Aim To translate the MISSCARE Survey into Swedish and establish its validity and reliability by evaluating its psychometric properties. Background Missed nursing care is defined as any aspect of required nursing care that is omitted or delayed. The consequence of missed nursing care is a threat to patient safety. The MISSCARE Survey is an American instrument measuring missed nursing care activities (part A) and its reasons (part B). Methods The translation was accomplished according to World Health Organization guidelines, focusing on a culture adaptation. Acceptability, construct validity, test–retest reliability and internal consistency were analysed. The Revised Standards for Quality Improvement Reporting Excellence (SQUIRE 2.0) was used as reporting checklist. Results The translation and culture adaptation needed several revisions. A total of 126 nurses answered the test and retest which showed acceptability of missing data. The factor analysis revealed a lack of fit to data for the original factorial structure in part B, while further analysis provided results suggesting a modification based on omitting six items. The internal consistency for part B and its subscales showed good results. Conclusions The MISSCARE Survey—Swedish version is a reliable and valid instrument, with good psychometric properties. Relevance to clinical practice More reliable language versions of the instrument enable national and international comparisons that could be valuable for nursing managers and/or directors of nursing who are responsible for quality of care and patient safety in the strategic care planning process.