Sweden puts up emergency funds to tackle refugee crisis

The Swedish government on Thursday freed up emergency funds to help the country cope with historically high admissions of asylum seekers, local media reported.

The government added nearly 11 billion SEK (1.27 billion U.S. dollars) to its budget for 2016, most of which will go to local municipalities, public broadcaster Swedish Television reported.

"This is a one-time expense, but even as such it is a historically large amount. All of it will be financed through loans," Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson told the channel.

The extra funds come after several months of high admissions of asylum seekers, with the annual figure for 2015 soaring above yearly records to date, according to Sweden's Migration Agency.

Last month, Sweden's finance ministry urged other parts of the government to come up with spending cuts in order to free up funds for refugee admissions.

The Migration Agency has said Sweden needs an additional 29 billion SEK (3.53 billion U.S. dollars) to cope with the influx of refugees in 2016, daily newspaper Svenska Dagbladet reported.

Swedish customs on Thursday began checking documents along the country's southern borders, temporarily scrapping free movement into the country after 14 years without border checks under the European Union's Schengen agreement.

Asylum seekers are still able to seek refuge in Sweden but migrants in transit to countries such as Norway or Finland will have to find another route or seek asylum in Sweden, Interior Minister Anders Ygeman told Swedish Television. (1 U.S. dollar = 8.65 SEK) Endit