In order to travel to Norway, Indian citizens need a Schengen visa. A Schengen visa is a document showing that you have permission to enter Norway and other Schengen countries for a limited period of up to 90 days. You may be granted a Schengen visa if you intend to travel to Norway as a tourist, on a family visit, on public business or a business trip, a study visit or other business which does not require a work or residence permit.
The Schengen co-operation
From 25th March 2001 Norway became part of the Schengen co-operation. For visa purposes, this means that a visa for entry into any one of the countries in the Schengen area will normally also be valid for all the other Schengen countries within the period for which the visa is valid. However, over a period of six months you are not permitted to spend more than a total of 90 days inside the Schengen area.
Requirements and application procedure
A Schengen visa should be applied from the member state where you will spend the most days. If the same amount of time is to be spent in more than one country, applications should be submitted to the country where you are to visit first.
A Schengen visa for Norway and the rest of the Schengen countries has a maximum duration of 90 days (in any six months period). The visa cannot be extended once the holder has entered the Schengen area. Exceptions may be made if unforseen circumstances arise after your arrival in the Schengen area.
If you intend to work or stay more than 90 days you need to apply for a work/residence permit.
A visitor to the Schengen countries is issued on condition that the applicant leaves the Schengen area before the visa expires. If you remain in Norway for longer than the visa period, you may be expelled from the country. You may also encounter difficulties in connection with any future applications for visa or residence permit. A Schengen visa does not entitle you to work in Norway.
All nationals who wish to enter Norway must meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules. Before applying for a Schengen visa to Norway, you must make sure that your Passport/Travel document shall have been issued within the previous 10 years and should be valid for 90 days after expiry of the visa with at least two blank pages.
A medical travel insurance is required with a minimum coverage of €30.000 which should be valid for 15 days after the return from the Schengen area. Medical health/travel insurance must meets the following criteria:
- It is valid throughout Schengen territory.
- The coverage includes repatriation for medical reasons, urgent medical care and/or emergency treatment in a hospital
For application forms, document checklist and more information on how to apply for a Schengen visa, please click here
Multiple entry visa with maximum 90 days validity
A Schengen visa is generally issued for a single entry. If the applicant plans to travel outside the Schengen area and return within the period of the visa, “Two entries” or “Multiple entries” must be ticked off in the visa application form. The Embassy will then assess whether there is a genuine need to be issued a multiple entry visa.
The application must be accompanied by an explanation of why two or more entries are required, as well as a flight booking showing that he/she also plans to visit countries outside the Schengen area; i.e. United Kingdom, Russia or any of the countries that are not members of the Schengen Agreement.
A multiple entry visa with a validity of up to one year may in certain cases be granted by the Embassy. For the Embassy to grant such a multiple entry visa the applicant must:
· Document previous frequent trips to Norway
· Have previously complied with the visa regulations by leaving the Schengen area within the expiry of the visa
· Document a genuine future need for multiple entries to Norway during a one year period
The applicant should submit a travel/health insurance which is valid for at least one year. Please be advised that even with a one-year multiple-entry visa, the applicant cannot stay in the Schengen area more than 90 days within any 6-month period.
Processing time and follow-ups
Please note that the embassy will take ten working days to process the application. If an interview is required or documents are lacking the processing time might go up to 30 days. Submitting the application forms with the requested documents does not guarantee the issuance of visa.
The embassy will notify the applicant through SMS or email when the passport is ready for collection.
Before making a follow-up, applicants are respectfully requested to first check the current processing time for their type of application. If the processing time has not been exceeded, follow-ups should not be made. Your application is in a queue.
The main reason for the long processing time is that people make follow-ups before the processing time has exceeded. That means that case handlers spend their time speaking and writing to applicants and sponsors, instead of processing cases.
If there is anything missing in the application, the applicant will be contacted by the embassy.
The possession of a visa does not guarantee entry into the Schengen states. In case the Schengen Immigration officials refuse entry, the Embassy responsible for issuing the visa cannot be held responsible.
Rejections
If an application has been rejected, the applicant (or the person with Power of Attorney) may appeal the decision within three weeks upon recieving the decision. The appeal has to be sent in original. The embassy can either reverse its decision or forward the appeal to UDI. UDI will then make the final decision as to whether or not a visa shall be granted. For processing times at UDI please click here.