Samfunnskunnskapsprøven (social studies test): complete guide

Every figure below comes from HKdir and UDI, with a link to the guide that explains it in full.

Permanent residence (from 1 September 2025) and citizenship both require samfunnskunnskapsprøven, but with different rules: permanent residence accepts any test language alongside oral Norwegian at A2, while citizenship only counts a Norwegian-language pass alongside oral Norwegian at B1 (A2 for some groups). Our guide to who needs the test covers both routes and every exemption, and permanent residence requirements has the full transitional rules.

HKdir offers samfunnskunnskapsprøven in 23 languages, with audio in 10 of them. You do not choose the language when you register: you choose it at the test centre on the day you sit the test. The test itself is the same whichever language you pick — the same number of questions, the same pass mark and the same 60 minutes. Our guide to all 23 languages lists them and shows which ones include audio.

One rule narrows the choice. For citizenship the test only counts if you take it in Norwegian, so a pass in English or any other language documents knowledge for permanent residence but not for a citizenship application. If English is your best test language, our guide to the test in English explains what that pass does and does not cover.

The questions come from the curriculum in social studies for adult immigrants. The official learning resource, samfunnskunnskap.no, covers the material for the 75-hour social studies course, and it organises that material into three modules: Education, skills and the labour market; Family, health and daily life; and Norway before and now.

Two question types appear. Most are multiple choice with three options and one correct answer. Some are picture questions, where you place a marker in the right place instead of choosing an option. Our guide to what is on the test lists every topic area, and the sample questions show how a topic becomes a question.

Registration runs through HKdir's official test portal, where you pick a municipal test centre and a date. The municipality sets the fee — HKdir gives a range of 300 to 1 800 kroner — and some candidates are entitled to one free attempt through their municipality, so check that before you pay. Registration is binding, and you do not choose a test language at this stage: that happens at the test centre on the day.

Ask for any special adaptation, such as extra time or a separate room, within three days of registering. Expect an information letter from the centre at least two weeks before the test, and bring valid identification — without it you cannot sit the test. Our guide to how to book shows each step of the portal.

HKdir states that your result is available within two to four weeks of the test, on the test platform's Min side and in Vitnemålsportalen. If you pass, a certificate is posted to you. Our guide to results covers where to look and what the certificate documents.

If you do not pass, nothing is lost but the fee. There is no limit on the number of attempts, and you register again through the same portal. Our guide to retakes covers the rules and how to plan the next attempt.

Four weeks is enough for most people. The plan below pairs one module of samfunnskunnskap.no with one full-length practice test each week, so every study session is measured against the real format: 38 questions, 60 minutes.

• Week 1 — take one full-length practice test as a baseline, then read Module 1 (education, skills and the labour market) on samfunnskunnskap.no.
• Week 2 — Module 2 (family, health and daily life); one full test at the end of the week, review every wrong answer.
• Week 3 — Module 3 (Norway before and now: history, democracy, human rights); one full test, review by category.
• Week 4 — full tests only, in the language you will sit the test in, until you score 85 per cent or higher three times in a row; then book.