Visitor's visa
A visitor's visa allows you to stay in Norway or other countries in the Schengen area for up to 90 days over a period of 180 days.
If you plan to visit more than one Schengen country in the course of one trip, or if you plan several separate trips within a period of two months, you must submit your application to the embassy or consulate of the country that is your main destination based on the length of your stay, or the purpose of stay.
If you plan to visit several Schengen countries and the main destination cannot be determined, you must submit your application to the embassy or consulate of the country that is your first point of entry to the Schengen area.
Important reminders
- The processing time is up to 45 days from the time your application reached the Consulate in New York - not from when you registered online or submitted your documents to VFS
- Do not pay for any bookings before a visa has been issued.
- By applying early, you will have more time to book the trip after you have received the visa
- As long as your passport isn't returned to VFS, the decision has not been made. The Consulate does not give further details about the status of an application.
Before you start the application process, check these lists whether you need a visa to travel to Schengen
If you do not need a visa, you can find information about entry regulations here.
As stated above, you should apply for a Schengen visa to the country that is your main destination.
If you are travelling only to Norway, Norway is responsible for your application.
If you are travelling to several Member States, the country that is the main destination either because of the purpose or because of the length is the responsible for your application. Purpose is more important than length.
Business travel and visits to family/friends are more important purposes than a tourist visit, so the Member State where either business or family/friend visit takes place is responsible.
If you are travelling to several Member States for the same purpose, then the length of each visit decides which country is responsible.
If you are travelling for the same purpose and the same number of days in each Member State, the country where you go through passport control to enter Schengen is responsible for the application – and this can be a completely different country that the ones you are visiting, for example if you fly with Lufthansa, you always enter Schengen through Germany etc.
Norway is only responsible for processing visa applications from applicants going mainly to Norway or a country that Norway is representing in the country where you reside.
Many applicants ask for a visa with multiple entries.
Multiple entries are only needed when leaving and re-entering Schengen while travelling.
When travelling only inside Schengen, there are no passport controls and one entry is enough to visit all Schengen countries.
It's important to be aware that Svalbard is outside of Schengen.
Please notice that the flight with Ethiopian Airlines between Stockholm and Oslo count as a non-Schengen flight and an extra entry is required when travelling with this airline.
After legally using 3 visas with a validity shorter than 6 months during the last 2 years, applicants qualify for a 1 year multiple visa.
Applicants who had a one year multiple visa during the previous 2 years, qualify for a 2 year multiple visa etc, up to a maximum validitiy of 5 years, but visas are not issued for longer validity than the passport.
Important: Remember to document clearly your itinerary so that we can see whether you are leaving Schengen and reentering during your trip and therefore need several entries.
If you qualify for a multiple visa, you will be issued a multiple visa even without asking for it.
If you do not document to fulfil these conditions in order to be granted multiple entries, but otherwise fulfil the criteria to be granted a visa, it will be issued according to the documentation provided.
Applicants should not request multiple visas without documenting these criteria.
Letter to applicants who apply for a multiple entry visa without fulfilling the criteria
Applicants from the following countries need an airport transit visa to change planes from a non-Schengen flight to another non-Schengen flight, without going through passport control and should therefore apply for an airport transit visa.
However, when
- changing from a non-Schengen to a Schengen flight or vice versa, or
- having to exit the airport to re-check in to another airline
- check in luggage which has not been checked through to the final non-Schengen destination because the airlines do not offer this luggage transfer service, or
- having to exit the airport because it closes at night (Oslo airport non-Schengen transit zone is closed between 2300 and 0600)
it is not possible to use an airport transit visa, as all these purposes require the applicant to go through the passport control and a normal Schengen visa needs to be applied for.
Applicants from other countries do not need a visa to transfer from a non-Schengen flight to another non-Schengen flight in Norway.
Before you apply
- 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.
You can only visit Schengen for 90 days during any period of 180 days.
You can check how many days you may stay in Schengen by using this Schengen visa calculator and entering your entry and exit dates during the last 6 months.
Parents who wish to visit their children for more than 90 days can consider the 9 months permit for parents instead of a Schengen visa.
Gather the necessary documentation
The checklist gives an overview of the documents you need to hand in to start the application process.
When applying for a visitor's visa please make sure that you have gathered all documents required:
SCHENGEN VISA DOCUMENT CHECKLIST WITH BUSINESS QUESTIONNAIRE
Family members of EEA citizens exercising their right to free movement have a separate checklist.
If you are visiting several Schengen states, you need to document your purpose also in the other countries, not just Norway.
If you are staying with friends or family, most Schengen member states have a form that can be used as documentation of this.
Family relationships should be documented with marriage and birth certificates. This is easier when the closest family member invites the applicant.
Documentation of friendship can most conveniently be provided by submitting social media content and/or photos of the persons together.
