VisaNorway permanent residence applicants should document any request to waive language tests
Current guidance separates test exemptions from course attendance and requires supporting evidence alongside the residence application.
Official announcement date: not established (undated guidance)
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Edited and checked by the VisaWand editorial team
Check which test requirement applies
Adults applying for permanent residence in Norway who cannot pass the required tests should prepare an exemption request with evidence, rather than assume that attending a course or having a medical condition automatically removes the requirement. UDI’s July 2025 announcement removed the requirement to complete Norwegian and social studies courses for permanent residence from 1 September 2025. It retained tests: oral Norwegian at A2 or higher, and social studies in a language the applicant understands, for people aged eighteen to sixty-seven.
That distinction matters when choosing what to obtain before applying. A course attendance record and a passing test result serve different purposes. The announcement contains transitional rules tied to registration and police appointment dates for older applications. Someone with a file lodged during that transition should check the applicable dates rather than apply the current threshold retrospectively without examining their case. This is a current-rule guide, not a new November change.
Compare education evidence with an individual exemption request
UDI’s current exemptions guidance recognises several forms of documented knowledge, including specified Norwegian or Sámi school qualifications, relevant university credits and qualifying language admission requirements. It separately describes evidence of knowledge of Norwegian society. A qualifying Norwegian grade in Module Four of adult preparatory education does not by itself exempt someone from the social studies test. Applicants should therefore identify which requirement each certificate addresses.
Health problems, literacy difficulties or limited schooling after arriving as an adult may support an individual request, but UDI assesses the explanation and documents. The guidance asks why the person cannot pass even with adapted testing, and says a recent attempt should normally have been made and will inform its assessment. Contact the test centre about adaptations such as extra time, oral social studies testing or a separate room. Adaptation and exemption are different decisions.
Use the residence exemption form and obtain professional evidence
The official four-page application form is for an exemption connected with permanent residence. It expressly excludes applications for municipal exemption from compulsory courses or tests; municipalities have their own process. Complete the main form yourself, state which test is concerned and explain the actual difficulty. Write your name as recorded in the Population Register, or as in your travel document if not registered.
The form requires supporting documentation about learning or testing ability. Where health is relevant, obtain the healthcare professional’s supplementary form. Where educational or learning difficulties are relevant, the appropriate school, special education or pedagogical-psychological service completes its form. The main form also asks about schooling, literacy, languages, caring responsibilities or other circumstances where applicable. Hand the forms to the police with the other permanent residence documents. A general account unsupported by the requested professional evidence leaves the authority without the information its form seeks.
Keep meeting the conditions of the existing permit
UDI’s separate announcement on decision timing says that, for applications submitted to the police after 1 September 2025, requirements must generally remain satisfied when the police or UDI decides. The financial support requirement has a specific exception: it can be met at submission or before the decision. A test exemption request does not replace the remaining residence requirements.
The announcement illustrates this with a skilled worker whose permission normally depends on full-time employment. That person must still satisfy the relevant current-permit conditions when permanent residence is decided, even if those conditions were satisfied earlier. UDI advises applicants who do not yet qualify to wait and renew their current permission meanwhile. Do not interpret submission of an exemption form as approval, or as a separate right to remain after a permit expires.
Budget for the application and plan the filing window
UDI’s fee schedule lists permanent residence applications at NOK 4,000 for adults and NOK 2,000 for children under eighteen. These are residence application charges, not a quoted charge for a medical assessment or language test. The public material reviewed does not establish a universal cost for obtaining the professional evidence, so ask the relevant provider about that separately.
The permanent residence application page recommends applying three months before meeting the residence requirement or before current permission expires. If no police appointment is available before expiry, it says applicants retain their rights when they have submitted electronically and paid at least thirty-seven days before expiry. That is a specific condition, not a general grace period for incomplete planning. Select citizenship and the appropriate category on that page, obtain the personalised document list, and ask UDI or the police which exemption evidence belongs in the file if uncertainty remains.
