Unemployment benefit (dagpenger)

The requirement is that your total working hours must be reduced by at least 50 percent. If you have multiple jobs, you must have lost at least 50 percent of your combined working hours to qualify for unemployment benefit.

Example

You have two jobs and work a total of 30 hours per week. You work 20 hours per week for one employer and 10 hours per week for the other. In this case, you must have lost at least 15 working hours in order to qualify for unemployment benefit.

There are exceptions to the rule that you have to be a resident in Norway to get unemployment benefit. This can be the case if you for example have worked in Norway and travelled to your home country, or if you are returning to Norway after having worked in another EEA country. Read more about your situation under EEA and unemployment benefit.

There are some exceptions to the requirement of having to reside in Norway to get unemployment benefit. Read more about holiday and travelling.

Some types of financial support may be combined with unemployment benefit, but then your unemployment benefit may be reduced. In your application, you must specify if you are receiving other financial support, and NAV will calculate how much your unemployment benefit will be reduced.

If you quit your job, you may get unemployment benefit. You should apply one week before the last day you are entitled to salary from your employer. To avoid losing days with unemployment benefit, you must, apply at the latest, on the day you no longer are entitled to salary.

If you had reasonable cause to quit your job, you will get unemployment benefit from the first day you are entitled to it.

If you did not have reasonable cause to quit your job, you will not get unemployment benefit for the first 18 weeks.

Examples of reasonable cause include being unable to continue in your job due to health issues or having experienced bullying or harassment in the workplace. You must be able to provide documentation to prove this.

In any event, you must apply for unemployment benefit first. When you have applied, NAV will assess whether you had reasonable cause to quit your job or not.

If you were terminated from your job, you may get unemployment benefit. You should apply one week before the last day you are entitled to salary from your employer. To avoid losing days with unemployment benefit, you must, apply at the latest, on the day you no longer are entitled to salary.

If you were not personally responsible for being terminated or dismissed, you will get unemployment benefit from the first day you qualify.

If you were personally responsible for being terminated or dismissed, you will not get unemployment benefit for the first 18 weeks.

In any event, you must apply for unemployment benefit first. When you have applied, NAV will assess whether you were personally responsible for being terminated or dismissed.

If you lost your job because your employer went bankrupt, you may get an advance on wage guarantee funds in the form of unemployment benefit for a period of up to one month. Tick the box for this in your application for unemployment benefit.

Read more about wage guarantee..

When you are self-employed, you do not qualify for unemployment benefit. That is because self-employment income from sole proprietorships do not count as salary when NAV assesses if you qualify for unemployment benefit.

You may still qualify for unemployment benefit if you have had salary from another employer in the last 12 or 36 months.

If you worked for your own limited company and received salary as an employee, you may qualify for unemployment benefit.

If you have had freelance income, you may get unemployment benefit.

If you were recently discharged after being in the Norwegian military for at least 3 months, and you are unemployed, you may get unemployment benefit. You may receive unemployment benefit for a period of up to 26 weeks, regardless of your past income.

Fishers have a separate unemployment benefit scheme, managed by the Guarantee Fund for Fishers. Read more about how to apply for unemployment benefit from the Guarantee Fund for Fishers.

Self-employment income from fisheries, does not qualify you for unemployment benefit.

If you are temporarily laid off from your job due to strike or labour dispute,

• you are not entitled to unemployment benefit if your pay or employment conditions are affected by the strike or dispute.

• you are entitled to unemployment benefit if your pay or employment conditions are not affected by the strike or dispute.

If you work in the fisheries industry and are temporarily laid off, you can qualify for unemployment benefit if your working hours have been reduced by at least 40%. As an employee in the fisheries industry, you can receive unemployment benefit from the first day of your temporary lay-off period, because you are not entitled to wages from your employer.

You are considered an employee in the fisheries industry if you work in a fish processing enterprise, a fish oil enterprise or in the seafood industry.

If you are the only employee in your own limited company, you may temporarily lay yourself off by up to 80 percent, and still qualify for unemployment benefit.

