Sweden may reject the asylum applications of up to 80,000 migrants and should prepare to deport them, the interior minister says. Charter aircraft would be used to deport the migrants but it would take several years.
Some 163,000 migrants applied for asylum in Sweden in 2015, the highest per capita number in Europe.The numbers have fallen significantly since Sweden imposed tighter border controls this year.
Along with Germany, the Scandinavian country is a prime destination for refugees and other migrants entering the EU illegally.
Sweden is stepping up efforts to deport illegal migrants after failed Uzbek asylum seeker killed five people in a truck attack in Stockholm.