Visitor's visa

• You should apply well in advance and as a rule no later than 15 days before you plan to travel. Due to the courier sending of documents in some countries, we recommend that you apply at least 4 weeks prior to your planned departure.
• You may submit your application up to six months before your planned departure, or up to nine months for seafarers.
• We recommend that you do not buy your ticket until a visa has been granted.
• You must register your application online before you can hand in the required documentation.
• When you hand in your application, you will be asked to provide fingerprints, unless your fingerprints have been collected within the last 59 months.
• Travel to Svalbard requires you to apply for two or more entries.

Family members of EU/EEA nationals
You may be entitled to an accelerated visa procedure free of charge if you meet the following criterias:

• you are a family member of an European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) citizen
• that the EU/EEA citizen is travelling to or is residing in a member state other than that of which he/she is a citizen
• you are accompanying the EU/EEA citizen or planning to join him/her in the Schengen State of destination

If you think you are entitled to an accelerated visa procedure you will need to show proof that you meet these criteria when you submit your visa application. For more information, please click here.

Admissibility of a Schengen visa application
In order for your application to be deemed admissible, you must:

• lodge your application no later than 15 calendar days before the start of the intended visit. In justified individual cases of urgency, the embassy may allow the lodging of applications later than 15 calendar days before the start of the intended visit
• present an application form
• present a valid travel document
• present a photograph
• provide your biometric data (fingerprints and digital photo)
• pay the visa fee (if applicable)

If the above-mentioned conditions have not been fulfilled, the application shall be deemed inadmissible, and the embassy will without delay: 

• return the application form and any documents submitted by the applicant
• destroy the collected biometric data
• reimburse the visa fee
• not examine the application

Please note that in addition to these mentioned basic elements of your visa application, further requirements of supporting documents must be handed in, see step 2 "Hand in the necessary documentation".

Collection of biometric identifiers
If you are applying for a Schengen visa for the first time, you are required to appear in person to submit your application for the collection of biometric data. The following biometric identifiers shall be collected:

• a photograph, scanned or taken at the time of application
• 10 fingerprints taken flat and collected digitally

If your fingerprints have been collected within the previous 59 months, you do not have to provide your fingerprints again when submitting a new application. Kindly indicate in the application form when you last had your fingerprints taken.

If you do not remember when you last provided your fingerprints, we recommend that your fingerprints be collected again, as in the event that your fingerprints have not been registered in the Visa Information System (VIS), or that the quality of the fingerprints previously provided is not adequate, you will have to return to the application center for your fingerprints to be retaken.  

The following applicants shall be exempt from the requirement to give fingerprints:

(a) children under the age of 12

(b) persons for whom fingerprinting is physically impossible. However, should the impossibility be temporary, the applicant shall be required to give the fingerprints at the following application

(c) heads of State or government and members of a national government with accompanying spouses, and the members of their official delegation when they are invited by Member States’ governments or by international organisations for an official purpose

(d) sovereigns and other senior members of a royal family, when they are invited by Member States’ governments or by international organisations for an official purpose

Schengen consultation
Some Schengen States require that they be consulted on visa applications submitted to other Schengen States by citizens of certain countries. The consultation process may take up to eight calendar days. Such consultation is currently required for nationals of the following countries. For more information, please click here. 

The Norwegian embassy in Nairobi cannot guarantee that applications submitted at short notice will be processed on time (i.e. less than 15 days).

The embassy will assess and make the decision on the visa application. VFS is not involved in the decision making process.

Multiple entry visas
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, the box for “Two entries” or “Multiple entries” must be ticked off in the visa application form. The applicant should also document why two or more entries are required. The embassy will then assess if there is a genuine need for a multiple entry visa.

If only one entry is required, and this is your first trip to Norway and/or the Schengen area, we encourage you to apply for a "single entry" visa. 

Multiple entry visas with a validity from 1 to 5 years
Frequent travellers with a positive visa history can to be granted multiple-entry visa with a gradually increasing validity period from 1 year to a maximum of 5 years.

Travellers' fulfilment of entry conditions will be thoroughly and repeatedly verified in all cases, and only persons with a positive visa track record will be issued multiple-entry visas with a long validity.

Provided that the applicant fulfils the entry conditions, multiple-entry visas with a long validity shall be issued for the following validity periods, unless the validity of the visa would exceed that of the travel document:

• for a validity period of one year, provided that the applicant has obtained and lawfully used three visas within the previous two years
• for a validity period of two years, provided that the applicant has obtained and lawfully used a previous multiple-entry visa valid for one year within the previous two years
• for a validity period of five years, provided that the applicant has obtained and lawfully used a previous multiple-entry visa valid for two years within the previous three years

Multiple-entry visas allow the holder to travel repeatedly to the Schengen area during the period of validity of the visa. Please be informed that even with a multiple-entry visa with a validity from 1 to 5 years, the applicant cannot stay in the Schengen area more than 90 days within any 180 day period.

If you want someone to act on your behalf in connection with your application, you must authorise this person to do so. Please visit the UDI website for more information and the relevant form: Power of Attorney

Before you can hand in your passport and other documentation, you must register your application online and pay the fee. If this is the first time you are registering an application in the portal, you will need to create a user account first.

Once you have completed the application form online and paid the fee, you will receive confirmation by email with a copy of your application form (schengen.pdf), application summary and payment receipt attached. You need to print the application form (schengen.pdf) and submit it together with the other required documentation

Application fee

The visa fee is EUR 90. Children under six years do not pay a fee. Children from the age of six years and below the age of 12 years shall pay a visa fee of EUR 45. Please visit the UDI website for information about other groups exempted from the visa fee.