Missing documents may delay the application process.
Bring all the documents to your appointment with VFS.
If you want someone to help you 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. Only the person who needs the visa or someone with a written power of attorney will be given information about a specific case.
Online registration and payment
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 80. 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 40. 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.
Permission to return to other country
In the application portal, applicants are requested to inform whether they have permission to return to other country.
For applicants who live in another country than their own, this is typically the duration of their residence permit or visa in the country of residence.
For applicants who live in their home country, this question is not applicable.
Hand in your documents
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.
You should be able to find an appointment within 3 working days. If you - and any other applicants applying together with you - cannot find an available appointment (together), please contact VFS. The Consulate cannot book the appointments.
If you submitted your fingerprints to a Schengen country during the last 59 months and they can be retrieved and copied into the new application, you do not need to submit your fingerprints again.
If you gave your fingerprints more than 59 months ago, it is necessary to submit them again.
If you are unsure whether the fingerprints can be reused, you can request VFS to take your fingerprints again, even when you have submitted them during the last 59 months. The new fingerprints will then be stored for the following 59 months and can be reused in future applications.
If the consulate is unable to copy your fingerprints from a previous application, you must return to VFS to give your fingerprints again.
Applications sent by mail/courier service are not accepted and will be returned without processing.
After receiving your application, VFS should give you a copy of one of the following documents:
Information to applicants in North America and the Caribbean
Processing time
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 remember that the courier time to and from the Consulate General may be between 1 and 7 days in each direction.
For urgent cases, inform VFS of this at the time of submission and provide documentation why the case is urgent and the Consulate General will take this into consideration when processing the case.
Applicants who are citizens of the following countries are subject to a week long prior consultation with other Schengen states before a visa can be issued.
We strongly recommend that applications are submitted to VFS at least 4 weeks prior to departure in order for the Consulate General to be able to process the case in time for the intended departure.
We also recommend submitting all required documentation, as missing documentation and needs for clarification will lead to delays in the processing.
Genuinely urgent cases will be handled urgently, but tourist applications are not considered as urgent. Tourist applicants are adviced to apply well in advance and should not pay for any bookings before a visa has been approved.
Where is my passport?
You can track your case through the VFS tracking system:
The result of your application
VFS will return your passport when the application has been processed.
Please use the online tracking for updates on where your passport is. The Consulate General in New York does not have this information.
If you have been granted a visa, a sticker will be placed in your passport. Please check the duration of stay and number of entries specified on the sticker. The duration of stay indicates how many days you are allowed to stay in the Schengen area.
If your application has been rejected, you will receive a written explanation as to why it was rejected. You can appeal the decision and the letter will explain how to send the appeal.
If you applied for a multiple visa without the necessary documentation or without qualifying for a multiple visa and decide to appeal this decision, you must confirm in writing that you do not want to use the visa you have been granted to proceed with the appeal. The issued visa will then be cancelled.
If you want to know how visa applications are evaluated, you can look at the following documents:
Visa practice for citizens in the green category.
Visa practice for citizens in the yellow category.
Visa practice for citizens in the orange category.
Visa practice for citizens in the red category.
You can also check your nationality directly through this page.
On arrival
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.
Be aware that even if you have been granted a visa, the border control officer may refuse you entry into Schengen if you at the time of travelling no longer fulfil the conditions for having a visa, for example having a visa issued by a member state that is not your main destination.
As stated above, you should apply for a Schengen visa to the country that is your main destination.
If you are travelling only to Norway, Norway is responsible for your application.
If you are travelling to several Member States, the country that is the main destination either because of the purpose or because of the length is the responsible for your application. Purpose is more important than length.
Business travel and visits to family/friends are more important purposes than a tourist visit, so the Member State where either business or family/friend visit takes place is responsible.
If you are travelling to several Member States for the same purpose, then the length of each visit decides which country is responsible.
If you are travelling for the same purpose and the same number of days in each Member State, the country where you go through passport control to enter Schengen is responsible for the application – and this can be a completely different country that the ones you are visiting, for example if you fly with Lufthansa, you always enter Schengen through Germany etc.
Norway is only responsible for processing visa applications from applicants going mainly to Norway or a country that Norway is representing in the country where you reside.
According to Visa Code article 34 2nd paragraph a visa shall be revoked where it becomes evident that the conditions for issuing it are no longer met.
In addition to creating doubts about the application, wilfully or through gross negligence providing materially false or manifestly misleading information in a case could lead to expulsion from all of Schengen.
Remember to bring with you relevant documents to show at the passport control:
- Proof of accommodation
- A valid travel medical insurance for your whole stay in Schengen
Your return ticket should be within the period of validity of your visa
On this page you can find information about which nationals need a visa to travel to Schengen and which are exempted: