Getting a Norwegian Driver’s License | 2 SBD Trivia Prize | Adventure Every Day

It didn’t have to be so complicated, however. I’ve had a license for 13+ years in Ohio, so it’s not like I needed to learn how to drive from scratch. I even was driving a manual stick shift that whole time, unlike most Americans, so the manual cars here in Europe don’t intimidate me.

But what I didn’t realize when moving to Norway is that a license from the US is only valid for 3 months maximum (if you are a tourist) and should be traded in immediately if you are planning to live here. So if you are thinking of moving to Norway from outside the EU, be aware – you need to swap your license for a Norwegian one if you plan to drive.

Better sooner than later, too. If you swap in (innbytte) your license within the first year, all you have to do is pass the driving exam (road test) to get your new glory. But if you do like me and don’t properly educate yourself, then you find out after a year that there’s a lot more that has to be done – a significant portion of the driving school program (as I will explain below).

This gets expensive to be sure, but it’s even worse if you wait until after 2 years. In that case, you will have to go through driving school completely from scratch, which runs about 30,000 NOK (around $3500). Ouch!

It will also be a shame when you find out that your home country license that you just had renewed back home has to physically be given up just to apply for a Norwegian license. I had just gotten my Ohio license renewed only to find out months later I would have to send it in with my Norwegian application, never to see it again. This leaves for an annoying period of time from trading in your old license to the day you get your Norwegian one. Unless you have another form of ID, get ready to take your passport with you to get access to bars and clubs!

Is this really necessary?? Why!?

When I first learned about this, I was a bit upset that I had to go through the trouble to get a new license and thought the whole thing was pretty stupid. I mean, we’re talking about two countries with good relations and mostly the same driving rules, right?

But I can honestly say after going through the driving program that it was very helpful and I learned some very important differences about driving on the roads here, especially when it comes to signs and road markings that are, in some cases, completely different - see trivia questions below.

Here's a quick summary of what I had to go through to get my new license (in case anyone reads this who is moving to Norway, or if you are just curious):

Regular driving lessons (kjøretimer):

These were just standard appointments with the driving school where we met up and I drove around for an hour or so. I could ask questions along the way, and the instructors would point out if I did anything wrong. At the end of the lesson, they’d give me some additional input and recommend the next step. I was required to take 3 of these lessons.

Theory exam (teoriprøve):

This is the written test that has to be taken at one of the Road authority’s (Statens vegvesen) traffic stations (trafikkstasjoner). It contains 45 multiple choice questions, and you have to get at least 38 correct, so no more than 7 wrong answers. There’s some good resources online for this, and the book is definitely helpful, especially for nailing all of those pesky sign and road marking questions.

You also take your picture that will be on your license when you go to take this test. You have to do this yourself in the photo booth at the traffic station.

First aid course (førstehjelpskurs)

As a part of the foundational driving courses that teenagers go through to get their first license, there is a special first aid course that deals specifically with road safety and what to do if you are first on the scene of an accident. I didn’t have to go through the whole program, but did end up in this one.

Now, I think first aid courses are always a good idea to go to, but imagine being easily the oldest person in a group of 16 and 17 year-olds who already know each other from the previous courses, and being the only one who can’t fully express yourself in the Norwegian language. And then you have to do a role-playing activity where you take turns acting out a car accident in the parking lot and being the first responders. Fun stuff! Now that’s a good cultural experience. Luckily, these teens weren’t the bullying type, they mostly just ignored me haha!

Slippery roads course (glattkjøring)

This is where it gets really fun! Given the long winters and insane roads in Norway, they require a special course for practicing on slippery roads. This consists of a closed course with some curvy roads and straight segments with obstacles, and everything is covered in a healthy layer of some kind of oily substance, so when you go to slam on the brakes, your car does anything but stop on a dime.

Glattkjøringsbanen - the slippery roads course

There was also a classroom session and demonstration before getting to go out on the course. The demonstration included a crash simulator, a medieval torture-looking device, which I foolishly volunteered to get into. It simulates a crash going only approximately 7 km/hr, but man, I tell you what, it was no joke. I seriously had pain in my chest from the seatbelt the rest of the day.

The torture rack, ahem, crash simulator

Night driving (mørkekjøring)

This is yet another driving lesson that basically amounts to driving around in the dark for a few hours. I'd tell you more, but I haven't actually taken this yet. It's summer here now, which means it is literally never dark. So I guess my license is provisional at this point. I have to take this in the fall when it begins being offered again.

The big bad driving test (Praktisk prøve/oppkjøring)

This is the one that counts. A 45-minute tour around town on a pre-determined course randomly selected by the computer of the examiner. There's also 1-2 theory questions asked at the beginning. Get nervous!

It's not that bad actually. At least if you take it in a small town like I did. Thank goodness it wasn't in the crazy roads of Oslo. And the examiner I got was a friendly woman who lives on a farm with lots of animals, so she took it easy on me. Test passed!

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Trivia Time - 2 SBD prize for the first correct answer

Okay, so since I mentioned that there are some different signs here, I thought it would be fun to turn it into a little trivia game. I'm looking for the first correct answer to the meaning of the three signs given below, since these were totally new to me. The first person with the answer will receive 2 SBD from me.

To qualify, you must not be from a European country, or else these signs probably aren't so foreign to you. Sorry!

If you think you know, send a comment with your three responses, along with what country you are from. Good luck! Hope you don't get in a traffic accident!

Sign 1:

Sign 2:

Sign 3: