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Statistics on
Attitudes towards immigrants and immigration
The statistics are based on a survey. The purpose of the statistics is to map the attitudes of the Norwegian population towards various aspects of the national immigration and refugee policy and towards immigrants as a group. This year's survey was conducted between January 6 and February 14.
Selected figures from these statistics
- Attitudes towards immigrants and receiving refugees. Per centDownload table as ...Attitudes towards immigrants and receiving refugees. Per cent
2016 2024 2025 Most immigrants make an important contribution to Norwegian working life Strongly agree 21 45 41 Agree on the whole 45 37 37 Disagree on the whole 14 4 4 Strongly disagree 4 2 2 Most immigrants enrich the cultural life in Norway Strongly agree 28 43 39 Agree on the whole 39 32 32 Disagree on the whole 12 7 9 Strongly disagree 6 4 4 Most immigrants are a cause of insecurity in society Strongly agree 9 7 5 Agree on the whole 23 15 17 Disagree on the whole 31 29 30 Strongly disagree 23 37 32 Attitudes towards refugees' and asylum seekers' access to residence permits in Norway. Compared to today, should it be easier, more difficult or remain the same as today? Easier 12 18 13 As today 51 51 52 More difficult 33 19 24 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Attitudes towards seven statements on immigrants. Per centDownload table as ...Attitudes towards seven statements on immigrants. Per cent
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Most immigrants make an important contribution to Norwegian working life Strongly agree 21 27 29 31 40 48 45 49 45 41 Agree on the whole 45 44 43 45 38 32 36 38 37 37 Neither agree nor disagree 14 15 12 11 13 12 12 7 9 12 Disagree on the whole 14 10 11 9 6 4 4 3 4 4 Strongly disagree 4 3 3 3 2 2 1 1 2 2 Don't know 1 1 2 2 1 3 2 2 4 3 Most immigrants abuse the system of social benefits Strongly agree 8 9 6 7 6 5 3 3 5 4 Agree on the whole 22 17 19 18 14 11 11 10 14 15 Neither agree nor disagree 15 18 13 13 13 14 13 12 9 13 Disagree on the whole 35 37 36 34 33 26 32 35 33 35 Strongly disagree 18 19 22 25 29 37 34 35 31 26 Don't know 2 2 3 4 5 8 6 5 8 7 Most immigrants enrich the cultural life in Norway Strongly agree 28 33 34 38 41 47 43 45 43 39 Agree on the whole 39 35 37 35 31 27 35 34 32 32 Neither agree nor disagree 13 13 11 8 13 13 12 9 10 12 Disagree on the whole 12 13 12 10 7 5 5 5 7 9 Strongly disagree 6 5 5 5 4 4 3 3 4 4 Don't know 2 2 2 3 3 4 3 4 5 5 Most immigrants are a cause of insecurity in society Strongly agree 9 9 7 8 5 4 4 3 7 5 Agree on the whole 23 18 22 16 15 13 11 11 15 17 Neither agree nor disagree 13 14 12 13 15 12 13 12 10 14 Disagree on the whole 31 33 31 32 28 26 26 34 29 30 Strongly disagree 23 25 26 29 35 43 43 38 37 32 Don't know 1 1 3 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 All immigrants in Norway should have the same opportunities to have a job as Norwegians Strongly agree 58 64 70 70 76 80 77 76 78 74 Agree on the whole 28 24 19 19 15 14 17 16 14 18 Neither agree nor disagree 5 4 3 5 4 3 2 3 3 3 Disagree on the whole 6 4 4 3 2 1 2 3 2 2 Strongly disagree 3 3 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 2 Don't know 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 2 Immigrants should make an effort to become as similar to Norwegians as possible Strongly agree 23 23 20 20 17 14 14 12 15 15 Agree on the whole 28 26 29 25 24 18 20 19 18 25 Neither agree nor disagree 12 10 11 14 16 18 18 16 15 16 Disagree on the whole 27 27 25 27 24 26 25 30 31 25 Strongly disagree 9 13 13 13 17 21 21 21 18 16 Don't know 1 1 2 2 1 2 3 2 3 3 Labour immigration from non-Nordic countries makes a mainly positive contribution to Norwegian economy Strongly agree 21 26 24 26 34 39 39 38 35 33 Agree on the whole 42 39 44 42 37 33 34 41 39 40 Neither agree nor disagree 16 16 14 12 15 13 15 8 8 10 Disagree on the whole 12 12 12 11 7 6 5 4 6 6 Strongly disagree 5 4 4 4 3 2 1 3 2 2 Don't know 5 3 3 5 5 8 7 6 9 8 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Attitudes towards the statement that all immigrants in Norway should have the same opportunities to have a job as Norwegians. Per centDownload table as ...Attitudes towards the statement that all immigrants in Norway should have the same opportunities to have a job as Norwegians. Per cent
All immigrants in Norway should have the same opportunities to have a job as Norwegians Strongly agree Agree on the whole Neither agree nor disagree Disagree on the whole Strongly disagree Don't know 1993 58 17 8 7 8 2 1994 53 24 6 9 6 1 1995 57 23 4 9 7 0 1996 67 19 3 6 5 0 1997 66 20 5 5 3 0 1998 76 15 3 4 2 0 1999 73 17 3 4 2 1 2000 74 17 3 3 2 0 2016 58 28 5 6 3 1 2017 64 24 4 4 3 1 2018 70 19 3 4 3 1 2019 70 19 5 3 2 1 2020 76 15 4 2 2 1 2021 80 14 3 1 1 1 2022 77 17 2 2 1 0 2023 76 16 3 3 1 1 2024 78 14 3 2 1 1 2025 74 18 3 2 2 2 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Attitudes towards refugees' and asylum seekers' access to residence permits in Norway. Per centDownload table as ...Attitudes towards refugees' and asylum seekers' access to residence permits in Norway. Per cent
