I just applied for my final residence permit for my stay in Europe! And I thought I should celebrate by giving a little rundown on the experiences I've had applying for my residence permits over the last two years
Norway
This is my second time applying for a permit in Norway. Wow, what a transformation from a year and half ago! When I arrived in Oslo in August 2010, I had to register at the police department and pick up my residence permit. They had a queuing system (you know, take a number, watch the screen, etc.) and waits could be long, so we went well before the office opened to wait in line outside the building. Though August, Oslo mornings can be chilly, and the entrance was situated between two buildings, where the wind blew quite chill.
When we were let in, we printed our number and sat in a crowded room waiting for our turn. It luckily didn't take too long, since we were so early, but imagine waiting outside like that in January! Brr!!
Yesterday, I went to the same place to submit my application for my new residence permit. It was virtually deserted. Now, you are able (and often required) to book your appointment online. A nice man is there to direct you to the correct window for your appointment, and you just go right up at your appointed time. It makes such a difference! And I'm sure the workers appreciate a quieter environment.
As for the application itself, the first time I applied I was extremely nervous. I didn't understand the difference between a visa and a residence permit and everything seemed overwhelmingly complicated. Online information was contradictory, and for a time I thought I might actually have to fly to Houston or Chicago to apply at a Norwegian Consulate in person. The first person I spoke to was extremely unhelpful, but I called a different consulate and I remember how relieved I felt when I got off the phone with them.They answered all my questions simply and told me that I could simply mail the application to the appropriate consulate. Phew! Then, when I finally got it sent off, there was the waiting, and waiting and waiting for news. When I had less than two weeks until I left, mom called to get a status update, and they said not to worry there was plenty of time, which, I suppose they knew better than I did. I did receive the letter from them (at the time, I actually didn't know that I would get my permit in Norway, and only a verification letter in the U.S.). I think the photos I sent did not meet specifications, but they just took a picture right there in the Oslo police station (much to my chagrin, as I definitely was
not looking my best that day...)
This time was very nice. There application is now entirely online, no worries about making a mistake or writing illegibly. I already knew the documents I would need. The only issue was where I would apply. I could apply from home, Norway, or a country I had lived in for at least six months. Norway seemed to make the most sense, though I ended up having to explain to a very nice passport control lady why I had an expired Norwegian residence permit and was returning to study without a new one...and also to the lady to whom I submitted my application...it always starts with "
you see, I'm in the program, Erasmus Mundus....." But again, a two minute speech and all was well :)
Estonia
Besides my inability to take a passport picture that perfectly fit their strict size, ratio, and miscellaneous requirements, Estonia was pretty easy. We applied here in Oslo at the Estonian Embassy, which was the second floor of a house near the palace:
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| Estonian Embassy in Oslo, can you find the Estonian flag? -- cc Kjetil Ree |
Adorable, right? And far less forboding than the U.S. Embassy down the street:
Turn in the application, pay the fee, and pick up my permit in a couple of months. Easy, right? Only problem was, I could not manage to take an appropriate picture. In my defense, the requirements were very precise. For instance, here is the document specifying
exactly how your head should be proportioned in the photo (in Estonian, of course):
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| Proportion requirements for Estonian permit photo |
After two failed attempts, I paid an exorbitant amount of money to have a photographer take my picture so we could measure it perfectly. They finally accepted the picture, though it took so long that I ended up leaving Oslo before the permit came, so I had to have them send it back to Tallinn to pick up there. Oh well!
Italy
Oh, Italia.....I don't think I will go into detail here, there were so many complications and confusions that it would take an age to explain all of it. And I didn't even end up applying for the permit at all. Everything centers around the fact that applying for an Italian residence permit requires acquiring an entrance visa prior to entering the country. However, we were informed that we did not need visas as we already had residence permits to be in Europe. We get to Italy and find out there is a section on the permit form (which, by the way, was all in Italian) for visa information, and the lady could not accept the application without this portion filled out. Then, for most of our three months in Parma, our awesome helper - Federico - tried to workout how to take care of this. In the end, most people applied for the Norwegian permit early so they wouldn't have a gap in their permit coverage while in Europe (which is really bad news bears). Since I was leaving Europe before my Estonian permit expired, I was able to apply for Norway when I returned.
And that, is the complicated, convoluted, long-winded explanation of how I maintained legal residence in the EU.
mmmmmmm.......
