Over the age of 12

Requirements for Norwegian citizenship

  • You must be over the age of 12.
  • You must have lived in Norway continuously for the past two years and intend to continue living here.
    • This means that you cannot have been abroad for more than two months per calendar year during the past two years before we make a decision in your case.
  • You must understand the Norwegian or Sami language if you are between 18 and 67 years old.
    • For Nordic nationals, it is sufficient that you show us that you understand the Norwegian or Sami language. You can, for example, do this by submitting a confirmation from your employer, school or another Norwegian public body that has knowledge of your understanding of Norwegian or Sami.
  • If you over the age of 15 years: You must order a criminal record certificate (external website), which you must hand in with the application. The certificate cannot be more than three months old when you meet for your appointment with the police to submit the application documents. Therefore, you must wait to apply for a criminal record certificate until you know when you have an appointment with the police. If you already have a criminal record certificate that is older than three months, you must apply for a new certificate before you have your appointment. If you have been convicted or fined by the police or if you are under investigation for a criminal offence, you might have to wait longer to become a Norwegian citizen.
  • From 1 January 2020, you are not required to give up your original citizenship to become a Norwegian citizen. You can have one or more citizenships in addition to a Norwegian citizenship. However, if the country you are a citizen of now does not allow you to have more than one citizenship, you may still lose this citizenship when you become a Norwegian citizen.

    You must make sure what the rules are in your current country of citizenship. You can, for example, look for information on an official website which belongs to the authorities in that country or ask an embassy.

    You do not have to inform Norwegian authorities that you wish to keep your previous citizenship.