# Norway Citizenship Requirements

Norway's ordinary adult application route normally requires eight qualifying years within eleven, together with residence status, identity, conduct and language conditions. Income-based and other statutory cohorts have different residence requirements.

Scope: Ordinary adult applicant using residence permits; EEA/EFTA residence-right, Nordic, family, refugee, stateless and childhood-arrival routes are separate or reduced cohorts, not universal shortcuts.

Jurisdiction: Norwegian citizenship. Sources reviewed 2026-09-17; review due 2026-12-16.

General information, not legal advice or a finding of eligibility. Requirements depend on the route, applicant and filing date. Verify the official instructions before applying.

## Ordinary residence and absences

The baseline is eight years within the preceding eleven, normally with permits valid for at least one year; statutory permit exceptions and qualifying application periods can count. Foreign stays totalling no more than two months in a calendar year count as Norwegian residence; above that, the entire foreign stay is deducted.

Evidence: conditional. [Norway, legislation published by Lovdata: Norwegian Citizenship Act, consolidated text](https://lovdata.no/dokument/NL/lov/2005-06-10-51); [Norway, legislation published by Lovdata: Regulations on acquisition and loss of Norwegian citizenship](https://lovdata.no/dokument/SF/forskrift/2006-06-30-756). Source location: Citizenship Act section 7(1)(e), (3), (6); Regulations sections 3-1 to 3-4.

## Income-based and other cohorts

The sufficient-income cohort requires six qualifying years within ten. It uses the latest completed tax assessment, with a later favourable assessment allowed, and qualifying income or benefits of at least three National Insurance basic amounts. Recognised refugees have seven years within ten; those arriving before age 18 have five within seven.

Evidence: conditional. [Norway, legislation published by Lovdata: Norwegian Citizenship Act, consolidated text](https://lovdata.no/dokument/NL/lov/2005-06-10-51); [Norway, legislation published by Lovdata: Regulations on acquisition and loss of Norwegian citizenship](https://lovdata.no/dokument/SF/forskrift/2006-06-30-756). Source location: Citizenship Act sections 10, 11 and 16a; Regulations section 6-1; not a fixed currency threshold.

## Status, identity and conduct

At decision, applicants must ordinarily live in Norway and intend to remain, have established their identity, and have or satisfy the conditions for permanent residence. Criminal penalties can require a waiting period; national-interest or foreign-policy grounds can prevent entitlement. Residence time alone does not secure approval.

Evidence: conditional. [Norwegian Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion: Citizenship and the Citizenship Act, updated 21 January 2026](https://www.regjeringen.no/no/tema/innvandring-og-integrering/asd/statsborgerskap-og-statsborgerloven/id2343481/); [Norway, legislation published by Lovdata: Norwegian Citizenship Act, consolidated text](https://lovdata.no/dokument/NL/lov/2005-06-10-51). Source location: Ministry: Norsk statsborgarskap ved søknad; Citizenship Act section 7(1)(a), (c), (d), (g), (2) and section 9.

## Oral Norwegian and civic knowledge

Applicants aged 18 to under 67 normally need oral Norwegian at CEFR B1 and the citizenship test. A qualifying social-studies test taken in Norwegian is an accepted alternative to the citizenship test. The age-18 boundary is assessed when applying.

Evidence: conditional. [Norway, legislation published by Lovdata: Norwegian Citizenship Act, consolidated text](https://lovdata.no/dokument/NL/lov/2005-06-10-51); [Norway, legislation published by Lovdata: Regulations on acquisition and loss of Norwegian citizenship](https://lovdata.no/dokument/SF/forskrift/2006-06-30-756); [Norwegian Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion: Circular A-3/2022: commencement of citizenship language amendments](https://www.regjeringen.no/globalassets/departementene/aid/dokumenter/2022/rundskriv-om-ikrafftredelse-av-endringer-i-statsborgerforskriften.pdf). Source location: Citizenship Act section 8; Regulations section 4-2(a); Circular A-3/2022 page 1, European language framework.

## Reduced standard is not a full waiver

Stateless applicants normally need oral A2 instead. The same reduced level applies to specified protection-arrival or disability-benefit cohorts aged at least 55. Relevant health or personal limitations may also reduce B1 to A2; full exemption needs weighty reasons. Listed education or prior-exemption evidence can satisfy separate language or civic-test exceptions.

Evidence: conditional. [Norway, legislation published by Lovdata: Regulations on acquisition and loss of Norwegian citizenship](https://lovdata.no/dokument/SF/forskrift/2006-06-30-756); [Norwegian Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion: Circular A-3/2022: commencement of citizenship language amendments](https://www.regjeringen.no/globalassets/departementene/aid/dokumenter/2022/rundskriv-om-ikrafftredelse-av-endringer-i-statsborgerforskriften.pdf). Source location: Regulations sections 4-1(a)–(i), final paragraph, and 4-2; Circular A-3/2022 pages 2–4.

## Keeping another nationality

Norway has allowed another nationality alongside Norwegian citizenship since 1 January 2020, including for people applying to become Norwegian. No Norwegian notification to retain the previous nationality is required, but the other country's nationality law must also allow retention.

Evidence: conditional. [Royal Norwegian Embassy in Bucharest: Dual citizenship](https://www.norway.no/no/romania/for-nordmenn/bistand-til-nordmenn/dobbelt-statsborgerskap/). Source location: English version: Dual Citizenship; You must also check the rules of the other country.

## 2026 changes remain proposals

The June 2026 proposal would replace the ordinary eight-within-eleven rule with eight continuous years and change some special cohorts. The consultation remains open until 19 October 2026; these proposed changes are not used as current requirements here.

Evidence: documented. [Norwegian Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion: Government proposes changes to the Citizenship Act, 21 June 2026](https://www.regjeringen.no/no/aktuelt/ny-side2/id3166963/); [Norwegian Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion: Citizenship Act and Regulations consultation, 23 June 2026](https://www.regjeringen.no/no/dokumenter/horing-forslag-til-endringer-i-statsborgerloven-og-statsborgerforskriften-forenkling-harmonisering-og-automatisering/id3167225/). Source location: 21 June release: Dette er forslagene; 23 June consultation: Status På høring and Høringsfrist 19.10.2026.

## Scope and limitations

- Eligibility periods are not processing estimates. UDI decides applications; identity evidence, permit continuity, permanent-residence conditions and the exact exemption category need individual checking.
- This is not a complete guide to EEA/EFTA, Nordic, family or stateless routes, or residence in Svalbard. The sufficient-income citizenship concession is distinct from permanent-residence self-support requirements. Recheck the pending reform before relying on later rules.

## Explore this passport

- [Passport rank and travel access](https://multipassrank.com/passport/norway)
- [Tax residence & income](https://multipassrank.com/passport/norway/taxes)
- [Country-profile JSON, including sources and scoped requirements](https://multipassrank.com/api/v1/country-profiles/NO)
- [Multiple-citizenship policy guide](https://multipassrank.com/dual-citizenship-countries)

[Canonical page](https://multipassrank.com/passport/norway/citizenship)