If you temporarily lay yourself off by more than 80 percent, NAV will consider this as you not doing everything you can to secure more work and to avoid temporary layoffs.

You may be entitled to unemployment benefit if you are temporarily laid offfrom your job due to unforeseen events, such as fire, accidents, flooding, landslides or other natural events.

If you are temporarily laid off due to an accident or natural event, your employer must notify you at least 2 days before you are laid off. In the event of fire, your employer has a 14-day deadline to notify you that you will be laid off. You are not entitled to wages for the first 15 days of the temporary lay-off period; however, you can qualify for unemployment benefit from the first day of the lay-off period.

If you become unemployed in Norway, you can apply for unemployment benefit in your home country.

How you apply

When you apply for unemployment benefit in your home country, your home country must ask NAV to confirm your working and insurance periods in Norway.

If your home country does not ask NAV for this confirmation, you can apply for a PD U1 Certificate yourself. A PD U1 Certificate confirms that you have worked in Norway, and it may entitle you to unemployment benefit in your home country. Contact your local employment office to find out if you should apply for PD U1 yourself.

The processing time for PD U1 is currently 15 weeks.

Apply for PD U1

If you apply for a PD U1 Certificate yourself, NAV will need documentation of how much you have worked.

In your application, you must include

• when you started and quit your job.
• how much you have worked.
• why you quit.

If you do not have the documentation above, your employer can fill in the NAV Employment Form 04-02.03.

If you have worked in Norway but travelled home to another EEA country at least once a week, you may be entitled to unemployment benefit (dagpenger) in Norway if you are temporarily laid off or partly unemployed. If you become fully unemployed, you must apply for unemployment benefit in the country you live in.

You become temporarily laid off or partly unemployed

If you become temporarily laid off or partly unemployed from your job in Norway, you can apply for Norwegian unemployment benefit. You do not need to stay in Norway while receiving your unemployment benefit.

How to apply for unemployment benefit.

You become fully unemployed

If you become fully unemployed from your job in Norway, you are not entitled to Norwegian unemployment benefits. You must apply for unemployment benefit in your home country.

When applying for unemployment benefit in your home country, your home country must ask NAV to confirm your working and insurance periods in Norway.

If your home country does not ask NAV for this confirmation, you can apply for a PD U1 Certificate yourself. A PD U1 Certificate confirms that you have worked in Norway and it may entitle you to unemployment benefit in your home country. Contact your local employment office to find out if you should apply for PD U1 yourself.

The processing time for PD U1 is currently 15 weeks.

Apply for PD U1

If you apply for a PD U1 Certificate yourself, NAV will need documentation of how much you have worked.

In your application, you must include

• when you started and quit your job.
• how much you have worked.
• why you quit.

If you do not have the documentation above, your employer can fill in the NAV Employment Form 04-02.03.

If you have worked in Norway and travelled home to another EEA country less than once a week, you can apply for unemployment benefit (dagpenger) in Norway if you become unemployed or temporarily laid off. If you travel back to your home country, you can apply for unemployment benefit there.

You are temporarily laid off or partly unemployed

If you are temporarily laid off or partly unemployed from your job in Norway, you can apply for Norwegian unemployment benefit. You do not need to stay in Norway while receiving your unemployment benefit.

You become fully unemployed 

If you lose your job in Norway and become fully unemployed, you can choose to apply for unemployment benefit in Norway or apply for unemployment benefit in your home country. Where you stay determines where you can apply.

You are staying in Norway and want to apply for unemployment benefit

If you apply for unemployment benefit from NAV, you must stay in Norway while receiving the unemployment benefit. If you are in your home country when you lose your job, you must return to Norway to apply for unemployment benefit.

How to apply for unemployment benefit.

You are going home and want to apply for unemployment benefit

If you return to your home country, you will not receive unemployment benefit from NAV. Instead, you can apply for unemployment benefit in your home country.

When you apply for unemployment benefit in your home country, your home country must ask NAV to confirm your working and insurance periods in Norway.

