26-03-2025
Can you track the progress of your Norwegian residence and citizenship applications?
Handing in an application for Norwegian residence or citizenship is a pretty exciting moment for many. However, that excitement can soon turn to anxiety once a few months pass with no updates.
Furthermore, long waiting times for an answer to residence and citizenship applications have become a bigger problem in recent years. Waiting around for a residence or citizenship decision can leave applicants feeling as if their life is on hold.
So, The Local contacted the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration to find out if there was any way that applicants could track the progress of their application.
'Unfortunately, it is not possible to follow the progress of the case via My Page [on the applicant's UDI portal]. This is a functionality that we know users want and is high on the list of features we want to develop,' Gustav Try, press officer from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration, said to The Local.
At the time of writing, The Local had yet to hear back from the UDI on whether the implementation of a feature that would allow users to track the progress of their application was something the UDI would work on in the future.
The bad news is that applicants are unable to call the UDI to find out more about the progress of their application.
However, the UDI will notify the applicant once their application has been received and when it has been processed. Additionally, applicants may also receive periodic messages in regards to their application.
While getting up-to-date information on the progress of your application currently isn't possible, there are a number of things you can check regarding your application.
For example, the UDI has an
overview of typical waiting times
for different application times that are updated regularly.
In some cases, it will be able to provide a rough waiting time on its website, such as with applications for a work permit. Some applications will take longer to process, and others will take less time to process, so these estimated waiting times should be treated as a guide.
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Meanwhile, in other cases, the UDI cannot give applicants a rough waiting time. In the example of family immigration cases, the UDI will post which applications it is processing based on when they were submitted. It will also outline how long it will be working on these applications for.
The UDI is unable to provide information on cases submitted after the date of the batch it is currently working on due to a large backlog, the directorate writes on its website.
The information on the waiting time sections is updated by the UDI around once a month.
For other applicants, the time they spend waiting can differ significantly compared to the waiting time. When it comes to citizenship, applicants will either be left waiting a few months or two-and-a-half years at the time of writing.
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The reason for this is some cases are automatically processed, meaning they need minimum input from a case handler. These are the applications that receive an answer in a few months, much shorter than the current estimated waiting time of 30 months.
The bad news for applicants is that they are not notified of whether their application will be or has been selected for automated processing. Although, applicants can generally expect a long waiting time if they haven't received an answer from the UDI within six months of handing in there citizenship application.
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Norway's immigration office vows to cut citizenship application backlog
When the UDI will contact you
There are some cases where the UDI will contact you directly to update you on the status of your application. The most common, of course, is once a decision has been made on your case.
Another instance in which the UDI will contact you is if they need more documentation regarding your case.