Compared to today, should it be easier, more difficult or remain the same as today? Easier As today More difficult Don't know 2016 12 51 33 5 2017 16 52 28 4 2018 15 53 29 3 2019 14 56 23 6 2020 17 56 20 7 2021 20 52 16 12 2022 22 54 12 12 2023 22 58 9 11 2024 18 51 19 13 2025 13 52 24 11 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Answers to four questions on relation to immigrants. Per centDownload table as ...Answers to four questions on relation to immigrants. Per cent
2025 Would you feel comfortable if you or somone in your close family had an immigrant as home help? Yes (per cent) 92 No (per cent) 7 Don't know (per cent) 1 Would you feel comfortable if you had a doctor who was an immigrant? Yes (per cent) 94 No (per cent) 4 Don't know (per cent) 1 Would you feel comfortable if you had a son or daughter who wanted to marry an immigrant? Yes (per cent) 82 No (per cent) 11 Don't know (per cent) 7 Would you feel comfortable with having an immigrant as a close colleague? Yes (per cent) 96 No (per cent) 3 Don't know (per cent) 1 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Contact with immigrants in different arenas. Per centDownload table as ...Contact with immigrants in different arenas. Per cent
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 All arenas Yes 72 78 79 80 79 77 78 80 82 85 No 28 22 21 20 21 23 22 20 18 15 At work Yes 48 52 52 54 54 51 56 55 57 60 No 52 48 48 46 46 48 44 45 42 40 Among friends and acquaintances Yes 37 43 48 39 46 46 42 44 46 44 No 63 57 52 61 54 54 58 56 54 56 In the neighbourhood Yes 32 36 37 37 35 35 30 35 37 38 No 68 64 63 62 65 64 70 65 63 62 Among close relatives Yes 11 14 15 16 18 18 14 19 20 18 No 89 86 85 84 82 82 86 81 80 82 Through school/studies Yes . . . . . . 13 17 20 19 No . . . . . . 87 83 80 81 Through activities/organizations Yes . . . . . . 19 23 24 25 No . . . . . . 81 77 76 75 Other Yes 12 14 11 15 14 18 11 11 11 8 No 88 86 89 85 86 82 89 89 89 92 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Number of arenas where contact with immigrants takes place. Per centDownload table as ...Number of arenas where contact with immigrants takes place. Per cent
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 No contact 28 22 21 20 21 23 22 20 18 15 One arena 31 28 29 34 30 27 24 25 23 25 Two arena 22 27 25 23 23 23 24 21 23 26 Three arenas 12 15 18 13 16 16 15 16 15 17 Four arenas 6 6 6 7 8 8 8 10 11 7 Five arenas 1 2 1 3 2 3 4 5 6 5 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ...
About the statistics
The information under «About the statistics» was last updated 24 June 2025.
Immigrants
An immigrant is a person who has themselves immigrated to Norway. Foreign-born persons registered as resident in Norway having two foreign-born parents. Persons adopted from abroad are not considered immigrants. The attitude questions generally relate to immigrants with national backgrounds from Eastern Europe, Asia (incl. Turkey), Africa and South and Central America - so-called non-western immigrants. This should be conveyed if the respondent asks for clarification.
Refugees
A subgroup of immigrants who have migrated to the host country due to reasons of flight and have obtained asylum or right to residence on humanitarian grounds. Some are transferred from refugee camps abroad according to agreements with the UN High Commissioner of Refugees. Others have come as asylum seekers.
Asylum seekers
Persons applying for asylum or residence on humanitarian grounds. Their application for residence is still under consideration.
Labour immigration
Immigration accepted on grounds of labour. The Nordic countries have had a common labour market since 1954. As a member of the EEA (European Economic Area), Norway is also obliged to receive labour immigrants from countries within the EU/EEA/EFTA. In May 2004, this area was expanded by 10 new EU countries (Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Estonia, Latvia, Cyprus and Malta), and later also Bulgaria and Romania. Beyond that, access to the Norwegian labour market is severely restricted for citizens of other countries. Skilled workers and specialists from &“third countries" may be granted access if they cannot be substituted by labour resident within the area. Persons employed on a short-term basis (less than 6 months) and not registered as residents of the country are also usually included as labour immigrants. Before the ban on immigration was introduced in 1975, labour immigration to Norway was more or less free. The first immigrants from Yugoslavia, Turkey, Morocco, India and Pakistan were labour immigrants.
