Swedish border guards will be given the power to search migrants’ smartphones to look for evidence of destroyed passports under a new law backed by the country’s Right-wing coalition government.

The law comes as part of a wider push to speed up deportations of failed asylum seekers to drive down migrant numbers amid fears they are being recruited by Sweden’s organised crime gangs.

Officials believe migrants entering Sweden may have used their phones to take photos or make digital copies of their passports and other documents before destroying them on arrival at airports.

Swedish officials said identifying migrants was vital if the person was to be deported after a failed claim.

‘They might keep a copy’ 

“Next week, we are going to receive a government inquiry on increasing the possibilities for the police to look into iPhones to find the documents that have been scanned there,” Anders Hall, state secretary for the ministry of justice, told The Telegraph.

“When you tear up your passport, you might keep a copy or a photo in your phone because sooner or later you might need it. This will give the legal basis to make it possible to look for them.”

The government expects the law to enter into force in 2025-26 after a consultation period.

Sweden now says there are more emigrants than immigrants for the first time in 50 years after toughening asylum rules since Ulf Kristersson took power as prime minister in 2022.