The government proposes the establishment of the Agency for Foreign Intelligence as a new state authority starting on 1 January 2027. The agency will conduct foreign intelligence operations and provide support to Swedish foreign, security, and defence policy. The government has appointed a special investigator to prepare and implement the formation of the agency.
According to the memorandum, the agency will take over certain tasks and capabilities from the Military Intelligence and Security Service (Must), which is currently part of the Swedish Armed Forces (Försvarsmakten). A significant portion of the Swedish Armed Forces' foreign intelligence activities and parts of the international monitoring mission will be incorporated into the new agency.
The Swedish Armed Forces will continue to conduct military intelligence operations. The new agency will operate under the Foreign Intelligence Act and will be subject to a special regulatory framework for the processing of personal data.
The government has tasked a special investigator with preparing and implementing the establishment of the agency. The memorandum proposes two new statutes and several amendments to existing legislation to enable the agency's operations. The new agency is proposed to be covered by the same legal framework that currently applies to the Swedish Armed Forces' foreign intelligence activities. This means that the agency will be integrated into several laws and regulations, and the term defence intelligence operations will be replaced with foreign intelligence operations in the legislation.