is Structural Business Statistics. The object of the Structural Business Survey is defined by the enterprise unit, which in most cases coincides with the legal unit or the accounting unit. In exceptional cases, data collection can occur on the corporate group level or through a consolidation of several legal persons. By "enterprise" it is indicated the legal forms of limited company, trading company and limited liability company, sole proprietor, economic association and certain other legal forms that conduct business activities. In cases where an enterprise conducts several business operations, the enterprise is divided into kind of activity units (KAU). If the enterprise conducts operations in many different geographic areas then the enterprise is divided into local kind of activity (LKAU) units according to the geographic distribution. Such a breakdown enables reporting at the institutional (enterprise), functional (activity), and regional (limited geographic) levels. The division of enterprises into kind of activity units and local kind of activity units occurs mainly among enterprises in NACE 10-33 (Manufacturing industry).
3.6. Statistical population
The average annual population in regional accounts is based on 12-month average.
3.7. Reference area
The NUTS division contains 21 NUTS 3-regions, which correspond to the Swedish counties. The NUTS 2 level is formed by eight regions consisting of aggregates of counties. There are also three NUTS 1 regions consisting of aggregates of NUTS 2. Furthermore, Sweden has 290 municipalities. Parts of a country's economic territory that cannot be bound to a single region, such as the activities of embassies and consulates, are reported separately under the "Extra-territorial" designation.
3.8. Coverage - Time
The time series starts in 2000.
3.9. Base period
Not applicable.
Data is published in
SEK million(s) for gross domestic product (current prices, previous year prices, per capita, per employed person), gross value added (current prices, previous year prices ), wage and salaries figures, gross fixed capital formation, disposable income, households' disposable income (current prices, by transaction type)
Percent for gross domestic product and gross value added in change in volume
Thousands of peoplefor population, number of employed
Thousands of hours worked for number of employed
The reference period is calendar year.
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
Swedish national and regional accounts are produced according to the EU regulation, ESA 2010 (European System of Accounts), (Council Regulations (EC) No. 549/2013). The regional accounts are part of Sweden’s Official Statistics (SOS). Statistics included in SOS are subject to specific legal requirements regarding quality and accessibility. These requirements are laid down in the Official Statistics Act (2001:99), the Official Statistics Ordinance (2001:100), and in Statistics Sweden’s regulations SCB‑FS 2016:17 on quality in official statistics.
6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing
There is no institutional mandate for sharing data with other (national or international) institutions.
Within Statistic Sweden’s designated activities for the production of official statistics, confidentiality shall apply pursuant to Chapter 24, Section 8 of the Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act (2009:400). The regional accounts do not process personal data.
Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics (recital 24 and Article 20(4)) of 11 March 2009 (OJ L 87, p. 164) makes statistical confidentiality a legal cornerstone for European statistics, defining what is confidential, limiting uses of confidential data to statistical purposes, and requiring technical and organisational safeguards.
7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment
Confidential data are neither published nor made available to users.
8.1. Release calendar
The publication is carried out in accordance with the official publication schedule for Sweden’s Official Statistics (SOS), which ensures that statistical releases are announced and disseminated in a transparent and predictable manner.
Equal access to the statistical information is provided.
Preliminary regional accounts are published approximately12 months after the reference year. Final regional accounts are published approximately18 months after the reference year. Preliminary and final data are delivered to Eurostat approximately 12 months after the reference year for preliminary statistics.
10.1. Dissemination format - News release
The final data publication is accompanied by a news release on the Regional accounts webpage Regional Accounts
10.2. Dissemination format - Publications
Preliminary and final data are available in the online database. A news release accompanies the publication of the final data.
No other forms of publication are available regarding the regional accounts.
10.6. Documentation on methodology
Statistics Sweden documents its statistics by describing the quality of the statistics, the methods of production, and detailed information on the content of the microdata on which the statistics are based.
Production of the Statistics (StaF): The Production of the Statistics provides information on how the product is carried out. The entire process can be followed, from survey design, data collection, processing, review, and estimation procedures to implementation. For statistics prior to 2018, the production process is described in SCBDOK.
The general methodological framework for the compilation of national and regional accounts is ESA 2010. Specific guidelines for regional accounts are available from the Manual on regional accounts methods: Eurostat - Products manuals and guidelines.
Quality Declaration: The quality of the statistics is presented in the Quality Declaration. Here you will find information on:
the purpose and content of the statistics
reliability
timeliness
accessibility
comparability
Provisions on quality for official statistics are regulated in Statistics Sweden’s regulations SCB‑FS 2016:17. For statistics prior to 2017, quality is instead described in the Description of Statistics (BaS).
