NORWAY Law and Practice Contributed by: Sicilie Tveøy, Lars Christensen, Ramborg Elvebakk and Karen Margrethe Bugge, Advokatfirmaet Hjort AS
years of residence. For EU/EEA countries, the requi - site number of years in Norway is set to three. 7.2 Expeditious Citizenship Norway does not offer any expedited or “golden pass - port” scheme for citizenship. There is no programme where one can invest money or pay a fee to rapidly obtain Norwegian citizenship. The standard naturali - sation period is eight years of residence (as noted in 7.1 Requirements for Domicile, Residency and Citizenship ). Only a few exceptions shorten this – eg, being married to a Norwegian. The exceptions are lim - ited and still require years of residence. One relatively fast route to Norwegian citizenship is available for Nordic citizens (from Sweden, Denmark, Iceland and Finland). Under the Nordic agreement, a citizen of another Nordic country who has lived in Norway for just two years can apply for Norwegian citizenship, provided they have no criminal record. This arrangement reflects the close integration and co-operation among the Nordic countries. By com - parison, citizens from EEA (EØS) countries generally qualify for Norwegian citizenship after three years of residence, subject to similar conditions. Apart from the expedited routes available to Nordic citizens, Norway does not offer fast-track citizenship through investment programmes or special talent schemes. 8. Planning for Minors, Adults with Disabilities and Elders 8.1 Special Planning Mechanisms Norway’s welfare system provides a lot of support for minors and disabled adults. For all practical situations, necessary needs are taken care of by the public wel - fare and health care. Previously, older individuals with dementia or dis- abilities needed an officially appointed guardian to manage their financial and personal affairs. With the growing elderly population, Norway has introduced new legislation allowing individuals to appoint a pri - vate guardian through an enduring power of attorney, known as a fremtidsfullmakt . This legal instrument
can be set up in advance and only takes effect if the individual becomes incapable of managing their own affairs – eg, due to dementia or disability. The endur - ing power of attorney enables a trusted person – often a family member, but it can be anyone the individual chooses – to handle both financial and personal mat - ters without the need for official or court involvement. This arrangement is increasingly used by older indi - viduals as part of their planning for potential incapac - ity in later life, offering flexibility and personal choice in selecting who will act on their behalf. For minors, parents or legal guardians manage their assets until they reach the age of 18. If a minor receives a significant amount of money, approximately NOK240 000 (eg, inheritance), those funds must be placed under the oversight of the County Governor’s office (Guardian authorities) and can only be used in the minor’s interest with approval from the County Governor. It is not a “trust” – this system ensures pro - tection of a minor’s property and is not very flexible. If parents want to set aside money for a child but maintain control beyond age 18, options are limited. Parents can keep the money themselves. In a will, the parents can appoint someone to manage the child’s inheritance until a later age. For adults with disabilities, aside from the enduring power of attorney (which must be created by the per - son while capable), if a person is already incapacitat - ed, the system of guardianship ( vergemål ) comes into effect, where a court or County Governor appoints a guardian to manage that adult’s finances and personal decisions. Families can suggest a trusted person as guardian, which the authorities often honour. 8.2 Appointment of a Guardian Appointing a legal guardian is done by the County Governor ( Statsforvalter ), in most cases according to acceptance – but if the individual is not able to under - stand, then the County Governor can appoint a legal guardian even though the individual protests. It is the court that decides whether a person’s legal capacity shall be taken from them.
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