Bank ID and Other Swedish Delights
When the weather hits like:
it’s hard to forget that you live in Sweden, not Nottingham.
Swedish Culture Shock
Moving to a country which, in many ways, looks very similar to where you’re from but is actually, really, quite different has been… a ride…
I have really struggled with not understanding some of the social norms and unspoken expectations, made all the more difficult for me because there is a real emphasis on being ‘relaxed’ about stuff. Like, I’m not relaxed in my normal life where I know what’s going on, how could I possibly be relaxed when weird and inexplicable* stuff is going on and now a group of middle-aged women are pointing at me and laughing?? (Yes, it happened! No, not all Swedes are ‘polite’.)
*’weird and inexplicable’ specifically to me (and maybe other immigrants).
It’s been a wild experience being an immigrant at a time when my home country is becoming increasingly intolerant of immigrants. I’ve felt sick looking at what’s going on, hearing from my friends how life has shifted and the future feels bleak.
I was asked at the wedding I attended in September what Swedish people thought about immigrants - the implication was that the person asking didn’t like them in the UK and Swedish people presumably didn’t like them in Sweden - I wasn’t quick enough to make the point that I am an immigrant here (though I did make my opinion of that sort of rhetoric very clear). But of course, in their eyes, and in the eyes of multiple people I’ve spoken to here, I am ‘one of the good ones’.
Anyway, I digress.
Some Interesting Cultural Differences
There is a lot to be said about Sweden. A lot. It’s a beautiful country, with some great ideas, and I’ve met some wonderful, welcoming and very kind people here.
I thought it might be interesting to point out a few of the differences I’ve experienced in banking, finance, wealth and administration. It’s a very different system here, with different infrastructure and expectations. I don’t fully understand it all, and I also have the very great privilege of my husband’s job doing a lot of the admin when we first got here so I haven’t had to contend with the depths of it.
With that in mind, here’s my take on some stuff!
I mentioned this in my previous post about faffing around setting up the business (an email has been sent to HMRC and now we wait for the response… I’m ‘relaxed’ about it).
What is BankID?
It’s an electronic identification system from Sweden. It’s a private company, not owned by the banks, but you access it through the banks. They set it up for you when you get a bank account. You have to visit the bank in order to set it up and present them with identification - I think I used my passport - and you have to re-prove yourself, in person, periodically but I haven’t had to do that yet.
What do you use BankID for?
You use Bank ID for loads of stuff!For logging onto websites like the NHS equivalent, government websites, digitally signing documents, banking, e-commerce and definitely other stuff which I’ve forgotten. I think you can also use it as a form of ID for clubs and things too, but being a haggard old wench I haven’t been asked, and also, we have identity cards anyway.
How do you use BankID?
It’s primarily an app on your phone.
If you’re using another app and it needs permission, it will just ping through and you can authenticate. If you’re on the phone to your bank for example, they can ping through a request to make sure they’re speaking to the right person. And the other way I’ve used it is on websites, when you get to the payment stage, there might be a QR code which you can scan in the Bank ID app to authenticate.
You can set it up for facial recognition, fingerprint or a code.
Are there any downsides to BankID?
Probably my only real annoyance with it is that if I’m spending money on Dr Chris’s card, it will send the ping to his phone and he has to approve it - not that I would spend money without him knowing obviously, but it’s a faff and I’m usually I’m spending his money because he hasn’t done something which he should have so it’s faff on top of faff.
This is one aspect of Swedish bureaucracy……which I have really appreciated. It does feel like it makes everything a bit smoother. I have sort of forgotten what we do in the UK now, but I remember lots of different ways of proving your identity which were different each time and for each situation, so having one, well-understood product feels like a good way forward.
Wait until you hear my take on ID cards! But that will have to be in another post because this has gone on longer than expected.
Love Eleanor. xxx
