Norway · Family

Family immigration with a Norwegian or Nordic citizen (spouse or registered partner)

Family immigration with a Norwegian or Nordic citizen (spouse or registered partner) is issued by Utlendingsdirektoratet (UDI). VisaAI tracks 10 official requirements for it, each traced to the government page that states it.

Last verified against the official source on .

VisaAI is not a government body and does not issue visas. It cannot decide, predict or guarantee the outcome of an application, and this page is not legal or immigration advice.

Requirements change. Confirm every item on Utlendingsdirektoratet (UDI)’s own page before you apply.

Each requirement below is written in plain English by VisaAI. The indented text beneath it is quoted from Utlendingsdirektoratet (UDI)’s own page, so you can check what we say against what they say. Where a quotation shows “ ... ”, text has been left out.

Conditions you must meet

  • Your marriage or partnership was validly entered intoApplies to both of you.
    Your marriage/partnership must have been validly entered into.
  • A marriage entered into abroad must be recognisable in NorwayApplies only if you married outside Norway. Recognition is decided by Norwegian law, not by the country that issued the certificate.
    It must be possible to have your marriage recognised in Norway if you entered into marriage while abroad.
  • You plan to live together in NorwayApplies to both of you.
    You must have plans to live together in Norway.
  • Neither of you was forced to marryUDI defines forced marriage on a separate page, which is not a registered source.
    You must not have been forced to marry (forced marriage).
  • The marriage is not a circumvention marriageA marriage entered into mainly to obtain residence. UDI defines the term on a separate page, which is not a registered source.
    Your marriage must not be circumvention marriage.
  • Both of you are at least 24 years oldApplies to both of you, not only the applicant. Exemption is possible in some cases -- see the separate entry below.
    You must be at least 24 years old.
  • Applicant: not subject to a prohibition against entry to Norway or SchengenListed by UDI under 'requirements for the applicant'. A Schengen-wide entry ban blocks this permit, not only a Norwegian one.
    You must not be subject to a prohibition against entry to Norway or Schengen.
  • Reference person in Norway: income of at least NOK 436,957 per year pre-taxNOK 436,957 per year pre taxTHE SPONSOR'S OBLIGATION, NOT THE APPLICANT'S. The reference person is the family member already living in Norway. UDI requires this income across three periods at once: the year ahead, the year already past, and the whole time the application is being processed. UDI states the amount 'is adjusted in may each year' -- the authority declaring its own figure perishable -- so the next May revision supersedes it.
    You must have an income of at least NOK 436 957 per year pre-tax. This amount is adjusted in May each year, but this is the applicable amount if you apply now. You must have this amount of income the first year your family member receives a permit in Norway. In addition, you must have had at least this income last year and during the time we process the application.

Documents you must provide

  • Applicant: proof of identity, usually a valid passportListed by UDI under 'requirements for the applicant'.
    You must document your identity. A valid passport is usually valid proof of identity.

Government fees

  • Application fee (first-time application, adult)NOK 11,900The requirements page states the fee is owed but not its size; UDI publishes the amount on a separate fee page, quoted here. NOK 11,900 is the first-time adult band -- renewals, children and refugee reunification are cheaper and are not extracted.
    First-time application for family immigration for adults NOK 11900

Also stated by the authority

Not requirements in themselves. These are alternatives, exemptions, rights and warnings the authority publishes alongside the requirements — quoted here because they can change what applies to you.

  • Exemption from the 24-year age requirement may be possibleNOT a requirement, and deliberately not a rule. This records that the age bar above is not absolute. UDI decides case by case, weighing which countries the couple's -- and their parents' -- backgrounds are from. The criteria are a caseworker's discretionary assessment that UDI itself calls non-exhaustive and subject to change, so they are cited, not encoded.
    Some couples can be exempted from this requirement. When UDI assesses whether you can be granted an exemption, we will consider what countries your background is from, and whether forced marriages occur in these countries.

Official sources

Other Norway visas

All Norway visa types · Start a free assessment