Statless children under the age of 18 who have one Norwegian parent or apply together with one parent

If you hold a valid residence permit in Norway and you live here on a permanent basis, you can apply for Norwegian citizenship. Your residence permit must be valid both when you apply for Norwegian citizenship and while your application is being processed. Applying for Norwegian citizenship does not mean that you have a valid permit to stay in Norway. It is therefore very important that you renew your permit in the normal manner no later than one month before it expires.

Your parents must apply

Since you are under the age of 18, your parents, or the parent who has sole parental responsibility for you, must apply for Norwegian citizenship on your behalf. If your parents are dead or have forfeited their parental responsibility, your guardian has to submit the application.

If you are over the age of 12, you have to consent to an application for Norwegian citizenship being submitted on your behalf.

Requirements for Norwegian citizenship

  • You must be residing in Norway and intend to continue living here in the future.
    • You must have permanently residence when you apply for Norwegian citizenship and when the application is processed.
  • 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.
  • You must have stayed in Norway continuously for the past two years and have held residence permits that were each valid for at least one year (applies if you are over the age of two).
    • This means that you cannot have been abroad for more than two months per calendar year during the past two years.
    • Nor can you have stayed in Norway without a valid permit for more than two months in total during the past two years, reckoned from the date on which we make a decision in your case.
    • If you are under the age of two when you apply, there is no residence period requirement, but you must have applied for or hold a residence permit before we make a decision in your case.
    • Read more about how to calculate the length of your residence period.