Please note that this does not apply before 1 January 2022.

Suppose you are a researcher affiliated with a Norwegian research institution and have a leading professional role in a research group with extensive international collaboration. In that case, you may be exempt from the requirement of eight years of residency during the last eleven years. It is still required that you have had six years of residence in Norway over the previous twelve years.  

This exemption is intended to apply to a limited group of researchers who, due to their work, have a particular need to stay abroad.  

To obtain an exemption, you must submit documentation from your employee institution, which describes the following:  

• your professional role in the research group  
• the research group's degree of international collaboration
• your stays abroad due to your work

The exemption also applies if you are a spouse, registered partner or cohabitant of a person who obtains Norwegian citizenship under this exemption. You must submit documentation showing that you are a spouse, registered partner or cohabiting with a person who has obtained or is applying for citizenship by this exemption.

Suppose you are an athlete and participate in a major international championship. In that case, you may be exempted from the requirement of eight years of residency if you are going to represent Norway, and it is crucial for your participation in the championship that you are a Norwegian citizen. It is still required that you have had six years of residency in Norway during the last ten years.  

You must submit documentation showing that you will participate in such a championship, represent Norway, and may only participate as a Norwegian citizen to get an exemption.

Suppose you are a member of the same household as 

• deployed personnel by a Norwegian foreign service mission, or  
• military personnel who have been ordered to serve abroad 

In that case, you may calculate the length of the residency abroad with the Norwegian citizen deployed. You may also get exemptions from the requirement to be and remain resident in Norway, the requirement for a permanent residence permit, and Norwegian and social studies. To get exemptions, you must:  

• not be a citizen of the country where you lived together with deployed personnel
• be registered in the Norwegian National Population Register as in relation to the Norwegian citizen who has been deployed

You must submit documentation showing where you have been resident throughout the time you have been resident abroad as a household member of deployed or military personnel.

Suppose you previously had a Norwegian passport, and you believed that you were a Norwegian citizen. In that case, you can have your residence time calculated for the period you have lived in Norway, even if you have not had a residence permit. You may also get an exemption from the permanent residence permit requirement.  

If there are strong reasons in your situation why there should be made exceptions from other requirements that apply to obtain Norwegian citizenship, this may also be considered. It may, for instance, be possible to obtain an exemption from the requirement to be or have been resident in Norway.

You must submit a copy of the Norwegian passport you have been issued, even if you were not a Norwegian. You do not have to pay a fee if you are in this group of applicants. 

Suppose you are a descendant of a Norwegian citizen who emigrated to Murmansk or Arkhangelsk County in Russia from the 1850s until the Russian border was closed in the late 1920s ("Kola-Norwegian"). In that case, you may get an exemption from the permanent residence permit requirement. You may also get an exemption from the requirement of eight years of residency in Norway during the last eleven years. To get an exemption, you must have:

• been granted a residence or work permit in Norway due to your affiliation to Norway as a descendent of a «Kola Norwegian», and  
• resided in Norway with residence or work permits of at least one year's duration for the last two years

If you were married to a «Kola Norwegian» before you travelled to Norway, you are considered married to a Norwegian citizen from the time of marriage. Then, the rules that apply to people married to a Norwegian citizen applies to you. However, the requirement of residing in Norway with permits for five of the past ten years does not apply to you. The same exemptions apply if you are a registered partner or cohabitant with a «Kola Norwegian».