Travelling to Norway, what kind of permit you will need?
The Schengen Area:
On 25 March 2001 Norway became part of the Schengen Area, which includes the following countries; Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. A visa for one of the countries in the Schengen area is valid for a stay in all the other Schengen countries during the period for which the visa is valid.
Permits and documents needed to visit or stay in Norway
The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) has issued a set of fact sheets that will help you out. The fact sheets are published in several languages and cover the following areas:
• Visa: gives the holder permission to travel to Norway and the Schengen area for up to three months
• Work permit: entitles the holder to work in Norway. Different rules apply to nationals of different countries and to with people with different occupations
• Asylum: a person may have a right to asylum in Norway if he or she has a well-founded fear of persecution in his or her country of origin
• Settlement permit: entitles the holder to live and work in Norway permanently.
• Family reunification: means that a family member living abroad is allowed to come to Norway to live with one or more family members who already live here or intend to live here permanently
• Citizenship: affiliation with a state with rights and responsibilities vis-à-vis that state
• Residence permits for students: a foreign national who wishes to study in Norway may be granted a residence permit for this purpose
All foreign nationals who wish to come to Norway must have a valid passport or other identity documents which are recognised as a travel document.
Please be aware that the passport or the residence permit in Macedonia should be valid for three months beyond
the intended stay in Norway, and that there should be at least two empty pages especially assigned for
Visa/and/or permits stickers.
Short-term visas:
A visitor's visa may be granted for a tourist visit, family visit, official business, business trip, study visit or other purpose. A visa for tourist or business purposes can be issued for one or more entries. As a main rule the visa will only be granted with one entry. If multiple entries are necessary this will have to be documented. The total duration of the stay may not exceed 90 days within the following six months.
Visas for long-term stays:
If you intend to stay in Norway for more than 90 days, or if you are going to work while in Norway, you need a Residence or Work Permit. An application for Residence or Work Permit must be submitted at the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Skopje, but will be forwarded by the Embassy to the Directorate of Immigration (UDI) in Norway for consideration. The applicant has to stay in his/her home country until the permit has been granted by UDI. The visas issued can be national visas limited to one member country or residence permits allowing the applicant to travel to other Schengen countries.
Visas for transits:
For travellers making a transit through the Schengen countries to a non-Schengen country a special transit visa can be issued for a maximum of five days' transit. For this type of visa the applicant should present the same kind of documents as mentioned above.
A visa for transit, providing admission to the international transit area of an airport (but not a stay in the country's actual territory) can be issued to citizens of certain countries or holders of travel documents issued in these countries. These visas can be obtained from the Embassy of the transit country, a valid passport and a plane ticket being sufficient documents to present at the application.
Exceptions:
Foreign nationals from a number of countries cannot enter Norway without a visa. A visa is not required, among others, for:
• Nordic Citizens
• Foreign nationals with a valid passport from countries with which Norway has entered into a agreement waiving the visa requirement (for info go to UDI web pages)
• Persons with a valid Norwegian immigrant's passport
• Persons with a valid Norwegian travel document for refugees
• Persons with a residence permit in Norway
Please note:
all applications will be considered upon their own merits and on the information given in each individual case
the Embassy has full authority to evaluate and request more documents than those submitted by the applicant
it is formally forbidden to change travel destination or aim of travel after the visa has been issued
holders of Schengen visas are still subject to immigration control upon first entry into a Schengen country and are therefore not guaranteed automatic entry when they hold a valid Schengen visa.
The embassy encourage applicants to handle in their visa applications in due time before their departure for Norway.
How to apply:
Application forms are available at the Embassy and on the internet. Guarantee forms for visit are also available at police stations in Norway, the Embassy and on the internet.
Everyone is entitled to apply for a visa. The Embassy is obliged to receive and consider the application even if no supporting documentation has been provided. Supporting documentation will, however, normally be beneficial for the application. An incomplete application might be immediately refused or forwarded to the UDI for processing. Applicants are required to submit the application in person at the Embassy (cf. §108, Provisions to the Immigration Act).
NOTE! All supporting information must be submitted together with the application, by the applicant personally. If, upon the explicit request from the staff of the Embassy, supporting documentation is to be sent by fax, mail or e-mail, this should be done with reference to the application number of a registered application. Supporting documentation sent to the Embassy without reference to a registered application will not be considered, and made waste. References sending supporting documentation should do so directly to the applicants, not to the Embassy.
What travellers should bring along when travelling to Norway after a visa is granted?
- Passport
- The Visa approval letter is issued by the Norwegian Embassy or by the Directorate of Immigration (UDI) (if available)
- The guarantee form
- The invitation letter
- Travel Insurance
- Money (money to cover expenses; 150 EURO as minimum)