NorgeStart
Immigration & ID
Moving to Norway or just arrived? NorgeStart explains Norwegian bureaucracy, work, taxes, housing, healthcare and daily life in plain language — with an AI assistant that translates official letters and audits payslips.
Updated: 2026-07-06
EU/EEA citizens
- No residence permit needed — you may live and work freely. Staying over 3 months → register with the police (registreringsordningen) once, free, online form + one appointment.
- Bring: passport/ID, work contract or proof of funds/study.
- Family from outside the EU can join you under EU rules — see UDI.
Non-EU citizens
- You need a residence permit BEFORE moving (work, study, family, seasonal). Most apply from their home country via udi.no; processing takes weeks–months.
- After arrival: police appointment for ID check & residence card; workers can use SUA centres (Oslo, Bergen, Stavanger, Trondheim, Kirkenes) which bundle police + tax office.
- Working without a valid permit is a deportable offence — never start "informally while papers are pending" unless UDI explicitly allows it.
ID numbers — the key to everything
- Staying under 6 months → D-number (comes with your tax card application).
- Staying 6+ months → report your move at a Skatteetaten ID office within 8 days of arrival → national ID number (fødselsnummer).
- Without an ID number: no bank account, no fastlege, no BankID — this is priority #1 on arrival.
The long game
- Permanent residence: usually after 3 years (some permits 5), requires Norwegian language (A1/A2+) and social studies exams, and no recent criminal record.
- Citizenship: generally 8 years' residence (6 with income requirements met; less for Nordics/spouses), B1 Norwegian; dual citizenship is allowed since 2020.
- Norwegian courses: free for refugees and some permit types via the introduction programme; EU workers usually pay (kommune adult education, Røde Kors free language cafés).