If your home country does not ask NAV for this confirmation, you can apply for a PD U1 Certificate. A PD U1 Certificate confirms that you have worked in Norway, and it may entitle you to unemployment benefit in your home country. Contact your local employment office to find out if you should apply for PD U1 yourself.

The processing time for PD U1 is currently 15 weeks.

Apply for PD U1

If you apply for a PD U1 Certificate yourself, NAV will need documentation of how much you have worked.

In your application, you must include

• when you started and quit your job.
• how much you have worked.
• why you quit.

If you do not have the documentation above, your employer can fill in a NAV Employment Form 04-02.03.

You may be entitled to unemployment benefit (dagpenger) in Norway if you have lived and worked in another EEA country, Switzerland or the United Kingdom. You can bring your right to unemployment benefit earned there when you apply for unemployment benefit in Norway.

To be entitled to unemployment benefit in Norway:

• You must have lost the job you had in the other EEA country
• You must have worked in Norway after returning from the other EEA country
• The rules for unemployment benefit must apply to you

If you quit your job to move to Norway with your spouse or cohabitant who has found a job in Norway, you may be entitled to unemployment benefit without becoming unemployed in Norway.

What do you need to do to get unemployment benefit in Norway?

To get unemployment benefit from Norway, you must live in Norway. You must apply for unemployment benefit and be registered with NAV as a jobseeker.

What documentation do you need?

When you have worked in another EEA country, we need information about the jobs you have had there in the last 36 months. To document your jobs, you need a PDU1 Certificate. You should receive this certificate from the employment authorities in the country you worked in. If you already have a PD U1 Certificate, please include it in your application for unemployment benefit in Norway.

If you have not received the PD U1 Certificate from the EEA country you worked in, NAV will ask the employment authorities of that country for the certificate.

If you apply for unemployment benefit without a PD U1 Certificate, you must document:

• Start and end dates
• Reason for termination of employment
• Income in the last 36 months
• Working hours in the last 36 months

You may be entitled to Norwegian unemployment benefit (dagpenger) if you have lived in Norway while working in another EEA country, Switzerland or the United Kingdom.

To be entitled to unemployment benefit in Norway 

• you must have lost the job you had in the other EEA country
• the rules for unemployment benefits apply to you 

You can transfer your rights to unemployment benefit earned in another EEA country when you apply for unemployment benefit in Norway.

What do you need to do to get unemployment benefit in Norway?

To get Norwegian unemployment benefit, you must live in Norway. You must apply for unemployment benefit and be registered with NAV as a jobseeker.

What documentation do you need?

When you have worked in another EEA country, we need information about the jobs you have had there in the last 36 months. You will need a PDU1 Certificate to document these jobs. You should receive this certificate from the employment authorities in the country you worked in. If you already have the PD U1 Certificate, please include it in your application for unemployment benefit in Norway.

If you have not received the PD U1 Certificate from the EEA country where you worked, NAV will ask the employment authorities in that country for the certificate. In this case, you must send documentation of this when you apply for unemployment benefit:

• Start and end dates
• Reason for termination of employment
• Income in the last 36 months
• Working hours in the last 36 months

You may be entitled to unemployment benefit (dagpenger) from Norway if you have lived in Norway while working in another Nordic country, or if you have lived and worked in another Nordic country and are going back to Norway.

To get unemployment benefit from Norway, you must have

• lost your job in another Nordic country.
• been a resident and had national insurance rights in another Nordic country.
• registered as a jobseeker in Norway within 8 weeks of leaving the country where you worked.
• received or been entitled to unemployment benefit from Norway within the last 5 years.

There are exceptions to these rules for those who move in with a spouse or cohabitant who has found a job in Norway. Submit an application and we will assess whether you are entitled to unemployment benefits.

What do you need to do to get unemployment benefit in Norway?

To receive Norwegian unemployment benefit, you must live in Norway. You must apply for unemployment benefit and be registered with NAV as a jobseeker.

What documentation do you need?

