The aim of the paper is to examine the current state of immigrant and small business research (ISBR) in Sweden. The ISBR field is relatively new and undeveloped in Sweden, so mostresearch in this field concerns issues that are crucial in establishing this as a field of study. Apart from a historical overview of immigrant entrepreneurship and definitions of the concept of ethnic or immigrant business, many of the texts concern the distribution of immigrant businesses in Sweden.The second important feature of ISBR in Sweden is that it has allowed itself, deliberately ornot, to be guided by the optimistic vision and expectations in relation to ISB that also inform the official political agenda. It has done this instead of trying to develop its own research agenda based on scientific priorities, and secondarily, on results of international ISBR. Another relevant characteristic of ISBR in Sweden is the fact that only a few scholars have been able to deal with these issues systematically, while the majority have simply written papers during ad hoc forays in to the field of study. The final important feature of ISBR in Sweden is the lack of communication between ISBR and mainstream small business research and other relevant research fields.