Explicit policies on return migration are of rather recent date in most European countries, including Sweden. During the last few years a number of new policy initiatives have been taken in this field. The purpose of this paper is to examine how official Swedish policies on return migration have changed during the last 20 years. The conclusion is that Sweden has moved from a non-policy in the 1970s, much in opposition to guestworker or rotation systems, towards an active and explicit policy promoting return in the mid-1990s. The major trends in the country's immigration, emigration and return flows are also presented.