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NORWEGIAN CITIZENSHIP

What are the rules for the police certificate when applying for Norwegian citizenship?

When applying for Norwegian citizenship, you will need to submit a certificate from the police. So, what is the certificate and what are the rules for submitting one? 

Published: 22 November 2022 16:24 CET
Updated: 23 July 2023 08:05 CEST
Pictured is a Norwegian flag.
Here's what you need to know about the criminal record certificate when applying for citizenship. Pictured is a Norwegian flag.Photo by Max van den Oetelaar on Unsplash

Norwegian citizenship comes with a lot of great perks and benefits. The downside is that there are also a lot of rules and requirements that can make the whole process completely overwhelming. 

Failure to meet all the requirements can lead to the application being turned down, which in addition to coming as a blow to your plans, hopes and ambitions, means you lose the rather steep application fee too. 

Being rejected for failing to meet some specific requirements is far more common than others. Previously, the Norwegian Immigration Directorate (UDI) has told The Local failing to meet the police certificate requirements was a common reason applications were denied. 

READ MORE: Why your Norwegian citizenship application might be rejected and how to avoid it

So, what is the police certificate? 

A police certificate of conduct verifies that you haven’t been convicted or fined by the police. All applicants over the age of 15 are required to submit one with their other documents. 

If you have been convicted of a crime or received a criminal fine- parking tickets and the like don’t count- you will be disqualified from applying for citizenship. 

Those who work in specific sectors, such as with children or vulnerable people, will be required to have a police certificate too for work. 

They may also be required when heading up volunteer groups, similar to a CBS check in the UK or a criminal background check in the USA. 

You can apply for a police certificate from, you guessed it, the police. If you have a digital mailbox, the police will send you the certificate two weeks from the day the police receive your request. 

The process will likely take longer if you apply via post, according to the police’s website. 

What are the rules for submitting one? 

Essentially, to be eligible for the certificate, you will need to have not been convicted for any crimes or waited until the disqualification period to end if you have. 

However, there are specific rules when applying for citizenship. Firstly, the certificate cannot be more than three months old when you submit your citizenship application to your nearest Norwegian police station. 

Therefore, if you have had one done for work, or another reason, previously, you will not be able to use it for your citizenship application. 

The UDI advises that you should not submit the certificate until you have booked an appointment with the police to hand in all your other documents. This reduces the likelihood of your certificate expiring before you hand in your documents. 

Even if everything else is in order, your application can be turned down for not having an up-to-date police certificate. 

When applying, you should collate all your paperwork, excluding the certificate for the application, book an appointment and then order the certificate. 

Given it only takes a couple of weeks, sometimes more, you shouldn’t have to fret too much about your certificate arriving in time for your appointment. 

This will be submitted along with all your other documents to the police. After this, you will receive an answer (don’t expect a brisk turnaround) to find out whether you have obtained citizenship or not. 

What if you think there has been a mistake

You can appeal the UDI’s decision if you believe there has been a mix-up or that their rejecting your case was wrong or unfair. 

When turned down for citizenship, you will be given a deadline to appeal. You will likely need to have received new documentation or information, or your appeal will also be rejected, according to the UDI.

Appeals cost nothing and can be submitted in English or Norwegian. You can read more here. 

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NORWEGIAN CITIZENSHIP

Why Norwegian citizenship can be easier to obtain as you get older

Due to the many requirements, applying for Norwegian citizenship is far from straightforward. However, those approaching their advanced years may have an easier time of things.

Published: 17 September 2024 16:02 CEST
Why Norwegian citizenship can be easier to obtain as you get older

The older we all get, the more time and effort we spend thinking about where we’d like to settle down.

Norwegian citizenship helps boost your options as you’ll have the right to live in Norway and be a member of the national insurance scheme indefinitely.

Those who would hold dual citizenship if they become Norwegian may benefit from gaining the rights of EEA citizens, too.

READ ALSO: Six surprising Norwegian citizenship rules you should know about

Why Norwegian citizenship may be easier the older you are

Well, firstly, you can be subject to slightly easier language requirements – or they may not apply at all.

Applicants over age 67 do not need to meet the language requirement to pass an oral Norwegian test at the B1 level. CEFR-level B1 means the language user can enter unprepared into conversation on topics that are familiar, of personal interest, or pertinent to everyday life.

Those over 55 also face less strict requirements. They simply need to pass the language exam at the A2 level. This level means users can handle very short social exchanges, even if they can’t usually understand enough to keep the conversation going.

Being able to bypass these exams makes citizenship a lot more appealing and more obtainable.

Another perk of being older is that you will be more likely to meet the other requirements. For starters, the older you are, the more likely you are to be in a long-term relationship, which means that your citizenship waiting times might be shorter.

Should you have a Norwegian spouse, you can apply for citizenship after you have lived in Norway for five years and have been married or have lived with a Norwegian for a total of seven years. During this seven-year period, it doesn’t matter whether you have lived abroad or in Norway.

This can make it easier to obtain Norwegian citizenship.

The things that make it harder to obtain citizenship if you are older.

Firstly, learning languages can be more difficult for older people. Therefore, if you are still young enough that you can’t completely skip the language requirements, but are old enough that you might struggle then you may be at a disadvantage.

Furthermore, the citizenship rules for those with Norwegian parents are less lenient for older generations.

As the rules for claiming citizenship when one parent was Norwegian at birth can be quite complicated for those born before 1979, the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) advises that you contact them directly to find out whether you will be eligible for citizenship.

Meanwhile, those born before September 1st, 2006 can become Norwegian through parentage if their mother was Norwegian, or if their father was a Norwegian citizen and was married to their mother.

The rules are far more straightforward for those born after 2006. In that event, you automatically became a Norwegian citizen at birth if you have a Norwegian mother or father.

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