When you have worked in another EEA country, we need information about the jobs you have had there in the last 36 months. You will need a PD U1 Certificate to document these jobs. This certificate is available from the employment authorities in the country you worked in. You must include the PD U1 Certificate in your application for unemployment benefit in Norway.

If you have not received the PD U1 Certificate from the EEA country where you worked, NAV will ask the employment authorities in that country for the certificate. If so, you must send documentation of this when you apply for unemployment benefit:

• Start and end dates
• Reason for termination of employment
• Income in the last 36 months
• Working hours in the last 36 months

What countries are part of the Nordic region?

• Denmark
• Finland
• Faroe Islands
• Greenland
• Iceland
• Norway
• Sweden
• Åland

When you travel to another EEA country to look for work, you may be entitled to keep your unemployment benefit (dagpenger) from Norway for up to 3 months. In order for this to apply to you, you must have been fully unemployed and entitled to unemployment benefit for at least 4 weeks before departure.

If you are travelling with your spouse or cohabitant who found a job in another EEA country, you do not need to have been entitled to unemployment benefit for 4 weeks before departure.

What do you need to do before you leave?

If you want to receive unemployment benefit from Norway while abroad, you must apply for a PD U2 Certificate. You must send your PD U2 Certificate application before you leave Norway. We recommend that you apply no later than 4 weeks before you leave.

When will you receive an answer to your application?

There is no processing time for PD U2 applications, but you will receive an answer to your application approximately 1 week before you leave.

What do you need to do after leaving Norway?

When you are in the EEA country where you will be staying, you must register as a jobseeker in that country. This means that you have to show up at the office of the employment authorities.

Your unemployment benefit from Norway will be stopped from the day you travel. Once NAV receives confirmation that you have registered with the employment authorities in the country you will be staying in, your unemployment benefit will start up again.

If you register as a jobseeker within 7 days of arrival, you will receive a back payment of your unemployment benefit from the day you left Norway. If you register later than 7 days, you will receive back payment of the unemployment benefit from the day you registered.

While receiving unemployment benefit from Norway, you must continue to follow the rules for what you must do to keep your unemployment benefit.

If you return to Norway

If you are still unemployed and return to Norway after the 3 months of your unemployment benefit from Norway have been used up, you must reapply for unemployment benefit. In this case, you must document when you returned to Norway, for example by using your plane ticket.

When applying for a job in Norway while receiving unemployment benefit from another EEA country, there are some rules for what you must do.

What do you need to do before coming to Norway?

Before coming to Norway, you must have applied for a PD U2 Certificate from the employment authorities in the EEA country where you are receiving unemployment benefit. This certificate allows you to keep your unemployment benefit while you are in Norway.

What do you need to do after you arrive in Norway?

When you arrive in Norway, you need to

• Show up at a NAV office and hand in your PD U2 Certificate. It is written on the PD U2 Certificate when the deadline is for handing it in to NAV.
• Ask the NAV office to create a Norwegian D-number for you. You need to do this as soon as possible. Remember to bring your passport.
• Register as a jobseeker at the NAV office.

 After you have handed in the PD U2 Certificate, received a Norwegian D-number and registered as a jobseeker, you must

• send in your employment status form (meldekort) every 14 days.
• apply for jobs in Norway.

 Remember that you must also follow the rules in the EEA country you receive unemployment benefit from.

If you have lost your job because your Norwegian employer is bankrupt, you may get an advance on wage guarantee in the form of unemployment benefit (dagpenger). You may get an advance from the wage guarantee fund for up to one month after your employer goes bankrupt. You do not have to stay in Norway while receiving the wage guarantee advance.

When the period of advance payment from the wage guarantee fund has ended, you can apply for Norwegian unemployment benefit. You must stay in Norway while receiving unemployment benefit.

Read more here about bankruptcy and wage guarantees.

How do you apply?

You should apply as soon as your employer is bankrupt. When you apply for an advance from the wage guarantee fund, you must apply for unemployment benefit. In the application, you tick a box to say you want an advance from the wage guarantee fund. You can also apply for unemployment benefit in the same application.

