How to apply
Check where to hand in your application
- If you are in Norway you hand in your application at a local police station. In larger cities there is often a special section/office for immigration permits. Please contact the local police to find out which office to visit.
- If you are abroad you normally hand in your application at a Norwegian embassy or consulate. In some countries you will hand in the application at the Swedish or Danish embassy instead. Check here where to hand in the application.
Find out if you should apply online
You should register your application online if:
- you apply from Norway
- you apply through a Norwegian embassy
You may not register your application online if you hand in the application at a Swedish or Danish embassy.
If you cannot apply online:
If you hand in the application at a Swedish or Danish embassy you need to print out the application form and hand it in at the embassy.
(You may nominate a person in Norway to register an application on your behalf. However, you are responsible for the application and have to hand in the supporting documentation yourself.)
You should submit your application no later than a month before your temporary residence permit expires. If you submit your application on time, you are entitled to stay in Norway on the same conditions as previously until a decision has been reached on your application.
What must be enclosed with the application?
In addition to the application form, you must show your passport and hand in releveant supporting documentation to the police or the embassy.
- If you apply online, you will at the same time book an appointment for handing in your documents to the police or the Norwegian embassy. You will not have to wait in line when you turn up for your appointment.
- If are not applying online you need to contact the embassy to find out when to hand in the documents along with the application form.
When you apply for a permanent residence permit, you must hand in the following documents to the police or embassy:
- A passport photo/ photo that meets specific requirements
- Copies of all pages in passports or any other travel documents you have held over the last three years
- A list of all travel in and out of the country over the last three years.
- The original receipt for fee paid
- Documentation that you have either completed tuition in the Norwegian language or been granted an exemption by the municipality. This however does not apply if the first permit forming a basis for a permanent permit was granted before 1 September 2005, nor if you are under 16 or over 55 years of age.
- Documentation relating to your previous permit, as you would have enclosed for renewal of that permit.
Some people have to submit additional documentation:
- If you hold a family immigration permit with your spouse/partner/cohabitant, you must also enclose the declaration of cohabitation.
- If you hold a family immigration permit on grounds of contact with children, you must enclose an up-to-date access agreement and confirmation from the other parent/ guardian that access has taken place and is still taking place in accordance with the agreement.
- If you hold a permit as a professor, academic employee or skilled worker and have spent more than seven months abroad during the last three years, you must enclose documentation from your employer clarifying which trips, if any, have been carried out in connection with your work.
Who decides your application?
The police will make the decision if there is no doubt that you meet the requirements to be granted a permanent residence permit. In practice, this means that the police process most applications for permanent residence permits.
If the police are in doubt as to whether the requirements are met, they will send the case to the Directorate of Immigration for processing. Doubts can be due to numerous or prolonged stays abroad during the three-year period, lack of clarity relating to the basis for various permits, good conduct requirements or the application being submitted too late. The police consider whether they should process the case themselves or whether it should be forwarded to the Directorate of Immigration for processing.
How long will it take to process my application?
The case processing time depends on whether the police process the case or if it is sent to the Directorate of Immigration for processing. You can ask the police where you submit your application how long they expect it to take if the application is processed by the police. You can find more information about case processing times in the event of the Directorate of Immigration processing your application under expected case processing times for permanent permits.
Renewal of permanent residence permit sticker
A permanent residence permit is noted in your passport by a sticker. The sticker is valid for two years, and must therefore be renewed. For EEA nationals, the sticker is valid for 25 years. When the validity of the sticker is about to expire, you must go to the police to have a new sticker affixed to your passport. You do not have to apply for a renewal beforehand. However, in certain police districts, such as the Oslo Police district, you must call in advance to book an appointment to get a new sticker. We recommend that you contact your local police district for information about their routines. You cannot renew the sticker more than six months before it expires.
If the sticker expires, that does not mean that you lose your permanent residence permit.
It is, however, important to renew an expired sticker before any travelling abroad, since the sticker functions as a return visa to Norway and the Schengen area. As a person subject to a visa requirement, you will need a separate visa to enter Norway without a valid sticker.
The permit’s content
A permanent residence permit gives you a general right to stay, work or run a business in Norway indefinitely. Your protection against expulsion is also stronger than for a residence permit. A permanent residence permit also entitles you to repeated entry into Norway.
You can appeal the decision
Read about how to appeal a decision here.
Can you lose a permanent residence permit?
Yes, you can lose your permanent residence permit if you do not stay in Norway.
You will lose your permanent residence permit if you stay abroad for a continuous period of two years or more after being granted a permanent permit. The stay outside Norway will be deemed to have been continuous even if you have stayed in Norway for one or more periods of a certain duration.
You can, however, apply to stay abroad for more than two years without losing your permanent residence permit if you are to settle in Norway again after your stay abroad. However, this only applies if you:
- are to serve your military service or other equivalent service in your home country
- are to stay abroad in connection with work or education over and above upper secondary school
- are to stay abroad together with a spouse, cohabitant or parents staying abroad in connection with work or education
In order to be eligible for a permit to stay abroad for more than two years, you must submit an application to the Directorate of Immigration well before you have spent two years abroad. If you have submitted your application more than six months before the two-year deadline expired, you will not lose your permanent residence permit if you return to Norway within two weeks of being informed of a rejection of the application.
You must be able to document the purpose of your stay abroad.
How long you will be permitted to stay abroad depends on the duration of your subsequent connection with Norway and the purpose of the stay abroad.
