Sweden — AFS 2023:12 (workplaces)
Legal status
Mandatory for workplaces. AFS 2023:12 (Utformning av arbetsplatser — "Design of workplaces") is issued by the Swedish Work Environment Authority (Arbetsmiljöverket) under the Work Environment Act (Arbetsmiljölagen) — a different legal basis and authority from BFS 2024:8, Boverket's building regulation under the Planning and Building Act (PBL).
The two apply in parallel to workplace buildings: BFS 2024:8 sets the building-permit requirement, and AFS 2023:12 sets the employer's duty of care toward people working in the space.
Requirement
AFS 2023:12 does not give a numeric daylight threshold. It requires that fixed workstations have sufficient daylight and a view of the outside, assessed according to the room's use, without specifying a daylight factor or an area percentage.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Metric | Not specified in the binding rule; allmänna råd point to EN 17037 |
| Threshold | None stated in AFS 2023:12 itself — "sufficient daylight," assessed by use |
| Spaces covered | Fixed workstations, defined desk areas |
| Spaces excluded | Aisles, break zones |
AFS 2023:12's allmänna råd (general recommendations — non-binding guidance on how to meet the binding rule) point explicitly to the calculation method:
"Exempel på metoder för bedömning av dagsljus och utblick finns i standarden SS-EN 17037:2018, Dagsljus i byggnader. Utgåva 1. Den ger även rekommendationer om god dagsljusbelysning och utblick." ("Examples of methods for assessing daylight and view are given in the standard SS-EN 17037:2018, Daylight in buildings, Edition 1. It also gives recommendations on good daylight and view.")
So EN 17037 is the referenced assessment method — via allmänna råd, not a binding numeric rule of AFS 2023:12 itself. In practice, compliance checks apply one of two alternative criteria, assessed per room rather than pooled at the dwelling level: either EN 17037's own sDA 300/50 % method, or the residential criterion from BFS 2024:8 — DF ≥ 1.0 % over ≥ 50 % of the area — used as a proxy. Neither is written directly into AFS 2023:12; both are common conventions consistent with the allmänna råd's pointer to EN 17037.
Calculation setup
AFS 2023:12 sets no binding calculation method of its own; its allmänna råd point to EN 17037's daylight-provision method, and Swedish practice uses the same setup as BFS 2024:8.
| Parameter | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Reference plane height | 0.8 m above floor | By convention, shared with BFS 2024:8 |
| Grid spacing | 0.2–0.3 m | Common practice, not prescribed |
| Wall offset (excluded border) | none | |
| Sky model | CIE standard overcast sky |
Reflectances are not mandated by AFS 2023:12; see Reflectance for the values LUX uses.
How LUX handles it
Status: ✅ Supported in LUX Live v0.3.0 (via the BFS 2024:8 proxy below).
LUX Live does not certify AFS 2023:12 compliance on its own legal terms — the regulation gives no number to check against. What LUX reports is the BFS 2024:8 DF ≥ 1.0 % criterion applied per room instead of pooled per dwelling, which is the practical proxy used for workplace assessments. This runs on the DF Default model — the only validated model, in production use.
Sources
- AFS 2023:12 — Utformning av arbetsplatser — Arbetsmiljöverket (free), including its allmänna råd citing SS-EN 17037:2018
- BFS 2024:8 — Ljus i byggnader / Dagsljus — Boverket (free)
- SS-EN 17037:2018 — Daylight in buildings — SIS (paid standard)