In 2008, Sweden introduced a cash-for-care benefit consisting of a flat-rate sum paid by municipalities to parents whose children were between the ages of one and three and who did not use publicly subsidised childcare. The main object of the reform was to increase parents' freedom to choose', but the policy was criticised because of its potentially negative effects on gender equality and mothers' employment. This study focuses on the effects of cash-for-care on female employment in Sweden. The study shows that the adoption of this policy had negative effects on female employment, although primarily in rural areas. Cash-for-care was abolished in Sweden in 2016. To evaluate the effects that the policy had on female employment during the time it was in place is important as it indicates what may happen if the policy is introduced again.