As for National Accounts in general, the Regional Accounts are based on several data sources. The accuracy hence depends on the quality of the data sources and of models used. Model assumptions and measurement are the two most important sources of uncertainty.
Register data contributes to enhancing accuracy. Statistics Sweden has built up large registers that are useful from a regional perspective. Both the Business register and the Statement of income register contain information regarding the lowest regional level - municipalities.
The Business register is a register of all institutional units. The register functions as a sample framework in economic statistics and also as a base register where information about enterprises is collected for other registers and databases at Statistics Sweden.
Gross pay is based on Statistics Sweden's Statements of income register, which is based on administrative material from statements of income. According to the law, statements of income shall be submitted by those paying an employee's wages and salaries, fee, other compensations or benefits that constitute taxable income. Gross pay statistics contain information about gross pay at the regional level, which are used for those industries where top-down-method is used. Gross pay statistics are also used for the distribution of the wages and salaries-dependent part of the value added in those industries where the capital-dependent and wages and salaries-dependent parts are compiled individually.
The Structural business statistics is used for regional calculations for most of the activities. The bottom-up-method is used as the Structural business statistics provides regional information available concerning value added.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
To detect outlying values that may be erroneous, the analysis is broken down into several steps, and both the underlying data and the results are examined in a time series. Totals are reviewed at the municipal level, and growth rates between years as well as time series diagrams are produced. The analysis is then broken down further, with totals reviewed by sector and region. If the development for the current calculation year stands out compared with previous years, the analysis is further disaggregated by industry and sector at the municipal level. Detailed information on the overall quality is available in the National Quality Report (NQR).
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
In Sweden, the regional accounts are used by, among others, the Ministry of Finance, county administrative boards, and municipalities as a basis for budget work and long-term studies. The statistics are also used in ongoing business cycle analysis and forecasting. Regional accounts are furthermore used by other government bodies and authorities, private organizations and enterprises, as well as newspapers and researchers, as a basis for socio-economic analysis and assessments.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
User feedback is not collected officially.
12.3. Completeness
The overall completeness rate of the data is ensured with respect to the ESA 2010 transmission programme. Information on completeness rates can be seen in the National Quality Report (NQR).
13.1. Accuracy - overall
Regarding value added, the data are more reliable at the NUTS1 and NUTS2 levels due to enterprises with multiple local units, some of which have establishments across county borders. However, with regard to employment and wages, the statistics are register‑based and are accurate at the municipal level. Information on accuracy rates can be seen in the National Quality Report (NQR).
13.2. Sampling error
Not applicable.
13.3. Non-sampling error
Not applicable.
14.1. Timeliness
The time lag between the compilation and publication of data is only a few days. Information on timeliness can be seen in the National Quality Report (NQR).
14.2. Punctuality
Data are transmitted within the legal deadline to Eurostat. Information on punctuality rates can be seen in the National Quality Report (NQR).
15.1. Comparability - geographical
To ensure that the statistics are comparable between different regions, the same model and methods at the NACE level are used to calculate the statistics for all regions.
15.2. Comparability - over time
Calculations for the year 2000 and onwards have been carried out in accordance with ESA 2010. The time series perspective is of great importance in the national accounts and regional accounts, and the calculations must reflect both the correct level and the development over time. In the major revisions of the national accounts, which are carried out approximately every five years, earlier years are also recalculated so that breaks in the time series are eliminated or at least minimized. A lack of relevant and reliable data often constitutes a limitation in this context, and models are therefore applied to a relatively large extent. The simplest example of such a model is that existing levels are adjusted proportionally by the same amount as the earliest year for which data could be used.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
The statistics for each transaction and industry are reconciled between the regional system and the national system before publication. The regional figures must always add up to the national figures.
15.4. Coherence - internal
The statistics are calculated at the municipal and NUTS3 levels and are subsequently aggregated to NUTS2 and NUTS1. Therefore, the figures are always consistent across the different NUTS levels. In the same way, the figures are calculated at more detailed NACE levels and are subsequently aggregated into the NACE groups that are published and delivered to Eurostat. Therefore, the figures are always consistent across the different NACE levels.
There is no information available to share regarding the cost and burden to produce regional accounts.
17.1. Data revision - policy
The revision policy for National Accounts and regional accounts follows the Harmonized European Revision Policy (HERP).
