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Changes have been made to the integration regulations. Some of the changes have already entered into force, others will come into force on August 1, 2023. It is very important for municipalities to familiarize themselves with the changes to the regulations in order to make the right decisions.
Extended Norwegian training for persons covered by collective protection
Background and purpose
The revised national budget was adopted on June 16. The allocation for scholarships for Norwegian language training for people benefiting from temporary collective protection was increased by NOK 125,7 million. The grant will make it easier for municipalities that are able to provide training in Norwegian for more than one year to people in the target group who need it to reach a minimum level of Norwegian language proficiency. Integration Regulations, sections 27 and 28. Extended training in Norwegian must be provided in connection with training provided under § 37 d of the Integration Act.
The aim of the extension is to enable participants to achieve a sufficiently good level of Norwegian language to be able to participate in professional life or enter professional life by learning Norwegian and working at the same time or go on to further education.
Separate regulatory provision
A new regulation has been adopted to regulate the scheme, see § 43g of the integration regulations. Recipe entered into force on July 1 and expires on July 1, 2024.
The municipality is free to choose
The scope of further Norwegian training depends on the decision of the municipality. If the municipality decides to provide additional training, a separate decision must be made. The decision of the municipality to extend Norwegian education can be appealed.
Duration and subsidy
You can decide to extend the training up to 6 months at a time. If the municipality decides to expand Norwegian education, this will result in a grant of
NOK 27 for each decision on extended Norwegian education.
For those who have already completed upper secondary education or higher, the municipality may grant up to 6 months of extended Norwegian training, so that the total duration of training is 18 months, with the addition of approved leave. In the case of this group, the scholarship will therefore be awarded for one decision to extend Norwegian education.
People who nie still have an upper secondary education, the municipality may grant extended Norwegian training of six months at a time for up to two years, so that they can receive up to three years of Norwegian training in total with the addition of approved leave. In the case of the above-mentioned group, it will therefore be possible to make up to 4 decisions to extend Norwegian education. NOK 27 will be paid for each extension decision.
The subsidy goes to the municipality that makes the decision, not to the people who move.
Transition rules
People who have completed a 12-month training in Norwegian before entry into force of article 43g, will be able to take extended training in Norwegian, even if this is not the case in connection with training in Norwegian in accordance with article 37 d of the Integration Act.
NIR
IMDi is currently working on adapting the NIR so that the municipality can record decisions regarding extended Norwegian education in the NIR. It will be some time before this is implemented. Until further notice, municipalities must register decisions on extended Norwegian education in their own systems and later register decisions in the NIR when such a function is available. Model decisions on extended Norwegian apprenticeships are published here . IMDi will be back with more information on NIR registration after the holidays. Information will be posted here, see National Introducing Registry (NIR) | IMDi
Payment of the subsidy
Scholarships will be paid out on the basis of registered decisions on extended Norwegian training in NIR. The timing of the subsidy payment therefore depends on when the functionality enabling such decisions is available in the NIR. The grants will be paid later this year. IMDi will inform municipalities in more detail about when and how the subsidy will be paid via a circular and status of payment of the Norwegian subsidy .
Sources
Content of the budget line for scholarships for training in the Norwegian language for persons covered by collective protection can be found in Proposition 118S (2022-2023), chapter 672, Item 60 Grants for training in Norwegian language and social skills for immigrant adults .
Information on the adopted regulatory provision can be found on the page https://lovdata.no/dokument/LTI/forskning/2023-06-26-1106
Changes in transitional provisions for persons benefiting from collective protection
Transitional provisions continue
The temporary provisions for beneficiaries of collective protection have been maintained with some changes and clarifications. The most important substantive change is that according to temporary regulations introductory program participants must have both a right and an obligation having a competency survey. Changes entered into force on June 2, 2023 and will be repealed on July 1, 2024.
Changes in the Lease Act
Of the other significant changes for municipalities, it is mentioned that a new temporary amendment to the Rent Act has been introduced, which allows for a fixed-term lease with a minimum period of one year when renting a summer house which is used as a dwelling.
Changes in introductory program duration for some groups
In addition, some changes have been made to the integration regulations. An important change is that high school graduates from Ukraine who do not have an additional year of higher education can participate in the introductory program for up to one year if their ultimate goal is to progress to higher education or higher professional education. The duration of the program of one year cannot be extended.
