The Riksdag has voted in favour of a constitutional amendment to the Freedom of the Press Act. The amendment states that a digital recording that has been confiscated or copied during a search should not be considered an official document. The decision involves a constitutional matter pending decision, which means that the Riksdag has taken a previous decision on the same matter.
The amendment to the Freedom of the Press Act states that a recording for automated processing that has been confiscated or copied at a house search, in situations such as criminal investigations, shall not be considered an official document. The same applies to a recording that has been received by an authority as a result of the authority having taken over responsibility for the confiscated information carrier or the copy of the search warrant.
If a recording is submitted to an investigation of a crime, criminal activity or other activity by the authority, however, it shall continue to constitute an official document.
The amendment will come into force on 1 January 2027.
Since the decision concerns an amendment to the Freedom of the Press Act which is one of the fundamental laws making up the Constitution, the Riksdag is required to vote twice on the proposal with the same outcome, and a parliamentary election must be held between the votes. The first decision on the proposal was taken on 22 April 2026, when the Riksdag voted in favour of the proposal. A parliamentary election has since been held.