17.2. Data revision - practice
In 2024-2025 the National Accounts were thoroughly revised for the full times series 1950-2023 in a benchmark revision. The Regional Accounts were revised accordingly from 2000 onwards.
The revision of the national accounts in 2024 resulted, among other things, in new level estimates of household consumption expenditures, a new structure for intermediate consumption, updated calculations of value-added tax, a new model for software investments, the introduction of changes in business statistics, altered consolidation within general government, improved estimates of the hidden economy, and an enhanced model for objective reconciliation.
The main reason for the revision in 2025 was that there were three action points which had not been implemented in the nationally published general revision in May 2024, but which were implemented in the reported data in September 2024 concerning the GNI aggregates. The revision in 2025 thus fully aligned the data transmitted to Eurostat and the nationally published data. The balancing of these revisions also led to revisions in other components of GDP. Documentation regarding the revisions is available only in Swedish.
The main data sources for the compilation of regional accounts:
Structural Business Statistics
Gross pay based on income of statements (Administrative data)
Population by Labour market status (Administrative data)
Account summaries regarding the economies of primary municipalities
R&D statistics (Survey)
Business Register (Administrative data)
18.2. Frequency of data collection
The regional accounts do not collect data directly, the information is received by other departments.
18.3. Data collection
The regional accounts do not collect data directly, the information is received by other departments.
18.4. Data validation
Since the data are not collected directly, the administrative material can only be assessed in terms of plausibility and by means of enterprises’ annual reports. It is not possible to verify the information directly with the enterprises.
Methods for plausibility assessment of data
Internal quality controls
Checking that values fall within reasonable ranges (e.g., that dates are logical, that figures are not unreasonably high or low).
Ensuring that information is complete and does not lack essential fields.
Comparisons with external sources
Companies’ annual reports or financial statements can be used as references to verify whether the information is consistent.
Public registers or industry statistics can provide comparison points.
Time series checks
Analyzing developments over time: if figures suddenly deviate sharply, this may indicate errors.
Assessing whether trends are reasonable in relation to economic or societal changes.
Missing values and deviations
Identifying whether there are systematic gaps
Assessing whether missing values are random or whether they may affect the results.
18.5. Data compilation
Regional accounts use the same industry classification by kind of activity as the National Accounts. The classification is based on SNI 2007 (Swedish Standard Industrial Classification), which is the statistical standard for the classification of production units. The classification is harmonised with NACE Rev. 2 and is therefore comparable with the classification applied in the European Union. GVA is compiled at the municipal level for 67 industry aggregates.
The regional accounts are also compiled by type of producer and sector along the following demarcations: total market producers and producers for own final use, general government, households, and non-profit institutions serving households.
The regional accounts are reported by type of transaction in accordance with ESA 2010 (this applies, for example, to households’ disposable income).
Data are not collected directly by the Regional Accounts but are collected and managed by the primary statistical sources.
The statistics on employment and wages are based on administrative data and are provided by Gross pay based on income statements and Population by labour market status. The data produced are classified by institutional sectors, NACE, and LAU2 for employees and self‑employed persons.
The data from Structural Business Statistics produced for the Regional Accounts are presented by LAU2 and NACE.
The totals by institutional sectors, NACE, and LAU2 are reconciled with totals from the national accounts at the Sectors and NACE level in an automated process within the regional accounts database. The same process applies to value added at current prices. Statistics Sweden does not have access to regional price indices; therefore, national price indices are applied to each NACE at the NUTS3 level, in order to aggregate to total constant prices at NUTS3 level.
18.6. Adjustment
Adjustments to national accounts data for total economy and institutional sectors are made before dissemination.
No additional comments.
The Regional account data is transmitted to Eurostat in two tables 10 and 13. Each table includes the following data.
Table 10
Breakdaown by industry, (NACE A10) and by NUTS 2 and 3 regions
Gross Value Added (at current prices)
Total employment (in persons)
Employees (in persons)
Self-employed (in persons)
Population
Breakdaown by industry, (NACE A10) and by NUTS 2 regions
Compensation of employees by industry.
Gross fixed capital formation.
Total employment (in hours worked).
Employees (in hours worked).
Self-employed (in hours worked).
Table 13
Breakdown by NUTS 2 regions
Allocation of Primary Income Account of Households.
Secondary Distribution of Income Account of Households.
31 October 2025
The regional data is compiled based on different concepts and definitions included in ESA 2020.
