- Qualification
- One of three things: a degree from a university or university college; a completed vocational programme of at least three years at an upper-secondary level, corresponding to an equivalent Norwegian programme; or, exceptionally, special qualifications built on skills acquired through long professional experience, generally at least six years, backed by detailed employer certificates. UDI itself warns that this third route "takes a lot" to succeed and that many such applications are refused.
- Processing time
- Not published as a single fixed figure — UDI publishes current, permit-specific waiting times online and updates them regularly. Check before applying.
- Residence permit for work, applicant 18 or older (also renewals)
- NOK 6,300
Everything about Residence permit for skilled workers →The procedure, step by step5 steps · 4 possible outcomes
- Secure a concrete job offer from a specific Norwegian employer, for a role that itself calls for your level of qualification. The role must normally be full-time; UDI accepts an offer of at least 80 per cent of a full-time position.UDI also requires that "the pay and working conditions must not be poorer than is normal in Norway" — it does not publish this as a fixed figure applicants can check against in advance.
- Gather evidence of your qualification: for the higher-education route, a confirmation from your university or university college that you completed the programme, together with your transcripts; for the vocational route, documents showing your completed programme and how it maps to the Norwegian equivalent.
- Expect UDI's own caseworkers to compare your qualification directly against the corresponding Norwegian one on a case-by-case basis, rather than requiring you to hold a prior recognition document from HK-dir.UDI's internal guideline states the test as whether the education you took abroad "has resulted in competence corresponding to that provided by equivalent vocational education in Norway", and directs caseworkers who need more information on who requires approval to practise a specific occupation to HK-dir's own pages.
- Have your employer confirm the job offer online first; they will give you an authorisation code to enter in your own application. You may not start working, including remote work, until the permit is granted, except under UDI's specific early-employment-start provision.
- Submit your application online and pay the application fee.
Possible outcomes
- A residence permit of up to three years at a time where you qualify through the higher-education route (one year at a time if you are placed by a staffing agency), or up to one year at a time where you qualify through the vocational route.
- After three years holding the permit, eligibility to apply for a permanent residence permit.
- If you lose your job during the permit period, up to six months to look for new qualifying work before the permit lapses, provided you notify the police within seven days.
- Refusal, where the job offer, the qualification, or the pay-and-conditions requirement is not met.
- Qualification
- You must currently hold, and apply before it expires, a Norwegian residence permit as a student who completed your programme in Norway, as a participant in additional education, as a researcher with your own funding, or as a skilled-worker permit holder doing research work. Once you find a job offer, the same qualification levels as the skilled-worker permit apply: a completed higher-education degree, a completed vocational programme of at least three years, or special qualifications built on long professional experience.
- Processing time
- Not published as a fixed figure — check UDI's current waiting-time tool before applying.
- Application fee
- NOK 6,300, the fee UDI's schedule publishes for residence permits for work generally — not broken out separately for this permit on UDI's fees page
Everything about Residence permit for jobseekers (recent graduates and researchers) →The procedure, step by step4 steps · 3 possible outcomes
- Confirm you hold one of the qualifying prior permits — student (having completed your programme in Norway), additional-education participant, researcher with your own funding, or skilled-worker researcher — and apply before it expires, ideally around a month ahead.
- Show you can support yourself for the search period. UDI states this as at least NOK 28,448 a month, that is NOK 341,373 for a full year; a lower figure of NOK 85,344 applies if you held a PhD-researcher permit. The funds generally have to be your own, typically shown in a Norwegian bank account.This is a self-support requirement, not a salary offer — check the current figure with UDI before relying on it, since UDI does not publish it with a stated review date.
- You may work full-time or part-time while you search, including in roles that do not themselves require your qualification level, but you may not be self-employed or run your own business.
- Apply online and pay the application fee.
Possible outcomes
- A residence permit for up to one year to search for skilled work in Norway. Time spent on this permit does not count towards permanent residence.
- If you receive a job offer while your application is pending, you can convert it into a skilled-worker application at no extra cost and without losing your place in the queue.
- Refusal, where you do not hold one of the qualifying prior permits, or where the self-support or other conditions are not met.
