What is a residence card?

A residence card is a plastic card in credit card format that proves that you have been granted a residence permit in Norway. The police will order a residence card for you.

If you have applied from Norway, it may be that you can get your residence card without meeting at the police station again. If this applies to you, the police will send you the residence card in the mail. This means that you do not have to book an appointment. Read below who must book an appointment.

What do you need to do to receive the card in the mail?

• Register as a new mail recipient in Norway (external website) at Posten, if you have not already done so.
• Check that you are registered with the correct postal address at Posten (external website), if you are already registered as a postal recipient. The site requires login with BankID or MinID.
• Make sure you have your name on the mailbox, otherwise you will not receive the card. If the card gets lost in the mail, it will take at least another ten business days before you can get a new one.
• You should not book trips abroad until you have received the new residence card.

Who must book an appointment to get a residence card?

• You who have applied from abroad.
• You who have an expired Norwegian alien's passport or travel document for refugees, which you have not already given to the police.
• If your application was submitted by another person with a power of attorney, you must book an appointment with the police yourself to get a residence card.
• If you have applied for a residence permit in accordance with the Brexit regulations, you will be notified to book an appointment after your application has been processed.
• If you have applied for protection for the first time with the police, the police will summon you to class. You do not have to book an appointment yourself.

At the police, you must take a picture and give fingerprints.

How to book an appointment?

Booking an appointment in the Application Portal:

If you used the Application Portal to register your application, you can now log in here to book the appointment (external website).

Booking an appointment by phone:

If you did not use the Application Portal when you applied for a residence permit, you must instead call your local police district to book an appointment. You cannot call the UDI to book an appointment.

You must attend an appointment with the police to get a residence card, and you can book the appointment in the application portal. Some police districts have long waiting time and it can be difficult to find available appointments. If you cannot find any available appointments in the application portal, it means that all the appointments have been booked. The police will regularly make new appointments available, so please keep checking for available appointments. You will find answers to frequently asked questions regarding booking an appointment here (external website).

If you have been granted a residence permit that gives you the right to study or work, and you have booked an appointment with the police to order a residence card, you can start studying or working now even if you have not received a residence card yet.

If it is not possible to book an appointment with the police, you must contact UDI by phone or e-mail to report that you are in Norway and will start your studies or work. You still have to meet with the police to order a residence card when this becomes possible.

The above also applies to you if you are going to work as an au pair in Norway. 

You can read more about tax cards and D-numbers on the Tax Administration's website (external website).

When you meet at the police to order a residence card, we notify the Tax Administration that you have been granted a residence permit. The Tax Administration decides whether you will be given a d-number or a national identity number.

About two weeks after you met at the police, you will receive a letter from the Tax Administration with your national identity number or your d number.

If you have changed your address in Norway since you applied for a residence permit, you must inform the police about this when you meet there, so that the correct residence address is registered in the National Registry.

If you have questions about tax deduction cards because you are going to work in Norway, you will find information on the Tax Administration's website about how foreign citizens apply for tax deduction cards (external website).

If you received a d-number when you should have received a national identity number, you must contact the National Registry (external website).

If you have been granted one of the following types of permit, your spouse or cohabitant and children can apply for family immigration permit:

• study permit to study at a university or university college
• residence permit for a Norwegian language course for skilled workers
• residence permit for additional education

If you hold another type of study permit, your family cannot apply for family immigration.

You are entitled to different types of health care (external website) depending on your situation.

• If you are granted a study permit, you are automatically also granted permission to work part-time for up to 20 hours per week in addition to your studies and full-time during holidays.
• You can apply for a permit to work full-time during the academic year if the work is part of your education plan. You have to ask for this in writing when you apply, or later.
• You can not be self-employed or run your own business in Norway

You can travel into and out of Norway for as long as the permit is valid, but you must live in Norway for at least a total of six months each year.

Your decision states how long your permit is valid for and whether it can be renewed. If you wish to continue living in Norway, you must remember to renew your permit or apply for a new one 2–3 months before the permit expires. If you do not, you may experience problems travelling into and out of Norway and lose the right to work in Norway while you are waiting for a new permit.

In some cases, you may lose your residence permit.

Losing a permit means that the UDI has decided that the residence permit is no longer valid. It may mean that you are no longer allowed to live in Norway or that you will be granted a new residence permit, and your residence period in Norway will restart.

There may be different reasons why you lose your residence permit, for example, if you:

• do not study
• live outside of Norway for more than a total of six months in one year
• work more than your permit entitles you to

Here you will find more information about revoking a residence permit.