The Swedish economy consists of economic activity undertaken by Swedish units and transactions between Swedish and foreign units. The main source of regional accounts is Structural Business Statistics. The object of the Structural Business Survey is defined by the enterprise unit, which in most cases coincides with the legal unit or the accounting unit. In exceptional cases, data collection can occur on the corporate group level or through a consolidation of several legal persons. By "enterprise" it is indicated the legal forms of limited company, trading company and limited liability company, sole proprietor, economic association and certain other legal forms that conduct business activities. In cases where an enterprise conducts several business operations, the enterprise is divided into kind of activity units (KAU). If the enterprise conducts operations in many different geographic areas then the enterprise is divided into local kind of activity (LKAU) units according to the geographic distribution. Such a breakdown enables reporting at the institutional (enterprise), functional (activity), and regional (limited geographic) levels. The division of enterprises into kind of activity units and local kind of activity units occurs mainly among enterprises in NACE 10-33 (Manufacturing industry).
The average annual population in regional accounts is based on 12-month average.
The NUTS division contains 21 NUTS 3-regions, which correspond to the Swedish counties. The NUTS 2 level is formed by eight regions consisting of aggregates of counties. There are also three NUTS 1 regions consisting of aggregates of NUTS 2. Furthermore, Sweden has 290 municipalities. Parts of a country's economic territory that cannot be bound to a single region, such as the activities of embassies and consulates, are reported separately under the "Extra-territorial" designation.
The reference period is calendar year.
Regarding value added, the data are more reliable at the NUTS1 and NUTS2 levels due to enterprises with multiple local units, some of which have establishments across county borders. However, with regard to employment and wages, the statistics are register‑based and are accurate at the municipal level. Information on accuracy rates can be seen in the National Quality Report (NQR).
Data is published in
SEK million(s) for gross domestic product (current prices, previous year prices, per capita, per employed person), gross value added (current prices, previous year prices ), wage and salaries figures, gross fixed capital formation, disposable income, households' disposable income (current prices, by transaction type)
Percent for gross domestic product and gross value added in change in volume
Thousands of peoplefor population, number of employed
Thousands of hours worked for number of employed
Regional accounts use the same industry classification by kind of activity as the National Accounts. The classification is based on SNI 2007 (Swedish Standard Industrial Classification), which is the statistical standard for the classification of production units. The classification is harmonised with NACE Rev. 2 and is therefore comparable with the classification applied in the European Union. GVA is compiled at the municipal level for 67 industry aggregates.
The regional accounts are also compiled by type of producer and sector along the following demarcations: total market producers and producers for own final use, general government, households, and non-profit institutions serving households.
The regional accounts are reported by type of transaction in accordance with ESA 2010 (this applies, for example, to households’ disposable income).
Data are not collected directly by the Regional Accounts but are collected and managed by the primary statistical sources.
The statistics on employment and wages are based on administrative data and are provided by Gross pay based on income statements and Population by labour market status. The data produced are classified by institutional sectors, NACE, and LAU2 for employees and self‑employed persons.
The data from Structural Business Statistics produced for the Regional Accounts are presented by LAU2 and NACE.
The totals by institutional sectors, NACE, and LAU2 are reconciled with totals from the national accounts at the Sectors and NACE level in an automated process within the regional accounts database. The same process applies to value added at current prices. Statistics Sweden does not have access to regional price indices; therefore, national price indices are applied to each NACE at the NUTS3 level, in order to aggregate to total constant prices at NUTS3 level.
The main data sources for the compilation of regional accounts:
Structural Business Statistics
Gross pay based on income of statements (Administrative data)
Population by Labour market status (Administrative data)
Account summaries regarding the economies of primary municipalities
R&D statistics (Survey)
Business Register (Administrative data)
Preliminary regional accounts are published approximately12 months after the reference year. Final regional accounts are published approximately18 months after the reference year. Preliminary and final data are delivered to Eurostat approximately 12 months after the reference year for preliminary statistics.
The time lag between the compilation and publication of data is only a few days. Information on timeliness can be seen in the National Quality Report (NQR).
To ensure that the statistics are comparable between different regions, the same model and methods at the NACE level are used to calculate the statistics for all regions.
Calculations for the year 2000 and onwards have been carried out in accordance with ESA 2010. The time series perspective is of great importance in the national accounts and regional accounts, and the calculations must reflect both the correct level and the development over time. In the major revisions of the national accounts, which are carried out approximately every five years, earlier years are also recalculated so that breaks in the time series are eliminated or at least minimized. A lack of relevant and reliable data often constitutes a limitation in this context, and models are therefore applied to a relatively large extent. The simplest example of such a model is that existing levels are adjusted proportionally by the same amount as the earliest year for which data could be used.
