Recently, the rules changed, and now foreigners
are required to have a residence card that they must carry with them when they travel in addition to their passports. Here is what is stated on the Norwegian
Directorate of Immigration website:
“The residence card is
proof that you hold a residence permit in Norway. The card replaces the stickers that were previously affixed
to your passport.”
But what I need now is an explanation for why I have to renew my residence permit every two
years, as I have done now for the past four or five years, if I have permanent resident status? I have no idea if I
still have permanent resident status
or if it has changed to non-permanent for
some reason. This is what is written on the Norwegian Directorate of
Immigration website; I hope it makes more sense to you than it does to me:
“How long is the card
valid for? In principle, the card is valid for the same period as your permit.
If you hold a permanent residence permit, the card will be valid for two years
at a time.”
I have to
say that I really don’t understand this; my interpretation is that
permanent residence means two years’ residence at a time, and in my book, this is tantamount to temporary residence, not permanent. The last time I was at the Foreign Office (a few
weeks ago), the man sitting behind the information desk was impatient, rude and
generally not helpful. No answers or explanations to be gotten from him. I was
just another nuisance, another foreigner
that he didn’t feel like dealing with. Whether that was really what he thought,
I don’t know—it just felt like that. Just a wave of the hand and a disgusted
look to indicate where I should stand to wait my turn to make an appointment to
see an officer who could create a residence permit card for me with my photo
and fingerprints on it. I told them I needed it before the end of July as I was
traveling outside of Norway in August, and I was told I had to bring my airline
ticket with me to my appointment in order for me to get the card before I traveled.
So many people apparently lie about needing their card immediately, so that I was
looked upon as another potential liar. I didn’t have a problem producing the
airline ticket, so I got my card today in the mail.
I decided many
years ago not to obtain Norwegian citizenship, because it meant that I had to
give up my American citizenship, something I would never do. Norway does not allow dual citizenship, whereas the USA
does. So if my husband and I moved to the USA, he could keep his Norwegian
citizenship as well as become an American citizen if he wanted to. Generous of
my country, I have to admit, and that makes me proud of my country. I have
no idea why Norway does not allow dual citizenship, but the fact that they do
not only serves to strengthen my resolve to keep my American citizenship at all
costs. Had Norway allowed dual citizenship, then I might have chosen to become
a citizen, but I have never regretted my decision not to become a Norwegian
citizen in all the years I have lived here. It would certainly have made my
life easier in terms of not having to apply every two years for permission to
remain in this country, as is the case now, even though I did get permanent
residence status in the early 1990s. I suppose I should look into what it all
means and why my status changed (if it did), and I will. In time. Perhaps the
next time I have to renew my residence status. I simply want to avoid having to
stand in long lines to make appointments to see officers and councilors who
will advise me on what forms I need to fill out. I want to avoid sterile
offices and paper-pushing--all the trappings of bureaucratic claustrophobia.
