Repatriation and returns

Forcible return, refusal of entry, Dublin transfer, expulsion and entry ban, assisted voluntary return and readmission agreements.

You must leave Norway if you do not have any legal right to stay here. The police will deport you if you do not go voluntarily. That means you will be sent back by force. In some cases, you can apply for help to leave the country.

Repatriation and returns

You may be sent back to the country of which you are a citizen. You may also be sent to a country in which you are legally allowed to live. We call this deportation or forcible return.

When you are deported, you yourself must pay the necessary travel costs. The Norwegian authorities will pay the cost on your behalf if you do not have enough money. That then becomes a debt you must pay back.

If you do not pay back the money you owe the Norwegian authorities, you may be refused entry if you try to come back to Norway at a later date.

You may be arrested and detained if you choose to stay in Norway illegally. You will then be deported. You will not be told when you could be arrested.

  • Did you claim protection? If your claim was unsuccessful and you return to your homeland voluntarily, your passport and any other documents you handed over when you came to Norway will be returned to you. You will receive the documents at the latest when you arrive in your home country.
  • If your claim was unsuccessful and we have to deport you, your documents will be handed to the authorities in your home country. You may have to contact them to get your documents back.

The Dublin Regulation is an agreement between the countries of the EU, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Norway. We call these the Dublin countries. The agreement's rules determine where applications for asylum are dealt with.

Your application will be considered by only one Dublin country. This is generally the first country you arrived in. In certain circumstances, responsibility for your application may be transferred to another country. Norway will not normally consider an application for asylum if you have already applied for asylum in another Dublin country. In that case, you will be returned to the country that:

  • received your original application for asylum, or
  • is responsible for processing your application.

If your application for asylum is found to be a Dublin case, you will be notified that you will be transferred by the police to the Dublin country that is responsible for processing your application. That country will always be notified before you are sent back there. The police will make all the necessary travel arrangements.

Read more about which asylum seekers are covered by the Dublin Regulation at udi.no.

This means that you

  • are not allowed to enter Norway, or
  • must leave Norway.

You are not forbidden to re-enter the country if you have been deported. But if you have not repaid the money you owe the Norwegian authorities in connection with your deportation, you may be expelled.

The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) may decide that you will be expelled from the country permanently or for one or more years. You will not be allowed to re-enter the country for as long as the entry ban is in force.

An entry ban will often apply to the whole Schengen area. Breach of an entry ban is a criminal offence.

Assisted voluntary return means that you will be given financial support to travel home. You will also receive a sum of money to help you resettle in your home country. The scheme applies to those who withdraw their applications for protection or whose applications are refused.

When you accept an assisted voluntary return, you avoid staying in Norway illegally. If you stay in Norway illegally, you risk being deported by the police. You may also be deported from the Schengen area. Read more about assisted voluntary returns on the UDI's website.

Contact the UDI to apply for assisted voluntary return.

The UDI and the police work closely with the International Organization for Migration (IOM). UDI processes the application for assisted return, while IOM provide practical assistance for the journey.

Norway has readmission agreements with 30 countries. These countries have agreed to take back both their own nationals and certain others who are deported from Norway. Norway does not need a readmission agreement to return people to their homelands. Over the course of a year, people are deported from Norway to more than 100 countries. However, a readmission agreement can make deportation to some countries quicker and easier.

The Norwegian Foreign Ministry is responsible for readmission agreements with other countries.