Norway Sets Official Travel Limit For Foreigners Applying For Citizenship

• The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration states that foreigners applying for citizenship face a 2-month abroad limit per calendar year
• Staying abroad for more than 2 months in any calendar year triggers a full deduction of the entire period abroad, not just the excess days
• Special rules apply to stateless applicants over 18, children aged 2 to 18 with a Norwegian parent, and children under 2

The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) clarifies that foreigners working towards Norwegian citizenship must not spend more than two months outside the country in any single calendar year if they want that time to count towards their required residence period.

This is a rule about how the residence period is calculated for citizenship purposes, not a travel ban or a new restriction.

The UDI explains that an absence of two months or less within a calendar year carries no penalty and the applicant is still treated as having been resident in Norway throughout that time.

However, if the absence exceeds two months in any calendar year, the whole period abroad is deducted from the residence calculation, not merely the days that go beyond the two-month threshold. The UDI states this applies even when the time abroad was spent working.

What Counts Towards the Residence Period

The UDI states that residence permits must generally have been of at least one year's duration to count towards the residence requirement.

Exceptions exist for family immigration permits that were shorter due to the duration of the sponsor's permit, and for work permits that were shorter due to the length of the employment contract but still formed the basis for a permanent residence permit.

Three categories of stay do not count towards the residence period at all: the gap between a permit expiring and a new application being submitted, any illegal stay in Norway, and time spent abroad exceeding two months in a calendar year.

The UDI also advises applicants not to submit their application before they have met all the requirements. Processing times vary, and if the UDI processes an application before the requirements are fulfilled, the application will be rejected.

Special Rules for Certain Applicants

Stateless applicants over the age of 18 must have lived continuously in Norway for the past three years on permits of at least one year's duration. During that three-year window, they cannot have been abroad for more than two months per calendar year, nor without a valid permit for more than two months in total.

Children aged between 2 and 18 who have a Norwegian parent, or who are applying alongside a parent, must have stayed in Norway continuously for the past two years on qualifying permits. The same two-month travel and permit conditions apply within that two-year window.

Children who have not yet turned two at the time of application face no residence period requirement, but the UDI states they must have applied for, or already been granted, a residence permit before the citizenship application can be processed.

Norway lists requirements for citizenship

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Norway's government outlined the conditions immigrants must satisfy before they can be granted Norwegian nationality through an application.

Applicants must have lived in Norway for a minimum number of years, pass a citizenship test, and demonstrate proficiency in spoken Norwegian.

Source: Legit.ng