top of page

Working in Norway

I have made up this page to share my knowledge about working in Norway. First of all how to get a work visa in Norway. I will mention 3 types that can apply for someone wanting to be an English teacher. This applies for people who are NOT from the European Union or Scandinavian countries.

- Specialist Visa:

You can apply for this visa if you can do a job that no Norwegian can do. This means that for example you cant get a visa to be a house keeper or an accountant for example. It has to be a job position difficult to fill within the people already living here. The company hiring you has to prove to the immigration authorities that they've had adds out for this job for some time and the position hasn't been filled.

As an English teacher this is a very difficult and unlikely type of visa to get. The reason is because overall Norwegians have a very high level of English knowledge (it is taught in school) so if they were to need a teacher they have plenty of Norwegians who speak English well enough to teach it not to mention the british english teachers that kive in Norway already

- Family Immigration Visa

You can apply for this visa if you have a direct family member "reference person" that is a citizen or permanent residence of Norway. This applies for spouses and/or parents. This relationship must be proved with legal documents. This "reference person" has to fill some financial requirements ( minimum salary and not receive social benefits of any kind- which is already a bit difficult because in 2020 a HUGE amount of people received support from the government when the country closed down due to the pandemic) and insure they will provide food and housing for you while you wait for it to be approved. You cant work while you wait and it could take from 3 months to a year+. But once its approved you can work as whatever. English teacher, waiter, bus driver, etc.

- Fiancé Visa

This is a visa granted for 6 months to people who have a boyfriend/girlfriend that is either a citizen or a permanent resident of Norway. This person has to fulfil some financial requirements and not have received social benefits in the last year. ( a tricky issue with the pandemic situation in 2020) Another requirement is that you have to get married within the 6 months of the visa and have lived under the same roof for the whole period. After you get this visa, you can apply for jobs as whatever; English teacher, a supermarket worker, a daycare worker, a retail store, etc.

There are also other types of work visas out there but I don't think those apply for someone who ultimately wants to teach English in Norway. ( Visas for Au pairs, religious teacher, culinary visa for special chefs, etc.)

In a nutshell, it is unlikely to get a work visa to come to Norway to work as an English teacher.  Note I say unlikely but not impossible. But as I mentioned if you apply for the visas I mentioned previously you can ultimately work as an english teacher

If you want to know in detail about the info I´ve shared you can go to the official immigration page

bottom of page