Below is an overview of the documents you must enclose with your application. Please note that there are different requirements for different types of application.
Requirements for information in applications for family immigration
Certified copy
The original documents must be submitted to the police or Foreign Service mission when applying for a residence permit. Enclosed with the application we need, however, only copies of the documents. Bring your own copies when you submit the application. The copies must either be certified by a public authority, others who have expertise as a public authority, or of the police or the Foreign Service mission. After viewing the original documents, and the police or the Foreign Service mission has seen that they match with the copies, you can take the originals back home with you again.
Translation of documents
As a rule, documents in languages other than Norwegian, English, German or French are to be translated into one of these languages by a certified translator. It should be made clear on the document who has translated it, and when it has been done.
Lacking information
An application from which important documents are lacking, can be rejected or take longer to process. If you are not able to enclose some of the documents we need, you must attach an explanation of why that is not possible.
Documents you have submitted to Norwegian authorities earlier
If you have submitted documents in the past, for example in connection with another application, it is not necessary to deliver these again.
Other information
If you have any other information or statements that are necessary to the case, you should attach this as a letter of application. Variation in requirements for documentation
The requirements for documentation can vary from country to country.
The Foreign Service mission in the country you submit your application, will inform you on what documents they require.
- Passport photo (2 recent copies)
- Confirmation that you have paid the fee (the receipt for the payment, if possible)
- A copy of your passport (all pages, including those not used)
- The applicant’s birth certificate
- Other country-specific documentation of identity, if relevant (e.g. ID card or household register)
- Documentation of housing (deed/rental or sales contract for a dwelling in Norway)
- Documentation that the person resident in Norway is able to support you financially (if the there are changes in income while the application is being processed, you must send us updated information)
- Documentation that the person resident in Norway has not received financial support from the social
services the last 12 months
- Marriage certificate or registered partnership certificate
- Divorce certificate/death certificate of former spouse, if relevant
- Copy of the person living in Norway’s passport (all pages used)
- Photos illustrating the relationship between you and your spouse if you think that they are important to substantiate that the relationship is genuine.
It is also advantageous to include a brief description of when and where you met for the first time, how many times you have met one another, when you decided to marry, how you were married and whether you celebrated the wedding.
If it is a requirement that the person you apply for family immigration with has worked or studied for at least four years in Norway, you must submit such documentation.
If your spouse or registered partner previously has been married to a person from the same country as you, and this spouse has had a permit in family immigration in Norway, you must submit documentation that the first marriage is dissolved in your country, and in the country it was entered into. This requirement does not apply if there are serious obstacles to obtain such information. Furthermore, the requirement does not apply if your country and the country where the marriage was entered into have ratified the Haag convention of the 1st of June 1970, concerning recognition of divorces and legal separations.
- When applying for a permit, you must submit official documentation stating who has parental responsibility for you – e.g. from a divorce decree or other relevant official documentation of parental responsibility.
- If parental responsibility is shared, your other parent must consent to you residing in Norway. He or she must normally attend the Foreign Service mission in person and sign the application. Alternatively, the person can sign a letter of consent, which is then taken to a public authority for confirmation.
- If your other parent is dead, you must submit the death certificate.
- If the spouse of your parent in Norway is financially guaranteeing for your stay, the guarantee form for residence must be completed and submitted with the application.
- If your other parent has disappeared, you should try to document that you have tried to trace him or her. In some countries, the Red Cross has a tracing service that can help you.
- Remember to state the identity of your current care provider.
- Documentation of your marital status
- Divorce certificate/death certificate of former spouse/partner, if relevant
- Documentation on final decision for separation, if relevant
- Documentation that you have lived together for a period of more than two years. You can submit a certificate of residence from the population register in Norway or abroad or a deed/ rental contact on a dwelling you have shared for at least two years.
Or
- Children’s birth certificates or pregnant women’s health records (or similar)
- A copy of the person living in Norway’s passport (all pages, including the ones not used)
If it is a requirement that the person you apply for family immigration with has worked or studied for at least four years in Norway, you must submit such documentation.
If your spouse or registered partner previously has been married to a person from the same country as you, and this spouse has had a permit in family immigration in Norway, you must submit documentation that the first marriage is dissolved in your country, and in the country it was entered into. This requirement does not apply if there are serious obstacles to obtain such information. Furthermore, the requirement does not apply if your country and the country where the marriage was entered into have ratified the Haag convention of the 1st of June 1970, concerning recognition of divorces and legal separations.
It is also advantageous to include a brief description of when and where you met one another, and when you started cohabiting.
- Certificate of non-impediment to marriage that is less than six months old
- Divorce certificate/death certificate of former spouse/partner , if relevant
- A copy of the person living in Norway’s passport (all pages, including those not used)
- A description of your relationship and the wedding plans, when and where you met each other, how often you have since the first time, when you decided to get married, and when and where the marriage will be celebrated
If your spouse or registered partner previously has been married to a person from the same country as you, and this spouse has had a permit in family immigration in Norway, you must submit documentation that the first marriage is dissolved in your country, and in the country it was entered into. This requirement does not apply if there are serious obstacles to obtain such information. Furthermore, the requirement does not apply if your country and the country where the marriage was entered into have ratified the Haag convention of the 1st of June 1970, concerning recognition of divorces and legal separations.
If it is a requirement that the person you apply for family immigration with has worked or studied for at least four years in Norway, you must submit such documentation.
You can submit photos illustrating the relationship between you and your fiancé if you think that they are important to substantiate that the relationship is genuine.
- Birth certificate of the child living in Norway – as documentation that you are the mother or father of the child you are applying for a permit to visit
- Documentation of your marital status
- The guarantee form for residence, if the spouse of your child in Norway is financially guaranteeing for your stay
- Birth certificate of the child in Norway (documentation that you are the child’s parent)
- Divorce certificate/ death certificate for former spouse, if relevant
- Documentation of the legal residence of any of your children who do not live in the same country as you
- Death certificate for parents, children and grand children, if applicable
- The guarantee form for residence, if the spouse of your child in Norway is financially guaranteeing for your stay
If the application for permanent residence is rejected and you alternatively wish to visit your child for up to nine months, you should enclose a statement to this effect, which must also state that you will return to your home country voluntarily at the end of the visit.
- Contact visit agreement, dated and signed by both parents
- Statement from the other parent stating how the contact visits have been carried out and whether the contact visit agreement has been followed up
- Any agreements on gradual increase of contact, dated and signed by both parties, if applicable
If you apply for a continued residence permit on the basis of a visitation agreement with your children, submit documentation on having lived with the child the last year, or having had contact visits abroad with the child.
- If it is a requirement that the person you apply for family immigration with has worked or studied for at least four years in Norway, you must submit such documentation.
- Adopted children must submit their adoption papers.
- Children over the age of 18 must submit documentation of their marital status or a certificate of non-impediment to marriage .
- Foster children must submit documentation that their foster parents have parental responsibility for them, and any documentation of the deaths of their biological parents.
- Full siblings must submit documentation that their parents are dead.
- If you apply for a permit on grounds of strong humanitarian considerations, or because of a particular connection to Norway, you must explain the situation, and submit documentation if possible. Serious illness may be documented by a medical certificate or certificate from a hospital. As an indication of children’s connection to Norway, statements from the school/ kindergarten and a description of the child’s knowledge of Norwegian language, participation in leisure activities may be relevant.
- For applications for a renewal of residence permit in family immigration with spouse or cohabitant, the form declaration of relationship must be completed.
