Nordic Union

Nordic Union

The Nordic Passport Union allows citizens of the Nordic countries – Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland – to travel and reside in another Nordic country without any travel documentation (e.g. a passport or national identity card) or a residence permit. Since 25 March 2001, all five states have also been within the Schengen Area. For Nordic citizens, no identity documentation is legally required to enter or reside within any Nordic country. However, identity documentation is still useful, as companies may require proof of identity for certain services, such as trains, airports, age check for alcohol purchase, or for services aimed at residents, like banking, picking up postal packages or dealing with authorities. Usually any valid proof of identity is accepted, in many cases local identity documentation like ID card from bank or other trusted private institute are accepted. An important exception is the "temporary" border controls which were introduced in 2015 and which as of 2020 still are in place. The Faroe Islands are part of the Nordic Passport Union but not the Schengen Area, while Greenland and Svalbard are outside both. However, Greenland has an open border with all Nordic countries, and allows Nordic citizens to enter, settle and work without requiring a passport or permits. Svalbard allows Nordic citizens to settle and work without permits, as a result of the Svalbard Treaty; however, valid travel documentation (such as a passport, or a national identity card from a European Union or EFTA country) is required to enter Svalbard. Norwegian citizens were allowed to use other documents such as a Norwegian driving licence until 30 April 2022. Furthermore, as citizens of a Nordic country, those from Svalbard and Greenland are permitted to reside in any other Nordic country. In other parts of the world, public officials in the foreign services of any of the Nordic countries are to assist citizens of another Nordic country if that country is not represented in the territory concerned, according to the Helsinki Treaty.

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