Housing benefits

You can apply for housing benefits if you are a low-income household with high living expenses. There is an upper limit on how high your income can be and still be eligible.

Anyone over the age of 18, with some exceptions, can apply. The Norwegian National Housing Bank and the municipality work together on the housing benefit scheme. The municipality processes your application and handles all contact with you.

The deadline for submitting applications is the 25th. Housing benefits are paid out on the 20th of the month after you applied.

If you believe that there is something wrong with the decision, you can appeal to the municipality.

You must report changes that have an impact on the calculation of your benefits.

Read about who can receive housing benefits here.

Anyone over the age of 18 can apply for housing benefits—with the exception of students and individuals in the compulsory military service. You can still apply if you

• Are a student with no children and your study programme is part of an public programme for work qualification
• Are under the age of 18 and have children.

Bostøttekalkulator
Bostøtte - melding om endringer i inntekt og formue
Personvern (Husbanken)
Slik søker du bostøtte, elektronisk
Private bokollektiv - tilleggsskjema
Bostøtte - Husbanken
Søknad om statlig bostøtte (elektronisk)

The Norwegian National Housing Bank and the municipality work together on the housing benefit scheme. The municipality handles all contact with you as an applicant.

The Norwegian National Housing Bank/the municipality is obligated to ensure that this service is provided.

Forskrift om bustøtte
Bustøttelova
Forvaltningsloven

You can apply for housing benefits online or by mail. Mail your paper application to the municipality. Contact the municipality if you have questions or need assistance.

The municipality receives applications and checks the quality of the information submitted. When processing an application, the municipality obtains information from a number of public authorities such as the National Register, the Norwegian Tax Administration and NAV. The Norwegian National Housing Bank makes the formal decision regarding your benefits.

If you believe that there is something wrong with the decision, you can appeal within three weeks from the date on which you received the decision. Submit your appeal to the municipality. Always remember to provide your name, national ID number and what the appeal concerns. Explain what you believe is wrong with the decision and why you believe the decision should be changed. You will need to sign the appeal and include relevant documentation with it. The municipality can help with your appeal. The Norwegian National Housing Bank will process the appeal within two to six weeks and will then send you its decision. If your appeal is not successful, you can request that your appeal be processed by the Norwegian National Housing Bank’s independent appeals board. If you would like to apply for housing benefits for the coming months, you will need to submit another application.