Exchange of driving licences from Greenland
If you have a driving licence for Category B from Greenland that was issued after 1 January 1995, you may exchange it for a Norwegian driving licence.
In order for you to exchange your driving licence from Greenland, the licence must meet certain criteria. The driving licence cannot be exchanged for a Norwegian one if it was issued before 2 January 1995. You can only exchange your Category B driving licence; we do not accept any other categories.
What do you need to do?
Submit an application for exchange
You may hand in your application at a Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office or send it by post. In both cases, you need to submit a completed application form, your original driving licence, and a certificate of residence or documentation of when you moved back to Norway.
Book an appointment if you wish to hand in your application yourself, to avoid having to wait in line at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office.
Have you moved to Norway from abroad?
If you have moved to Norway from abroad, you must provide documentation of the date when you took up normal residence in Norway. This is normally documented with a residence certificate from the Norwegian Tax Administration.
No deadline to apply for an exchange
There is no deadline for you to apply for exchange after you took up normal residence in Norway or moved back after a temporary stay abroad.
Temporary driving permit
Normally, a driving licence from Greenland is valid for driving in Norway for up to three months after you came to Norway. If you submit an application for exchange within this period, you may be entitled to a temporary driving permit. If so, you need to present valid proof of identity at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office.
Do you need to submit an eyesight or health certificate?
You need to submit an eyesight certificate if
- you have impaired vision or there are other issues with your eyesight. You will be asked about this under the Personal Health Statement when you fill out the application form for exchange.
You need to submit a health certificate if
- your health is impaired in a way that may affect road safety. You will be asked about this under the Personal Health Statement when you fill out the application form for exchange.
You will receive a decision letter
Once we have received your application, it normally takes up to four weeks for us to process it.
We will send the decision letter to your digital postbox. If you have opted out of receiving digital post, you will receive the decision by regular post.
If your application is granted, you will be informed in our decision letter how to proceed.
Passing a practical driving test to exchange a driving licence for passenger cars (Category B)
Number of attempts
You have two attempts to pass the practical driving test.
Deadline for passing the practical driving test
Once your application for exchange is granted, you have two years to pass the practical driving test. If time runs out, you can re-apply. In the event of a new application, all attempts you have previously made at passing the practical driving test will be counted in. If you have already failed once, you will only have one remaining attempt.
If you have not been able to complete the exchange, and then later have emigrated from Norway, previous attempts at the driving test will not count when you submit a new application. You will then start a new exchange process from scratch.
Booking a practical driving test
To exchange your driving licence, you must take a practical driving test. You have two attempts to pass the practical driving test.
You take your driving test at a Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office (trafikkstasjon). You can either authorise your driving school to book a test session for you or you can book the test yourself.
Before you can take the driving test
You may book a session for the practical driving test when
- the police have approved your conduct history
- you have submitted an eyesight or health certificate, if required Conduct history is checked routinely.
The Norwegian Public Roads Administration asks the police to do this check when you have applied for an exchange. Processing time with the police is normally up to four weeks, but it may also take longer.
Payment for the driving test
When you book a session for the practical driving test, you will be given a deadline for how late the session may be cancelled. Once the cancellation deadline has expired, you will receive an SMS saying that you can pay for the test on Your Page. You can also pay for the test when you come to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office, but this will be more expensive.
If you cancel a session later than two business days before the test, you will have to pay for the session.
Taking the practical driving test
When you arrive for your practical driving test, you will have to present valid proof of identity. You have to provide a vehicle for the test yourself. The vehicle you use for your practical driving test must be approved by the Norwegian Public Roads Administration and must be rented from a driving school.
The test lasts up to 75 minutes and is divided into three parts:
- Preparing the vehicle
- Safety check. You will be given a randomly selected question/task, for example on testing the brakes or refilling windscreen washer fluid.
- Driving. The drive itself is the most extensive part and it follows a predetermined route. Your examiner will provide you with directions as you go.
You must drive and solve the tasks you are given without assistance. The test will, to the extent that this is possible, be assessed as a whole. It is you who are the driver, and who are responsible for what is done during the test.
Taking the driving test with manual or automatic transmission
If you pass your driving test with a manual transmission car, your Norwegian driving licence will allow you to drive cars with both transmission systems.
If you pass your driving test with automatic transmission, you will get a driving licence with a code showing that you may only drive vehicles with automatic transmission. If you later need to drive cars with manual transmission, you will have to take a new driving test with a manual transmission car.
After the practical driving test
As soon as the test is over, you will be told whether you passed or not, and you will be given a written statement explaining the decision made.
If you fail the practical driving test
If you fail the practical test at the first attempt, you will have to wait four weeks before you can take the next and final test. When you present yourself for the final test, you need to show valid proof of identity and pay a new test fee.
Ordering a Norwegian driving licence.
When you have passed your driving test, you need to order a Norwegian driving licence before you are allowed to drive.
You order your driving licence at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Office.
These criteria must be met
You must hold a full and complete driving entitlement when you move to Norway
The entitlements your Greenlandic driving licence gives you must be the same as those a Norwegian driving licence for Category B will give you. This means, among other things, that your Greenlandic driving entitlement should allow you to
- drive whenever and wherever you want
- decide for yourself who you will bring along as a passenger when you drive
- upgrade your licence to include other categories of your choice
You must have completed all training and tests for the driving licence category in Greenland.
If your Greenlandic driving licence has restrictions, but you still believe that you held a full and complete driving entitlement at the time when you left Greenland, you need to present a written, stamped and signed confirmation from the driver licensing authorities in Greenland.
The confirmation must include your full name and driving licence number, and it must confirm that you held a full and complete driving entitlement when you left Greenland.
The confirmation should clearly state that all restrictions had expired (ceased to apply) by the time when you moved to Norway. This applies, for example, to restrictions related to
• when, where and with whom you may drive
• upgrading to include other licence categories
• remaining training or tests to be completed
Your driving entitlement must be valid when you apply for exchange
If the term of validity of your driving entitlement has expired when you apply for exchange, you need to present confirmation from the driver licensing authorities in Greenland that you still hold a valid driving entitlement there.
The confirmation document must include
- your driving licence number
- your name
- your date of birth
The document must be dated, signed and stamped by the driver licensing authorities in Greenland.