There are plenty of factors that make Norway a great place to live, either to settle down and raise a family or to just enjoy life in the country for a few years.

While its safety, good work-life balance, and high wages tempt many foreigners, the country is also ranked as one of the hardest to settle into.

In the 2022, 2023, and 2024 Expat Insider surveys by InterNations, Norway was ranked as one of the hardest places in the world for international residents to settle.

In the “ease of settling in” section of Expat Insider’s reports, foreigners struggled making friends, establishing a network, the culture, and the locals were ranked as unfriendly.

The Local’s readers have ranked it as a difficult place to settle down, with 80 percent saying it was hard to adapt in a previous survey.

Settling also requires the person moving to the country to adapt to new social norms and the local language and be willing to make an effort. Still, it is clear from the experiences of foreign residents that Norway could be doing more.

We asked our readers what they would do to make Norway more inclusive.

Archibald, who lives in Lillestørm, said that the country needed to offer more support to the families of foreign workers.

“Spousal support for foreign skilled workers needs to improve. Most of our wives struggle with depression due to a lack of jobs, difficulties with the language and getting a job,” he said.

Norway’s Directorate of Integration and Diversity has several schemes to try and help foreign residents settle in the country.

Some foreign residents who hold a temporary residence permit that can form the basis of a permanent residence permit can access training in both the Norwegian language and cultural studies.

Such schemes aim to help foreigners become familiar with the language and culture to integrate. Generally, those with work permits are excluded from such schemes.

If you want to find out more about your specific rights when it comes to language training, you should contact your local municipality.

Mtheto, a teacher at an international school in Norway, said that there was a ‘one fits all’ approach that didn’t cater for people’s specific needs or accounted for those from different backgrounds.

“(The) Biggest problem is the ‘specific ways of doing things’, which means no room to discuss and understand people’s individual needs,” he said.

“Norwegians seem to assume that everyone who comes to Norway automatically knows how everything works in Norway, and they don’t bother to ask if you need help with something… That’s why they come off as very insensitive,” he added.

One foreigner who had a holiday home in the country for more than ten years and visited the country every year for 40 years said that they found Norway very welcoming.

“In that time we were accepted by all the neighbours. We made firm friends with our next-door neighbours, and though they have now moved, we still remain in contact and see them whenever we are in Norway. We retain many Norwegian Facebook friends and have never had problems being accepted in the country,” the reader wrote.

The holidaymaker, who didn’t leave a name, added that having some Norwegian language skills and understanding the country’s culture and politics helped them feel accepted.

A Romanian living in western Norway said that not being employed could leave people feeling locked out of society. Trouble accessing digital IDs was also cited as a problem.

“The BankID and electronic ID systems.. that’s crazy and discouraging. Basically, if you don’t have a job, you can hardly do anything,” they wrote.

Having more English translations on official websites was one way the reader said Norway could be more helpful.

On the topic of national IDs, the government has previously told The Local it would work on making electronic IDs much more accessible for foreigners and other members of society who struggle with access.

READ MORE: How Norway plans to tackle foreigners’ issues with digital IDs

One US reader said there needed to be more “multi-cultural management/leadership training”.

Regarding the workplace, the reader added that more blind recruitment processes would make it easier for foreigners and that the requirements for Norwegian language skills could be clearer.