You may be granted collective protection if you*:

• are a Ukrainian citizen, and you resided in Ukraine before 24 February 2022. Ukrainian nationals on holiday or visits outside Ukraine for up to 90 days before 24 February 2022 are also included. The same goes for those who fled Ukraine shortly before 24 February 2022.
• have been granted protection in Ukraine before 24 February 2022.
• are a close family member of a person who has been granted collective protection, regardless of nationality. Close family members may be a spouse, cohabitant, or children under the age of 18. The marriage or cohabitation must have been contracted before 24 February 2022 for the person to be considered a spouse or a cohabitant under this provision. It is not a requirement that a spouse, cohabitant or child under the age of 18 (or parents with a child under 18) was part of the same household as the person receiving collective protection before 24 February 2022. This provision applies even if you and your close family member apply at the same time. The requirement to be part of the same household is considered fulfilled, even if the applicant stayed somewhere else than in the household before 24 February 2022, unless the applicant can be considered to have moved out of the household.
• are “other family members” who, before 24 February 2022, were part of the same household as the person receiving collective protection. Examples of other family members might be children over the age of 18, grandparents or siblings. This provision applies even if you and your close family member apply at the same time.
• are a Ukrainian citizen and already had legal residence in Norway before 24 February 2022. This also applies to you who had been granted a residence permit in Norway before 24 February 2022 but entered the country later. Your previous basis for being in Norway must have ended or be set to end less than two months after you apply for protection.

Please note that this also applies even if you have multiple citizenships.

If the list above does not apply to you, you may still apply for protection, but your application will be assessed individually. If you have ties to Ukraine but do not qualify according to the criteria listed above, you are not eligible for collective protection in Norway.

*Even if you meet the conditions above, you will not be granted protection if you have:

• a permanent residence permit in Norway

or

• a temporary residence permit in Norway that forms the basis for permanent residency

or

•an equivalent permit (based on EEA regulations)

For you to be granted collective protection, the Norwegian authorities must know who you are. To prove your identity, you can provide, for example, one of the following documents: 

• Your passport (both biometric and non-biometric passport) 
• National ID card from Ukraine 
• Other documents, such as a birth certificate or expired passport 

If you do not have any identity documents, the police must conduct additional investigations to establish your identity. 

If you have protection in Ukraine, you must show documentation confirming that you have residency for protection there, in addition to identifying yourself.

If you have fled the war in Ukraine and applied for protection in Norway, the immigration authorities will process your application either as part of a group assessment (collective protection) or individually (ordinary protection).

You will be granted collective protection if you meet the conditions for such a permit. If you are not among those who can receive collective protection, UDI will make an individual assessment of your application.

It is the immigration authorities who decide whether your case should be assessed as part of the group assessment, or individually. You cannot choose for yourself.

Waiting times if you are entitled to collective protection

Most applications for collective protection are processed automatically, and not by a case process worker. Some cases must however be processed by a case process worker.

Applications that are processed automatically

If your application is processed automatically, you can expect to receive an answer shortly.

Applications processed by a case process worker

If your application needs to be processed by a case process worker, the waiting time will be longer.

The vast majority of applicants in this group receive an answer within 4 months. Many applicants will have an answer earlier. Some cases may take longer.

We do not always process the oldest cases first, so you may find that someone who applied after you receives an answer before you. Having to wait longer does not mean that there is anything wrong with your case.

How do you know if your case is processed automatically or by a case manager?

You will normally not find out whether your case will be processed automatically or by a person until you receive an answer to the application.

A case process worker must assess your case if

• your case lacks documents or information
• you are not a Ukrainian citizen
• you have not provided the correct residential address in Norway

The fact that your case cannot be processed automatically does not mean that there is anything wrong with it.

Waiting times if you are not entitled to collective protection

If your application does not meet the criteria for collective protection, the waiting time will be significantly longer.

Unfortunately, we cannot say anything about how long it will take to process such cases. The reason is that UDI is working to establish a practice. We cannot provide more information about this now, even if you contact UDI.

How do you know that you do not meet the criteria for collective protection?

If you are not entitled to collective protection, you will either be informed of this when you register with the police, or you will receive a letter from UDI once we have looked into your case. In the letter you will find information on what to do next.

If you are not entitled to collective protection, UDI will initially consider your case as a regular application for protection.

Do you have documents that you have not handed in?

You can find information on how to hand in documents at udi.no/docasylum

The waiting times were updated in December 2022. The next update will be in March 2023.

• The permit for collective protection is granted for one year at a time.
• You are entitled to health care through public health services (external website).
• You have the right to work in Norway.
• Your children have the right to attend school and kindergarten. 
• If you are between 18 and 55, you have the right to take part in an introduction programme, including training in Norwegian and social studies. If you are over the age of 55, you may still have the right to participate in an introduction programme. The municipality in which you reside can answer questions about this.
• Your family members who are not covered by the scheme for collective protection may apply for family immigration to Norway according to the usual rules. 
• For the first three years, collective protection does not form the basis for permanent residence. Still, you may obtain a temporary residence permit that forms the basis for permanent residency after those three years. After 5 years with a temporary permit that forms the basis for permanent residency, you can apply for a permanent residence permit if you meet the other requirements. This means a total of 8 years before you can apply for a permanent residence permit.
• You must tell the truth. If you have given us incorrect information or failed to mention matters of significance to the decision to grant you a permit, your permit may be revoked.
• You have the right to travel in and out of Norway, but you must have a travel document. You are also allowed to travel to Ukraine.
• You keep your Ukrainian passport while staying in Norway. If you need a new passport, please contact the Ukrainian Embassy in Norway.

• The permit for collective protection is granted for one year at a time.
• The scheme of collective protection may be discontinued if Ukraine becomes a safe country again. The residence permit you have received is valid until it expires, even if the scheme is discontinued.

You may request to have your application for protection assessed individually at any time. If you are eligible for collective protection, your application for ordinary protection will be withdrawn, as we have assessed your need for protection and granted you collective protection. You will receive information about how to apply for individual assessment of your application either when the collective protection scheme comes to an end or three years after you were granted collective protection. You will be given a deadline for notifying the immigration authorities that you wish to have your application processed individually. You will be notified well in advance of the deadline.