Applies to the professions: Chief fire officer, control room operator, crew commander/leading firefighter, deputy chief fire officer operations, deputy chief fire officer prevention, fire prevention personnel, firefighter, incident commander, journeyman in sweeping chimneys.
If you have a foreign education or professional qualification and wish to practice your profession in Norway, you generally need approval or authorisation.
You will find information about documentation requirements, the application process and regulations here. The competent authority will assess whether you meet the requirements to practice the profession and use the professional title in Norway. If you intend to establish yourself in Norway and work permanently in your chosen profession, the rules below apply to you. However, if you wish to work in Norway for shorter periods of time within your chosen profession, the rules for temporary provision of services apply.
If you do not already have a Norwegian national ID-number, you will need to register a user account for the Altinn services. Please access the registration procedure here.
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The Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection (DSB) can approve foreign education as equivalent to vocational training at the Norwegian Fire and Rescue Academy. This also applies to education related to performing tasks such as chimney sweeping and inspecting heating systems.
Applications can only be submitted by the professional/individual or the employer. Please submit your application with attachments to the Directorate for Civil Protection and Emergency Planning.
- CV, including personal data, education (with dates) and relevant practice (with dates) for the specific profession
- Copy of original certificate or diploma confirming the qualification
- Copy of the curriculum for the education
- Copy of certificate of employment confirming completed apprenticeship. (If relevant in the country where the education was obtained.)
- Copy of certificate, craft certificate, journeyman's certificate, or vocational training certificate for the qualification.
- Copy of certificate of employment from current or previous employers, confirming completed practice.
Comments
- To assess and confirm that the education is sufficient to practice the profession in Norway, the content of the education and practical experience must be documented (the curriculum or equivalent from the educational institution, and relevant practice from the workplace).
- DSB only accepts documentation and information that has been translated into Norwegian or English by an approved translator, except for documentation and information provided in Swedish or Danish.
Police Certificate and Security Clearance
Please note that, pursuant to Section 18 of the Fire and Explosion Prevention Act, an exhaustive police certificate and good conduct will be required for potential employment in the fire and rescue service. Additionally, security clearance may also be required.
Language requirements:
No, but the employer may require proof of sufficient Norwegian language knowledge necessary for practicing the profession.
Criteria/conditions for recognition:
The assessment of your professional qualifications is carried out in accordance with the Regulations on the Organization, Staffing, and Equipment of Fire and Rescue Services and Emergency Dispatch Centers of September 15, 2021, No. 2755 (the Fire and Rescue Services Regulations), Chapter 8: Training and Competence.
Section 36, second paragraph, of the Fire and Rescue Services Regulations provides the legal basis for the recognition of alternative professional education:
"The Norwegian Fire Academy shall offer professional education as determined pursuant to these regulations. The central supervisory authority may approve professional education from other educational institutions."
The Norwegian Fire Academy is now referred to as the Norwegian Fire and Rescue Academy.
The statutory qualification requirements for persons who shall work as a Firefighter are set out in the fire and rescue service regulations. This means that persons who apply for approval to work as a Firefighter must fulfill qualifications requirements in the fire and rescue service regulations.
Case processing deadlines:
The competent authority must acknowledge receipt of your application within one month of receiving it and inform you of any missing or incomplete documentation.
Following the submission of a complete application, the competent authority should complete processing your application within three months.
Fees:
The Directorate for Civil Protection and Emergency Planning does not charge a fee for processing applications for recognition.
Right of appeal:
In pursuance with the Fire and Explosion Prevention Act and Section 28 of the Public Administration Act, this decision may be appealed. Appeals must be submitted within three weeks from the day you received the decision. The appeal must include your grounds for appeal and any additional documentation that you feel is relevant to the case. The letter of appeal shall be addressed to The Ministry of Justice and Public Security (not sent directly to The Ministry) but sent to DSB.
Competent authority
The Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection (DSB)
P.O. Box 2014
NO-3103 Tønsberg
E-mail: postmottak@dsb.no
Phone:(+47) 33 41 25 00
Visiting address: Rambergveien 9, 3115 Tønsberg
