Criticism Mounts as 8-Month-Old Infant Emanuel Faces Deportation Despite Parents' Residence Permits

An eight-month-old baby named Emanuel is set to be deported from Sweden to Iran despite both his parents holding residence permits, stirring significant public and political outcry. Emanuel was born in Sweden in May 2025, just one month after the Swedish government introduced changes to immigration regulations that tightened the rules regarding family members' ability to acquire residence permits.

Emanuel's mother, Masoumeh Ghorbani, who works as a healthcare assistant and obtained her work permit in 2022 through a procedure called "spårbyte," expressed her distress and disbelief over the decision. She believed that as a family with legal residence status, they would be allowed to stay together in Sweden. However, the Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket) ruled in January 2026 that the new immigration laws did not permit granting Emanuel a residence permit, citing legal grounds based on the removal of a specific provision allowing family members of work permit holders through "spårbyte" to remain.

Jesper Tengroth, the press chief of Migrationsverket, explained that the agency has handled numerous public inquiries about Emanuel's case but underscored that the tightened migration laws introduced last spring compelled the agency to enforce deportation even in cases involving very young children. He confirmed that while the best interests of the child are considered, they do not override the current legal framework.

The decision has sparked criticism, notably from Christian Democratic leader Ebba Busch, who described Emanuel’s deportation as "unreasonable." Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson acknowledged the complexity of such situations but refrained from commenting on individual cases. The family has appealed the deportation order, and currently, deportations to Iran are on hold due to security concerns in the country.

This case highlights the real human consequences of recent legislative changes in Swedish immigration law and has drawn widespread attention to the challenges faced by families navigating these rules.