Please note that you pay the fee when registering the application in the portal. Applicants exempted from the visa fee requirement will have the fee refunded.

If you are a applying for a visa as a family member to an EU/EEA citizen you are not required to pay the application fee.

You will pay the visa fee using a debit/credit card when you register the application online in the Application Portal.

VFS Service Fee
Applications are received by an external service provider, VFS Global, which charges a service fee for each application submitted. The service fee is EUR 30, payable in local currency at the counter at VFS Global. The service fee is levied per application over and above the visa fee. The fee mentioned is per applicant. There is no exemption from the VFS Global service fee.

You must bring with you:

• a printout of the application form (schengen.pdf) received by email;
• the checklist and the documents listed.
• Your passport (must be valid for at least three months after your planned departure from the Schengen area)
• Photograph (must comply with international standards)
• Your travel health insurance policy
  • You should be covered for at least EUR 30 000, including expenses in connection with repatriation for medical reasons, treatment in medical emergencies and/or emergency hospital treatment, and death
  • Your insurance should be valid in all Schengen countries
  • It should cover the whole of your planned stay in the Schengen area
  • It should as a rule be purchased in your home country. If this is not possible it may be purchased in another country.

The application process will start once all the required documents have been submitted.

Submitting your visa application
Submit your application and all the required documents to one of the VFS Global Application Centers representing Norway. You are required to meet in person to capture your biometrics (photo and fingerprints).

You must bring all the documents listed on the relevant checklist with you. You will find the relevant checklist under step 2 in this guide "Gather the necessary documentation". The embassy will contact you if we need more information.

You can submit your application at a VFS application center on walk-in basis from 08 am till 11 am from Monday to Friday. If you would like to book an appointment online, please visit the VFS Global website. 

Please note that the embassy cannot receive any physical mail regarding visa applications. All physical documents must to be delivered at the VFS Global Application Center.

EU/EEA family members can apply directly at the embassy in Nairobi and pay no visa fee. Please check UDI website to check if you fall under these specific rules.

The processing time for applications is normally up to 15 calendar days after the embassy or consulate has received the application. In some cases, applications are sent to the Directorate of Immigration (UDI), and the processing time in these cases may be up to 45 calendar days.

Please note that Ethiopian nationals will normally receive an answer within 45 days after you handed in the documents at the embassy due to stricter visa rules for citizens of Ethiopia set by the Council of the European Union. The suspension decision applies to all applications lodged from 1st June 2024 by Ethiopian nationals falling within the scope of the measures. The suspension decision is temporary but does not come with a specific end date. The Commission will continue to assess any progress made on readmission cooperation.

Please note that the processing time will only start on the date the embassy in Nairobi receives the paper application from VFS. You should therefore apply in good time before your planned travel.

Please also note that incomplete applications will delay the processing time.

The Norwegian embassy in Nairobi cannot guarantee that applications submitted at short notice will be processed on time. 

The embassy will assess and make the decision on the visa application. The VFS is not involved in the decision making process.

As soon as a decision has been made by the Embassy, the Embassy will hand the passport over to VFS Global in a sealed envelope. Applicants will be notified by e-mail, and SMS if the applicant has opted for this service, when the application is received by VFS Global.

The applicant's passport can be picked up at VFS’s visa application center where the application was submitted, or can be delivered by a courier service, if the applicant has opted for this alternative.

If a visa has been granted, it will be affixed to the passport.

Please check the following information on the visa sticker:
- that name and surname is correctly spelled 
- the visa's period of validity
- permitted number of entries
- permitted duration of stay
- passport number

If there is an error on the visa sticker, please contact the Royal Norwegian embassy in Nairobi.

Please note that your stay in the Schengen area cannot exceed the number of days in the "duration of stay" field in the visa sticker. However, when we issue a Schengen visa, we will add 15 days to the validity of the visa to allow you some flexibility regarding when to enter and exit the Schengen area, but the total number of days you are allowed to stay in the Schengen area remains the same. 

Appealing a decision
The appeal must be signed by you, your authorized representative or your lawyer, and should contain information about which decision you are appealing and why you believe the decision you have received is incorrect. The appeal must be written in Norwegian or English. If you have any new information or documentation, you must enclose this.

You must submit the appeal to the Royal Norwegian embassy in Nairobi via the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration's (UDI) document upload service: Send documents to UDI - UDI.

Processing time for an appeal is currently approximately 4 weeks.

We will review your appeal. We can either overturn our decision or forward the appeal to the UDI for consideration. If your appeal is sent to the UDI, they will review your appeal again and either reject your appeal or overturn our decision. If the UDI also rejects your appeal, there are no further possibilities of appeal.

If the application was rejected by the UDI, you must also use the document upload service.

More information about the appeal process and processing times can be found on the UDI website.

When you cross the border into the Schengen area, you will have to present:

• your passport with the visa sticker
• proof that you have enough money to support yourself during your stay (e.g. cash or a credit card). If you have a guarantee form, you should also bring a copy of this with you.
• documentation showing the purpose of your visit, such as an invitation, hotel reservation, etc.
• a return or round trip ticket if you are visiting the Schengen area for tourist purposes or private reasons

You may be asked to provide fingerprints by the border control officer, in which case these will be compared with the fingerprints provided when you applied for your visa.
As long as your visa is valid, you can travel around freely in the Schengen area, or in the specific Schengen countries covered by the visa. If you leave the Schengen area, for example to visit the UK or Svalbard, you will need a multiple entry visa.