How to apply for unemployment benefit.

If you provide for children under the age of 18, you will get child supplement of 36 NOK per child, 5 days per week. This is a total of 180 NOK per week per child. If you provide for a child, you are entitled to child supplement even if the child does not live with you.

The child must live in Norway or another EEA country, Switzerland or Great Britain. If the child, over a period of 12 months, spends more than 90 days outside of Norway or another EEA country, Switzerland or Great Britain, you will no longer receive child supplement.

If you have been in the Norwegian military for at least 3 months, and were recently discharged, we will calculate your unemployment benefit based on an income of 355 860 NOK (3 G). If your income for the last 12 months was higher than this, you may be entitled to a higher unemployment benefit. NAV will calculate your unemployment benefit based on the income that will benefit you the most.

If you are you receiving other financial support, it may affect the amount of your unemployment benefit. You specify in the application the type of financial support you are receiving, and NAV will calculate how much your unemployment benefit will be reduced.

If you are temporarily laid off again by the same employer within an 18-month period, you will continue with the 26-week period you can be laid off. For example: if you were temporarily laid off for 20 weeks in the last 18 months you can now be temporarily laid off for 6 weeks.

If it is more than 18 months since the last time you were temporarily laid off from the same employer, you can be temporarily laid off for up to 26 weeks.

If you are temporarily laid off by another employer, you can be temporarily laid off from that job for 26 weeks, regardless of whether you have been previously laid off or not.

If you are employed in the fisheries industry and are temporarily laid off, you are not entitled to wages for the first 15 days you are laid off. However, you can qualify for unemployment benefit from the first day you are laid off. You can receive unemployment benefit if your working hours are reduced by at least 40 percent.

You can receive unemployment benefit if you are laid off from the fisheries industry for up to 26 weeks within an 18-month period. We will stop your unemployment benefit when the 26-week period has expired.

Employers in the fisheries industry are not required to pay wages when you have received unemployment benefit when laid off for 26 weeks within the last 18 months. There are certain exceptions to this rule. Contact your employer to find out about what applies specifically to you.

We need your employment contract to confirm information about your employment.

The employment contract must include

• what date you started your job
• your employment percentage or your agreed working hours
• agreed notice period for termination/resignation
• what date the employment ends, if you have a temporary employment contract

If you do not have an employment contract, or if your employment contract does not include all the necessary information, your employer can fill out one of the following forms.

Unemployed: "Confirmation of reason for termination/reduced hours” (NAV 04-08.03)

Temporary lay-off: "Confirmation of employment and lay-off" (NAV 04-08.04)

If you have resigned from your job or if you have been terminated, we need to know why. That is why we need the notice of resignation you have handed in to your employer, or the notice of termination your employer have given you.

Have you resigned from you job?

In that case, your notice of resignation must include

• what date you gave your employer your notice of resignation
• the reason why you resigned

If you did not hand in a written reason for your resignation to your employer, you can include the reason why you resigned in your application to NAV.

Have you been terminated from your job?

In that case, your notice of termination must include

• what date you received the notice
• the reason for your termination

If you do not have a notice of termination, or if your notice does not include all the necessary information, your employer can fill out the form "Confirmation of reason for termination/reduced hours” (NAV 04-08.03).

Has your contract expired?

If your contract has expired, we do not need a notice of resignation/termination. Your employment contract will include information about the employment ending.

If you have been fully or partially temporarily laid off, we need to know why. That is why we need the notice of temporary lay-off you received from your employer.

The notice of temporary lay-off must include

• your name
• why you were temporarily laid off
• how many percent you have been temporarily laid off (degree of lay-off)
• start and potential end date for temporary lay-off period
• what date you received the notice

The notice should also say whether there is agreement in your workplace about the temporary lay-off. If the notice does not say anything about agreement, you need to document this in another way.

If you are receiving unemployment benefit, you must be willing to accept any kind of job, anywhere in Norway. This means that you may have to accept a lower salary or a longer commute. You must be able to accept both full-time and part-time employment. The reason for this requirement is to increase your employment options.