The "language offer" in the introductory program can only be English, except for Norwegian
In addition, a tightening has been made regarding which languages may be offered as a "language offer" in the introductory program in accordance with § 37 c of the Integration Act. Previously, the language offer could be in a language other than norweski . The adopted rule change means that the language offered must be Norwegian or English.
The municipality can organize fewer meetings with advice for parents.
A new rule has been introduced means that the municipality may organize fewer advisory meetings and advisory talks than it results from paragraph 3 of the integration provisions, if required by capacity considerations. Nevertheless, the municipality cannot provide less than four advisory meetings or two advisory interviews. The provision applies to anyone who has the right and obligation to participate in the introductory programme, including persons covered by collective protection, cf. the Act on Integration, § 9, first paragraph.
Regulatory changes entered into force on July 1, 2023 and will be repealed on July 1, 2024.
Sources
An overview of the adopted legislative changes can be found in the Act amending the Act on Temporary Amendments of Legislation in connection with the arrival of displaced persons from Ukraine (continued, etc.)
An overview of the adopted regulatory changes can be found on the website https://lovdata.no/dokument/LTI/forskning/2023-06-09-831
Changes in the ordinary provisions of the Integration Act
On the basis of questions about the understanding and practice of law, some clarifications were adopted in the Integration Act. Some changes to the law have also been introduced to better adapt the law to real conditions. Changes are coming effective August 1, 2023 .
The deadline for completing the training is counted from the date of starting the training
The most important change that will come into force on August 1 is that the deadline for completing the Norwegian and social studies training is to be counted from the date of starting the training . There must be one common training start date so that both Norwegian and social studies training dates run at the same time. Although Norwegian and social science training may start at different times, the ministry has assessed that a joint calculation of the timing can help ensure that social science training is provided at an early stage.
The date of taking the exam in social sciences should be counted from the date of commencement of the training
In addition, it was decided that the date of joining the colloquium in social sciences will run simultaneously with the date of training in social sciences, i.e. from the date of commencement of the training.
Clarification of responsibility for the training when the participant is doing a combined training
Responsibility for training in Norwegian and social studies when participants take a training course that combines primary and upper secondary education is clearly defined by law. The county municipality must provide training if the county municipality has primary responsibility for providing training under the Education Act. If it is not possible to determine who has the primary responsibility for providing training under the Education Act, the starting point is that the county council must provide training in Norwegian language and social sciences, unless otherwise agreed by the municipality and county council. Read our next article: Fee Waivers for Driving Tests
Exemption from the residency requirement by agreement for family members who have been granted asylum
With regard to the right and obligation of the introductory program, the exception to the contractual residency requirement applies to first-time have connected family with the refugee and who were subsequently granted independent protection. Currently, the requirement of permanent residency on the basis of a contract enters into force when these persons are granted protection. This led to them losing the right and obligation to participate in the introduction program they had after family reunification, unless they had already started the post-family reunification introduction program.
Changes to the ordinary provisions in the integration regulations
The municipality can organize fewer meetings with advice for parents
A new rule has been introduced means that the municipality may organize fewer advisory meetings and advisory talks than it results from paragraph 3 of the integration provisions, if required by capacity considerations. Nevertheless, the municipality cannot provide less than four advisory meetings or two advisory interviews. The provision applies to anyone who has the right and obligation to participate in the introductory programme, including persons covered by collective protection, cf. the Act on Integration, § 9, first paragraph. Regulatory change entered into force on July 1, 2023. and will be repealed on July 1, 2024.
Changes that come into effect on August 1
With effect from 1 August 2023, several minor changes to the integration regulations were adopted on the basis of questions about the understanding and practice of integration regulations. Among other things, the rules regarding exemptions were clarified and a definition was added, what should be understood as education at the upper secondary level in accordance with the Integration Act.
In addition, transitional provisions have been laid down on who is covered by the new method of calculating the date of Norwegian language and civics training and the new method of calculating the date of the social studies exam. The new rules for calculating the deadline apply to participants who have been granted a residence permit po August 1, 2023. Changes also apply to participants who apply for a residence permit from abroad and obtained a residence permit before August 1, 2023, but will arrive in Norway after August 1, 2023.
. Sources
An overview of the adopted legislative changes can be found on the website https://lovdata.no/dokument/LTI/lov/2023-06-09-24
An overview of the adopted regulatory changes can be found on the website https://lovdata.no/dokument/LTI/forskning/2023-06-26-1105
