Country Update 2022: NORWAY

Contributed by: Jesper Rustad Frydenlund (Humlen Advokater AS)

June 2022

1. Legislative changes

No legislative changes of high significance have been made.

2. Business Immigration

Due to the war in Ukraine, Norway has suspended parts of the Agreement between Norway and Russia on the facilitation of the issuance of visas to the citizens of Norway and Russia. Among the suspended regulations are the more beneficial rules for Russians regarding multi-visas for business purposes, reduced visa fees and documentation requirements.

3. Family based immigration

No legislative changes of high significance have been made.

4. Asylum

Norway received refugees notably coming from Syria, Afghanistan, Eritrea, China and Turkey in 2021. From 2022, asylum seekers from Ukraine have arrived. As of 10th May 2022, Norway has received 16,230 refugees from Ukraine. The Directorate of Immigration finds that a number of 45,000 refugees from Ukraine is a realistic estimate (10th May 2022).

Furthermore, the right to have an appeal over a rejected asylum application assessed by the Norwegian Immigration Appeals Board with the presence of the applicant is strengthened in conversion cases. The expanded right is laid down in the Immigration Regulation (§16-9). Also,

The Immigration Appeals Board has just recently resumed handling cases with asylum seekers from Ethiopia, after the obligation to leave Norway was suspended in November 2021 due to the unstable situation in the country. The same applies to Afghan asylum seekers (from 1st March 2022).

The Supreme Court (HR-2021-1209-A) regarding asylum for Afghan converts ruled in favour of the Immigration Appeals Board. The Supreme Court took as its starting point that the lower standard of proof in asylum cases – that the immigrant's statement must be used as a basis if it is fairly probable – must be used as a basis also in conversion cases. Credibility is not a suitable criterion for applying the lower standard of proof. Declarations submitted by priests and other supporters of the converts made an impression, but could not render the statements fairly probable.

5. Deportation

The penalty for illegal stay is increased from 6 months to up to 2 years, aiming at persons that are expelled due to prison sentence, detention penalty or an alternative reaction for crime not related to illegal stay (new § 108 in the Immigration Act).

The Supreme Court (HR-2022-533-A) regarding expulsion of an EEA-national ruled the expulsion invalid. Although public order interests suggested expulsion after the latest theft, there were still no circumstances that provided a basis for concluding that he, at the time of the decision, posed a genuine, relevant and sufficient threat to fundamental societal interests. The Court pointed out that the thefts were not very serious, that he was not part of a criminal environment or involved in any other form of anti-social activity, and that his life situation had changed since the last theft.

The Supreme Court (HR-2022-653-A) regarding permanent expulsion and the proportionality requirement. A foreign national who came to Norway as an 11-year-old in 2003 and was granted a permanent residence permit in 2007 was sentenced to seven years of imprisonment in 2016 for several aggravated robberies he committed at the age of 23. In contrast to the previous instances, the Supreme Court concluded that the Immigration Appeal Board's decision to expel him was not disproportionate, see section 70 of the Immigration Act. Decisive emphasis was placed on him being convicted of very serious crimes. The fact that he had come to Norway at a young age and gone through his adolescence here, and that the expulsion was permanent, could not lead to any other result. It was also pointed out that his connection with Norway was not strong, and that the connection with his home country was not of such a nature that it could have a particular impact on the proportionality assessment.

6. Citizenship

There has been a change in the Citizenship Act § 7 (e) with regard to the duration of residency in Norway- up from 7 years to 8 years of residency in Norway during the last 11 years (up from 10 years), with residence permits of at least one year duration.

For persons being granted refugee status in Norway, the requirement is 7 years residency in Norway during the last 10 years, with residence permits of at least one year duration.