You may get an exception from this requirement if you

• are over 60 years old
• have health issues
• are caring for a close family member
• have a child under 1 year old in your care
• are the sole carer for a child in 7th grade or younger, or joint carer with a parent you do not live with
• are the sole carer for a child with special needs, or joint carer with a parent you do not live with

There are other exceptions as well.

If you need an exception, include this in your application for unemployment benefit. You may be asked to provide documentation to confirm your situation.

If you are more than 50 percent on sick leave , you will no longer be entitled to unemployment benefit, but you may be entitled to sickness benefit.

When you get a new job or return to your old job, you must notify NAV about the following:

• the start date
• how much you will be working
• which employer you will be working for

Notify NAV as soon as you know when you are starting the job, to ensure that your payments are correct.

Read more about combining work with unemployment benefit.

You must notify NAV if you have turned down a job offer. Remember that when you are receiving unemployment benefit, you must be willing to accept any kind of job, anywhere in Norway.

You must tell us why you turned down the job offer. If we conclude that you did not have a valid reason for turning down the job, you will lose your unemployment benefit for 18 weeks.

If you are terminated, you must both notify NAV and send us the notice of termination you received from your employer.

If you were temporarily laid off when you were fired, you are entitled to be paid by your employer. You are entitled to receive pay from the date you received the notice of termination until the end of the notice period.

If you resign from your job, you must both notify NAV and send us your notice of resignation.

You must tell us why you resigned. If we conclude that you did not have a valid reason for resigning, you will lose your unemployment benefit for 18 weeks.

Notify NAV if your temporary lay-off changes.

If your temporary lay-off period is extended, you must send us your new notice of temporary lay-off, or other documentation from your employer.

If your employer goes bankrupt, you must both notify NAV and send us the bankruptcy notice.

Read more about what to do if your employer goes bankrupt.

If there are changes in your education, you must notify NAV.

You must notify NAV if you are on sick leave or your sick leave percentage changes.

Read more about what to do and what your rights are if you are on sick leave.

If you are going on a leave from your job, you must notify NAV. While you are on leave, we will normally stop your unemployment benefit.

If you have a child while receiving unemployment benefit, you must notify NAV. This way, you might get child supplement.

If you already have a child, and are receiving child supplement, you must notify us if:

• the child will be staying outside the EEA, Switzerland and Great Britain

• you are no longer providing for the child

You must notify NAV if you are receiving a pension or other financial support from a private or other public source.

You must also notify us if you are receiving any other form of financial support from NAV.

You must notify NAV if you will be staying in an institution, such as a health care institution or prison. Your unemployment benefit payments will be stopped while you are in the institution.

If you are staying in a treatment facility, you may be entitled to sickness benefit.

If you get a new bank account number, you must update the information on My page. This ensures the benefit is paid to the correct account.

If your regular working hours were 30 hours per week, your regular working hours for one employment status form period (2 weeks) will be 60 hours. You may then work up to 50 percent of 60 hours in one employment status form period and still receive a reduced unemployment benefit payment.

In this case, you could for example work

• 15 hours one week and 15 hours the other week, and you would still receive a reduced unemployment benefit payment.
• 25 hours one week and 5 hours the other week, and you would still receive a reduced unemployment benefit payment.
• 30 hours one week and 0 hours the other week, and you would still receive a reduced unemployment benefit payment.

If you work more than 50 percent of your regular working hours, within one employment status form period, you will not receive any unemployment benefit.

If you are working more than 50 percent of your regular working hours on 3 employment status forms in a row, we will stop your unemployment benefit payments. We do that because it looks like you are back to work and no longer need unemployment benefit. If you need unemployment benefit again, you must reapply.

If you work for the employer who temporarily laid you off, in the same employment percentage as before, for more than 6 weeks in a row, the temporary lay-off is ended. If you get temporarily laid off again, you must receive a new notice of temporary lay-off and reapply for unemployment benefit.

Compensatory time off and free periods are not included in the calculation of these 6 weeks.

If you work for the employer who temporarily laid you off, in the same employment percentage as before, for more than 26 weeks in a row, the temporary lay-off is interrupted. If you get temporarily laid off again, you must receive a new notice of temporary lay-off and reapply for unemployment benefit.

You may work up to 60 percent of your regular working hours, and still receive a reduced unemployment benefit payment. If you work more than that, you will not receive any unemployment benefit for that employment status form period.

To qualify for unemployment benefit while starting a business, all of the following must apply to your situation:

• The business must be new.
• It must be possible for you to eventually earn a living through your business.
• You must own more than 50 percent of the business, either on your own or together with others who are also receiving unemployment benefit.
• If you lost your job in the last 6 months, your own actions cannot be the reason why you lost your job.

Are you unsure if this applies to you? Submit an application, and we will assess whether you are entitled to unemployment benefit while starting your own business.

If you want to start your own business while receiving unemployment benefit, you should apply as soon as possible. This is because the starting of the business can only be approved from the day when the processing of your application is completed. If you work on your business before it has been approved, these work hours will lead to a reduction in your unemployment benefit payment.

To apply for unemployment benefit while starting your own business, you must:

• Submit an evaluation of start-up plans with your application. Contact your NAV office for information on where to get such an assessment.
• Notify NAV of the fact that you want to start your own business while receiving unemployment benefit.
• Submit your application for starting your own business.

Are you not currently receiving unemployment benefit? Remember to also apply for unemployment benefit when you want to start your own business while receiving unemployment benefit.

When you are starting a business while receiving unemployment benefit, there are special rules for filling out the employment status form. Read more about the rules for filling out the employment status form.

Normally, you will not receive unemployment benefit during travels abroad. If you need to travel abroad as part of starting your business, you can apply to keep your unemployment benefit during your trip. Your application must be approved before you travel.

You apply by writing to us.

If you start your education beforereceiving a response to your application, we will temporarily stop your unemployment benefit payments until you have received a response to your application.

If your education is approved, you will receive post-payment of unemployment benefit for the period your application was being processed.

If your education is not approved, we will stop your unemployment benefit payments completely, and you will not receive any post-payment. If you want to receive unemployment benefit, you must end your education and re-apply for unemployment benefit.

You will not receive unemployment benefit before we have approved your education.

If your education is approved, you can get your education while receiving unemployment benefit.

If your education is not approved, you will not receive unemployment benefit. If you want to receive unemployment benefit, you must end your education and re-apply for unemployment benefit.

In order to be entitled to combine unemployment benefit with primary school (barneskole) and lower secondary school (ungdomsskole), or upper secondary school (videregående skole), you must meet the following criteria:

• You must have been fully unemployed or fully temporarily laid off on the date you were granted unemployment benefit. If you are an on-call temporary worker, you are not considered fully unemployed.
• You must be at least 25 years old.
• It needs to be at least 12 weeks since the date you were granted unemployment benefit. This date is stated in your decision letter.

There are some exceptions

• If you are at least 25 years old but have not completed primary -, lower secondary - or upper secondary school, there is no need for 12 weeks to have passed since the date you were granted unemployment benefit.
• If you started school at least 12 weeks before the date you were granted unemployment benefit, you do not need to be 25 years old or older. Nor do 12 weeks need to have passed since the decision to grant you unemployment benefit was made.

How long can you combine school with unemployment benefit?

You may combine unemployment benefit with primary -, lower secondary - and upper secondary school for up to one unemployment benefit period.

If you are granted a new unemployment benefit period, you must re-apply to combine unemployment benefit with education or training.

In order to be entitled to combine unemployment benefit with vocational college (fagskole), you must meet the following criteria:

• You must have been fully unemployed or fully temporarily laid off on the date you were granted unemployment benefit. If you are an on-call temporary worker, you are not considered fully unemployed.
• You must be at least 25 years old.
• It needs to be at least 12 weeks since the date you were granted unemployment benefit. This date is stated in your decision letter.