Percent
Name: Attitudes towards immigrants and immigration
Topic: Population
Division for Population Statistics
Whole country, but also broken down at province level.
The statistics were published every October/November from 1993 to 2000. As an exception, the 1994 results were published in January 1995. After a break in 2001, the statistics were resumed in 2002 and published yearly in November/December. Since 2022, the statistics have been published in June.
Results have been cited in SOPEMI reports (Continuous Reporting System of Migration of OECD) from Norway.
Collected and revised data are stored securely by Statistics Norway in compliance with applicable legislation on data processing.
Statistics Norway can grant access to the source data (de-identified or anonymised microdata) on which the statistics are based, for researchers and public authorities for the purposes of preparing statistical results and analyses. Access can be granted upon application and subject to conditions. Refer to the details about this at Access to data from Statistics Norway.
The system for assuring the quality of Norwegian official statistics is based on quality requirements in the Statistics Act and in the European Statistics Code of Practice.The annual report on the quality of official statistics assesses compliance with the quality requirements for all official statistics as a whole.
The National programme for official statistics sets the framework for the areas Statistics Norway and other public authorities produce statistics on. The programme defines and outlines official statistics.
Further information about the system for quality in official statistics can be found at ssb.no
The purpose of the statistics is to map the attitudes of the Norwegian population towards various aspects of the national immigration and refugee policy and towards immigrants as a group. The statistics are based on a survey, which was first included in Statistics Norway’s omnibus survey in June 1993. Since then, it has been conducted annually in the second-quarter omnibus survey (except in 1994, when it was conducted in the third quarter) until the year 2000. Every year, apart from in 2000, a document giving a simple analysis of the results has been published. In 2002, the survey was revised with new questions.
From 2005 and onwards the attitude questions were transferred to the third quarter of the Travel and holiday survey (now: the Travel and social surveys), as Statistics Norway decided that year to discontinue its Omnibus survey. In 2007, the analyses of the results were transferred from the series Notater (Documents) to the series Rapporter (Reports). In 2022, data collection was moved from the third quarter to the first quarter. In the same year, the question about one's personal relationship with immigrants was reformulated and expanded.
The relevant government ministry (currently the Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion), which is responsible for the integration of immigrants, finances the survey and uses the data as a basis for evaluating its policies on immigrants and immigration, particularly in terms of how they are perceived by the population. The media has shown considerable interest in the results.
No external users have access to statistics before they are released at 8 a.m. on ssb.no after at least three months’ advance notice in the release calendar. This is one of the most important principles in Statistics Norway for ensuring the equal treatment of users.
The statistics are developed, produced and disseminated pursuant to Act no. 32 of 21 June 2019 relating to official statistics and Statistics Norway (the Statistics Act).
The statistics are included in the national programme for official statistics, under the main domain Population and the sub-domain Immigrants.
Statistics are available from 2002 onward.
Discontinued time series exist for the periods 1993–2000 and 2002–2021.
The Norwegian population aged 16-79 years, registered as resident in Norway. The unit is person.
The data source is now Statistics Norway’s Travel and social survey. During the years 1993-2004, the Omnibus survey was used.
The net sample size has followed the development of the samples drawn in Statistics Norway’s Omnibus surveys: in 1993-1994 approximately 1 800 persons, 1995-1997 about 1 400 persons, 1998 about 1 200 persons and 1999-2000 about 1 400 persons. By the 2000s, the sample size has fluctuated between 1 400 and 1 100. Since 2010, the net sample size has ranged between approximately 1,000 and 1,200.
Data collection is carried out through telephone interviews (CATI), as part of the first-quarter Travel and Social Survey. The questions on attitudes towards immigrants and immigration appeared roughly in the third quarter of the interview, and the average interview time for the entire survey was 13 minutes.
Editing is defined here as checking, examining and amending data.
Interviewers and everyone who works at Statistics Norway have a duty of confidentiality. Statistics Norway has its own data protection officer.
Statistics Norway does not publish figures where there is a risk of identifying individual data about persons or households.
The ‘suppression’ method is used in these statistics to ensure this.
More information can be found on Statistics Norway’s website under Methods in official statistics, in the ‘Confidentiality’ section.
Questions that have been kept unaltered, allow for comparisons over time.
The documentation reports from the surveys include paragraphs on data collection and processing errors. They also present data on non-response and sampling bias in connection with known parameters, such as sex, age, and province.
From 2008 and onwards a part of the above mentioned documentation has been presented in the data chapter in the same reports that present the findings from the surveys on attitudes towards immigrants and immigration. Here is also exposed how the educational level distribute among the respondents in the net sample compared to the corresponding distribution in the gross sample. In 2010 the difference between the two distributions had grown so large that a weight was constructed to eliminate the bias in the educational distribution of the net sample. The results in 2010 and consecutive years have been presented with this weight activated.
The correlation is considered statistically significant in the study if we can say with at least 95 percent confidence that it is not due to chance.
A revision is a planned change to figures that have already been published, for example when releasing final figures as a follow-up to published preliminary figures. See also Statistics Norway’s principles for revisions.
