The Norwegian government has decided that students from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland must pay tuition fees.
Please note that the tuition fees come in addition to the documentation of financial stability required by the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration to qualify for a residence permit. (Information about the available account at USN)
Tuition fee levels may be updated annually.
Information about application for student residence permit: Want to apply - UDI).
All students must also pay the semester fee.
If you are not entitled to an exemption and you have not received an invoice or information on how to make the payment, you must contact us. Remember to state your application number in the e-mail.
How much are the fees?
Not all our programs are listed on this page, so if you cannot find your programme in the list below, please contact us for more information.
Annual fees for 2025/2026 varies between NOK 140 000 and 250 000. Below, you find the amount for a selection of our study programs. The amounts listed are correct for next study year, starting autumn semester, August 2026.
NOK 50 000 per year
- Blues and Americana, one year programme
- Norwegian Folk Music/Art, one year programme
NOK 60 000 per year
- Master in Digital Transformation
- Master in Human Rights and Multiculturalism
- Master in Innovation and Technology Management
- Master in Maritime Management
- Master in Sustainability Management
NOK 90 000 per year
- Master in Computer Science
- Master in Electrical Power Engineering
- Master in Ecology and Environmental Management
- Master in Energy and Environmental Technology
- Master in Industrial IT and Automation
- Master in Process, Energy and Environmental Technology
- Master in Sensor Systems and Innovation
Exemptions and exemptions form
1. You are automatically exempted and do not have to pay tuition fees if you:
- Are an exchange student. The process for exchange students is the same as before.
- Are an PhD-student
- You have been granted a scholarship from a project funded through a cooperation programme aimed at the Global South (e.g. NORHED II and Norpart)
- You have been granted a scholarship at USN through the Students at Risk programme
- You are a student on an Erasmus Mundus Joint programme (Smart Systems Integrated Solutions)
2. You may be exempt from paying tuition fees if one of the following applies to you:
- Please read all information under the different exemptions carefully.
- When you have all required documentation ready, you can apply for exemption through the exemptions form (Requires login).
- These exemptions are subject to change.
You are an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you are a citizen from one of the following countries:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card
You have a permanent residence permit
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you have permanent residence permit in Norway or one of the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Sweden).
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your residence card, and
- Copy of the decision letter from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI)
You have a residence permit due to protection (asylum)
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you have residence (asylum) in Norway due to protection, strong humanitarian considerations or a special connection to Norway.
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your residence card, and
- Copy of the decision letter from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI)
You have a residence permit as family member of an EU/EEA citizen
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you have a residence permit as family member of an EU/EEA citizen. The EU/EEA citizen must have grounds for residence in Norway other than studying.
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your residence card, and
- Copy of the decision letter from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI), and
- Copy of the registration certificate for your family member
You are cohabiting and have children with a Norwegian citizen
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you are cohabiting and have children with a Norwegian citizen. Both you and your cohabiting person must live in Norway.
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your residence card, and
- Copy of the residence certificate (bostedsattest) for you, your cohabitating partner and your child, and
- Copy of the decision letter from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI)
You are married to a Norwegian citizen
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you are married to or legal partner of a Norwegian citizen. Both you and your spouse/partner must live in Norway.
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your residence card, and
- Copy of your marriage certificate from the Norwegian Tax Administration or from the foreign authority who officiated the wedding, and
- Copy of the residence certificate (bostedsattest) for you and your spouse/legal partner, and
- Copy of the decision letter from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI)
You have worked in Norway for at least two years full-time
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you have had continuous full-time work in Norway, have been resident in and paid tax to Norway during a qualifying period of at least 24 months.
You must have had a residence permit as an employee during the earning period. There must be no break during the accrual period or between the accrual period and further studies. However, exceptions can be made for stays of up to 1 year in the event of illness or childbirth.
Stays due to ordinary five-week holidays per year will be accepted as part of the accrual period of 24 months.
Au-pair work is not considered full-time employment and does therefore not give exemptions from paying tuition fees.
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your residence card, and
- Confirmation(s) from employer(s) showing that you have had continuous full-time employment in Norway for at least 24 months immediately prior to commencing the study programme (start and finish dates). The confirmation(s) must show the role percentage and start and finish dates of the employment. An employment contract is not considered sufficient documentation, and
- Documentation showing that you have paid tax in Norway for the last 24 months immediately prior to commencing studies. This could include copies of the tax return, payslips or corresponding documentation, and
- Copy of the decision letter from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI)
You are a UK citizen or a family member of a UK citizen who moved to Norway before 1 January 2021
During a transitional period that lasted until 2020, the United Kingdom was to be treated as if it were still a member of the EU and the EEA.
If you or your family member are a citizen of the United Kingdom, who was entitled to reside in Norway in accordance with the EEA agreement before the end of the transition period (31.12.2020), you are exempt to pay tuition fees. You must also have stayed in Norway.
If you came to Norway on 1 January 2021 or later, you are not exempt from the tuition fees.
For more information about which family members this concerns, see Article 9 (1) e in the Agreement on arrangements between Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and the United Kingdom following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, the EEA Agreement and other agreements a... - Lovdata
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your registration certificate
You have studied in Norway for minimum three years full-time
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you during an accrual period of at least 36 months have lived in and been in education in Norway and passed education equivalent to 3 years of full-time education.
There must be no gap during the accrual period or between the accrual period and further studies. However, exceptions can be made for stays of up to 1 year in the event of illness or childbirth.
During the qualifying period, you cannot have received loans or grants for education from public support schemes in other countries (e.g. Centrala studiestödsnämnden and Uddannelsesstyrelsen), or from Norwegian public support schemes for development, e.g. Norad, the Norwegian Programme for Development, Research and Education (NUFU), the Norwegian Programme for Capacity Development in Higher Education and Research for Development (NORHED).
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your residence card, and
- Copy of the decision letter from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI), and
- Copy of transcripts of records or diplomas for education completed in Norway
- Declaration of not having received loans/grants from Lånekassen, from public support schemes in other countries or from Norwegian support schemes for development (.pdf)
You have a residence permit due to family immigration
You do not have to pay tuition fees if you have a residence permit due to family immigration. The person with whom you have been reunited must either be a Norwegian citizen or a foreign national with a reason for residence in Norway other than studying.
Furthermore, you do not have to pay tuition fees if you have gained a continued residence permit on an independent basis due to the Norwegian immigration act § 53.
Documentation requirements:
- Copy of your passport or national ID card, and
- Copy of your residence card, and
- Copy of the decision letter from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI), and
- Copy of the residence card or registration certificate for your family member
About fees if you do not complete your studies within the standard time frame
From 1 January 2026, students will not be required to pay for delays or improvements in the programme they have been admitted to, in line with non-paying students.
For any studies/courses that are not part of the programme they have been admitted to and are paying for, they must pay an additional fee.
Students who are in Norway on a student residence permit are themselves responsible for meeting the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration’s (UDI) requirements for extending their residence permit.
- Fees must be paid if the student has an exam during leave of absence.
- Fees are based on the full one-year amount of the programme, at that time, and the amount of credits to be taken (i.e. a fourth of the amount for a15 credits course)
- Fees must be paid also if a student has an exchange semester abroad.
If a student plans reduced study progression for a year or semester after the first year of the programme, they will pay per credit (i.e., if they take 15 credits instead of 30, they pay half the amount). It is the student's own responsibility to ensure they comply with the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) regulations for residence permits as a student (a student permit is normally for a full-time student allowed to work up to 20 hours per week).
Reimbursement
If you pay and later cannot come due to not receiving your student permit in time (or documented illness/injury), we will refund the tuition fees except a small banking fee.