There are some exceptions

If you started school at least 12 weeks before the date you were granted unemployment benefit

• you do not need to be 25 years or older
• it is not necessary for 12 weeks to have passed since the decision to grant you unemployment benefit was made.

How long can you combine vocational college with unemployment benefit?

You may combine unemployment benefit with vocational college for up to one unemployment benefit period.

If you are granted a new unemployment benefit period, you must re-apply to combine unemployment benefit with education or training.

In order to be entitled to combine unemployment benefit with education at university or university college (høyskole), you must meet the following criteria:

• You must have been fully unemployed or fully temporarily laid off on the date you were granted unemployment benefit. If you are an on-call temporary worker, you are not considered fully unemployed.
• You must be at least 30 years old.
• It needs to be at least 12 weeks since the date you were granted unemployment benefit. This date is stated in your decision letter.
• The education must grant credits (studiepoeng), but no more than 15 credits per half year.

There are some exceptions

If you started the education at least 12 weeks before the date you were granted unemployment benefit

• you do not need to be 30 years or older
• it is not necessary for 12 weeks to have passed since the decision to grant you unemployment benefit was made.

How long can you combine education with unemployment benefit?

You can combine unemployment benefit with education at university or university college for up to 12 months during one unemployment benefit period.

You may be entitled to unemployment benefit if you interrupt your work on a doctorate degree, have submitted your doctorate thesis, or if the regulations for getting a higher education in combination with unemployment benefit are met.

Have you not submitted your doctorate thesis and are still receiving salary?

As a main rule, you are not entitled to unemployment benefit while you are working on your doctorate thesis.

Have you interrupted your work on your doctorate thesis?

If you interrupt your work on your doctorate thesis, you may be entitled to unemployment benefit. In your application for unemployment benefit, you must enclose a confirmation from your student advisor that you are not working on your doctorate degree.

Have you completed your research fellowship period, but continue working on your thesis?

As a main rule, you are not entitled to unemployment benefit, but you can still send an application. Notify NAV that you are still working on your doctorate thesis when you apply for unemployment benefit.

Have you submitted your thesis, but not carried out your trial lecture or disputation?

If you have submitted your doctorate thesis and concluded all work on the thesis, you may be entitled to receive unemployment benefit until 2 weeks before you hold your first trial lecture.

Notify NAV in good time before you hold your trial lecture and disputation.

Starting 2 weeks before your first trial lecture, and lasting until the day for your disputation, you are not entitled to unemployment benefit. When you have completed the disputation, you may be entitled unemployment benefit again.

You must enter absence on your employment status form for the 2 weeks before your first trial lecture, and until the day for your disputation.

Have you completed your trial lecture and disputation, but are unemployed?

When you have completed your doctorate degree you may be entitled to unemployment benefit if you are still unemployed.

To have the right to combine unemployment benefit with courses or other types of training, you must meet the following criteria:

• You must have been fully unemployed or fully temporarily laid off on the date you were granted unemployment benefit. If you are an on-call temporary worker, you are not considered fully unemployed.
• You must be at least 25 years old.
• It needs to be at least 12 weeks since the date you were granted unemployment benefit. This date is stated in your decision letter.

There are some exceptions

If you started the course or education at least 12 weeks before the date on which you were granted unemployment benefit

• You do not need to be 25 years or older
• it is not necessary for 12 weeks to have passed since the decision to grant you unemployment benefit was made.

How long can you combine courses or training with unemployment benefit?

The course or training can maximum equal 3 months of full-time education. You can take a course part-time, or one that is divided into blocks. If the course is part of a longer education, NAV will look at the total length of the education.

Education in Norwegian language and social studies must be approved and follow the curriculum for Norwegian language and social studies for adult immigrants.

How long can you combine education with unemployment benefit?

You may be entitled to combine unemployment benefit with education for up to 1 year. The education can be divided into blocks that together correspond to 1 year.

In special cases, you can request an extended period to complete the education.

If you participate in the introduction programme according to the Integration Act, you may be entitled to combine unemployment benefit with participation in the introduction programme.