Collective protection


Norway’s legal basis for collective protection in a mass flight situation is set out in the Immigration Act, Section 34.

What does collective protection entail?

The primary objective behind Immigration Act, Section 34. Collective protection in a mass flight situation is to allow group assessment of asylum applications instead of processing every individual's application on its own. When so many people arrive in such a short time, the demand for processing individual applications at reception centres becomes too great. 

Who decides?

It is up to the Government to determine when a situation qualifies as a mass flight situation, which is when the regulation becomes applicable. The King in Council also decides when the power to grant collective protection shall cease.  

Rights under collective protection

Pursuant to the Immigration Act, Section 34, residence permits that were granted via group assessment apply for one year and may be extended up to three years from the date on which the foreign national first received a residence permit. The permit does not provide a basis for a permanent residence permit, but after three years a temporary permit can be granted which may provide a basis for a permanent residence permit. After five years with such a permit, a permanent residence permit shall be granted provided that the conditions for holding the permit are still present and all other conditions are satisfied.

Section 34 establishes that an application for protection (asylum) may be put on hold for a period not exceeding three years from the date on which the foreign national received a permit. After three years or after the power to grant collective protection has ceased, UDI will only process an application if an applicant explicitly states that they wish to have their application for asylum reviewed. 

Past use of collective protection 

Collective protection has been used twice before, first in connection with the mass migration of Bosnians in the early 1990s, and then in connection with the mass exodus among the population of Kosovo at the end of the 1990s. 

A common factor in both situations was that many people from the same place came to Norway in a short time. Both groups were granted temporary permits in Norway. It was anticipated that they would return to their home countries if it became feasible within a reasonable period of time. 

In Bosnia, war and unrest dragged on over time, and all those who wanted to stay in Norway were allowed to do so. In Kosovo hostilities quickly came to an end, and those who had fled ethnic persecution were able to return. Most of the refugees who arrived from Kosovo in summer 1999 travelled back home that autumn. 

Did you find what you were looking for?