UDI 2010-046 Entry visa for skilled workers with offer of employment in Norway

1. Introduction

In this guideline, the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) provides guidelines for the issuing of entry visas (D visas) to skilled workers who have received a concrete offer of employment from an employer in Norway. The purpose of this scheme is to allow skilled workers with a concrete offer of employment to travel to Norway to apply for a residence permit when it is probable that an application for a residence permit as a skilled worker will be granted pursuant to the Immigration Regulations section 6-1 first paragraph, see UDI 2014-018 Residence permits for skilled workers.

2. Submission of an application for an entry visa (D visa)

The foreign national must submit an application for an entry visa with the same enclosures as are required for an ordinary application for a residence permit as a skilled worker.

A visa pursuant to this guideline can be granted irrespective of whether the applicant at the same time submits an application for a residence permit, has already submitted such application or intends to apply for a residence permit after entering Norway.

3. Conditions and documentation requirements for the entry visa

The conditions are related to the applicant having the approved qualifications required to practise an occupation (chapter 3.1 below), to the job offer (chapter 3.2 below) and to other general conditions (chapter 3.3 below). It is also a condition that no doubt exists in relation to the case (chapter 4 below).

3.1. The applicant’s qualifications

3.1.1. Vocational education

The foreign national must have a vocational education that at least corresponds to three years of vocational education at Norwegian upper secondary school level, have a craft certificate or have completed a university college or university education.

An entry visa will not be issued pursuant to this guideline if vocational education at a level higher than upper secondary school is required, cf. the Immigration Regulations section 6-1 second paragraph. This currently applies to religious leaders and teachers.

The foreign service mission shall not issue an entry visa to foreign nationals who have not completed a vocational education or a university college or university education.

3.1.2. Approval or authorisation in certain professions

The applicant must have approval or authorisation from the relevant Norwegian specialist authority for professions for which qualification requirements are set out in statutes or regulations. The most important group here consists of health personnel who need an authorisation from the Norwegian Directorate of Health. For information about other professions with qualification requirements, see UDI 2014-018 about residence permits for skilled workers.

3.2. Employment offer

It is a condition that the applicant has received a concrete offer of employment from an employer in Norway, cf. the Immigration Regulations section 3-13 third paragraph. The offer of employment must satisfy the following conditions:

• The offer of employment must be made on the employment offer form prepared by the UDI, and it must be signed by the employer and the applicant him/herself.

• The offer of employment must concern full-time employment for one employer.

• The applicant’s qualifications must be relevant to the position for which the applicant has received an offer.

• The offered pay and working conditions must not be inferior to those stipulated in the applicable collective agreement or industry regulations. If no such collective agreement or regulations exist, the pay and working conditions must not be inferior to what is normal for the occupation and place concerned.

• The employer must be able to be an employer in Norway, see UDI 2010-048 (only available in Norwegian) about who can be an employer or a client.

3.3. Other conditions for the entry visa

All of the following conditions must be satisfied in order for a visa to be issued:

• The applicant must have a valid passport or other travel document that permits border crossings.

• The applicant must not be registered in the Schengen Information System (SIS) with a view to denying entry.

• The applicant cannot have been expelled from Norway and had a prohibition on entry imposed on him or her.

• Grounds must not exist for rejection or expulsion.

• There must not be foreign policy considerations or fundamental national security interests that indicate that a visa or residence permit should not be granted.

• The applicant must not be deemed to be a threat to Norway’s or other Schengen countries’ public order, domestic security, public health or their international relations.

4. Doubts and rejection

As a general rule, the foreign service mission shall reject the application if it has been submitted from a location other than that prescribed in chapter 10.2 of UDI 2020-011 Application for and issue of entry visas (D-visas), and entry deadlines.

A foreign service mission shall reject an application for an entry visa if the conditions in section 3 above are not satisfied. The foreign service mission shall also reject an application for an entry visa if there is doubt as described below.

The foreign service mission shall deem itself to be in doubt if:

• there is reason to doubt the purpose stated for the application or the correctness of other information in the case

• it is necessary to verify the authenticity or contents of one or more of the documents presented

• there are other grounds for believing that a permit will not be granted.

All applications shall be assessed individually. If an application has been submitted from a country where experience indicates that there may be doubt about identity and other documentation, the foreign service mission shall nonetheless carry out a concrete assessment of the case, including considering whether a decision can be made on the basis of the information provided.

In the event of a rejection, the foreign service mission shall inform the applicant about the possibility of submitting an application for a residence permit through the Norwegian foreign service mission and the employer’s right to submit such an application from Norway with written authorisation.

5. Power of decision and contents of the entry visa

See chapters 11 and 12 of UDI 2020-011 Application for and issue of entry visas (D-visas), and entry deadlines for information on the power of decision and the content of the entry visa.

See chapter 14 of UDI 2020‑011 for information that must be provided to the applicant when an entry visa has been granted.