The Norwegian Constitution was adopted on 17 May 1814 and is the second oldest written constitution in the world.The Constitution contains the basic legal provisions on the Norwegian Government. It is amended according to special rules given in the Constitution itself. The principle of popular sovereignty appears most explicitly in Article 49 and Article 75 of the Constitution.
The provisions of the Constitution are about different matters: about the monarchy, about religion and about the basic principles Norway as a state must be governed by.
The constitution contains provisions on how the head of state (king or queen) is appointed, on the royal house and the royal family, on how members of the government (minister) are recruited, what tasks the government has, how the elected representatives are elected to the Storting, how Supreme Court members are appointed, how the state’s highest officials (civil servants) are appointed and the distribution of power between the state’s bodies. The Constitution also contains provisions on human rights and on the Storting’s control over the government and the administration.
| Date | LOV-1814-05-17 |
|---|---|
| Ministry | Ministry of Justice and Public Security |
| Last consolidated | FOR-2020-05-29-1088 from 14.05.2020 |
| Last update | 15.06.2020 |
| Abbreviated title | The Constitution |
| Original title | Kongeriket Norges Grunnlov |
A. Form of Government
B. The executive power, the King And the Royal Family and Religion
C. Rights of Citizens and The Legislative Power
D. The Judicial Power
E. Human Rights
F. General Provisions
The Constitution, as laid down on 17 May 1814 by the Constituent Assembly at Eidsvoll,subsequently amended,most recently by Resolutions of 14 May 2020.
The Constitution of the Kingdom of Norway
17 May 1814
A. Form of Government
Article 1.
The Kingdom of Norway is a free, independent, indivisible and inalienable realm. Its form of government is a limited and hereditary monarchy.
Article 2.
Our values will remain our Christian and humanist heritage. This Constitution shall ensure democracy, a state based on the rule of law and human rights.
B. The executive power, the King And the Royal Family and Religion
Article 3.
The executive power is vested in the King, or in the Queen if she has succeeded to the Crown pursuant to the provisions of Article 6 or Article 7 or Article 48 of this Constitution. When the executive power is thus vested in the Queen, she has all the rights and obligations which pursuant to this Constitution and the law of the land are possessed by the King.
Article 4.
The King shall at all times profess the Evangelical-Lutheran religion.
Article 5.
The King’s person cannot be censured or accused. The responsibility rests with his Council.
Article 6.
The order of succession is lineal, so that only a child born in lawful wedlock of the Queen or King, or of one who is herself or himself entitled to the succession, may succeed, and so that the nearest line shall take precedence over the more remote and the elder in the line over the younger.
An unborn child shall also be included among those entitled to the succession and shall immediately take her or his proper place in the line of succession as soon as she or he is born into the world.
The right of succession shall not, however, belong to any person who is not born in the direct line of descent from the last reigning Queen or King or a sister or brother thereof, or is not herself or himself a sister or brother thereof.
When a Princess or Prince entitled to succeed to the Crown of Norway is born, her or his name and time of birth shall be notified to the first Storting in session and be entered in the record of its proceedings.
For those born before the year 1971, Article 6 of the Constitution as it was passed on 18 November 1905 shall, however, apply. For those born before the year 1990 it shall nevertheless be the case that a male shall take precedence over a female.
Article 7.
If there is no Princess or Prince entitled to the succession, the King may propose his successor to the Storting, which has the right to make the choice if the King’s proposal is not accepted.
Article 8.
The age of majority of the King shall be laid down by law.
As soon as the King has attained the age prescribed by law, he shall make a public declaration that he is of age.
Article 9.
As soon as the King, being of age, accedes to the Government, he shall take the following oath before the Storting: «I promise and swear that I will govern the Kingdom of Norway in accordance with its Constitution and Laws; so help me God, the Almighty and Omniscient.»
If the Storting is not in session at the time, the oath shall be made in writing in the Council of State and be repeated solemnly by the King at the first subsequent Storting.
Article 10.
(Repealed by Resolution of 14 March 1908.)
Article 11.
The King shall reside in the realm and may not, without the consent of the Storting, remain outside the realm for more than six months at a time, otherwise he shall have forfeited, for his person, the right to the Crown.
The King may not accept any other crown or government without the consent of the Storting, for which two thirds of the votes are required.
Article 12.
The King himself chooses a Council from among Norwegian citizens who are entitled to vote. This Council shall consist of a Prime Minister and at least seven other Members.
The King apportions the business among the Members of the Council of State as he deems appropriate. Under extraordinary circumstances, besides the ordinary Members of the Council of State, the King may summon other Norwegian citizens, although no Members of the Storting, to take a seat in the Council of State.
Husband and wife, parent and child or two siblings may never sit at the same time in the Council of State.
Article 13.
During his travels within the realm, the King may delegate the administration of the realm to the Council of State. The Council of State shall conduct the Government in the King’s name and on his behalf. It shall scrupulously observe the provisions of this Constitution, as well as such particular directives in conformity therewith as the King may instruct.
The matters of business shall be decided by voting, where in the event of the votes being equal, the Prime Minister, or in his absence the highest-ranking Member of the Council of State who is present, shall have two votes.
The Council of State shall make a report to the King on matters of business which it thus decides.
Article 14.
The King may appoint state secretaries to assist Members of the Council of State with their duties outside the Council of State. Each state secretary shall act on behalf of the Member of the Council of State to whom he is attached to the extent determined by that Member.
Article 15.
Any person who holds a seat in the Council of State has the duty to submit his application to resign once the Storting has passed a vote of no confidence against that Member of the Council of State or against the Council of State as a whole.
The King is bound to grant such an application to resign.
Once the Storting has passed a vote of no confidence, only such business may be conducted as is required for the proper discharge of duties.
Article 16.
All inhabitants of the realm shall have the right to free exercise of their religion. The Church of Norway, an Evangelical-Lutheran church, will remain the Established Church of Norway and will as such be supported by the State. Detailed provisions as to its system will be laid down by law. All religious and belief communities should be supported on equal terms.
Article 17.
The King may issue and repeal ordinances relating to commerce, customs, all livelihoods and the public administration and regulation, although these must not conflict with the Constitution or with the laws passed by the Storting (as hereinafter prescribed in Articles 76, 77, 78 and 79). They shall apply on a provisional basis until the next Storting.
Article 18.
As a general rule the King shall provide for the collection of the taxes and duties imposed by the Storting.
Article 19.
The King shall ensure that the properties and regalia of the state are utilised and administered in the manner determined by the Storting and in the best interests of the general public.
Article 20.
The King shall have the right in the Council of State to pardon criminals after sentence has been passed. The criminal shall have the choice of accepting the King’s pardon or submitting to the penalty imposed.
In proceedings which the Storting causes to be brought before the Court of Impeachment, no pardon other than deliverance from the death penalty may be granted, unless the Storting has given its consent thereto.
Article 21.
The King shall choose and appoint, after consultation with his Council of State, all senior civil and military officials. These officials shall have a duty of obedience and allegiance to the Constitution and the King. The Royal Princes and Princesses must not hold senior civil offices.
Article 22.
The Prime Minister and the other Members of the Council of State, together with the state secretaries, may be dismissed by the King without any prior court judgment, after he has heard the opinion of the Council of State on the subject. The same applies to senior officials employed in government ministries or in the diplomatic or consular service, the highest-ranking civil officials, commanders of regiments and other military formations, commandants of fortresses and officers commanding warships. Whether pensions should be granted to senior officials thus dismissed shall be determined by the next Storting. In the interval they shall receive two thirds of their previous pay.
Other senior officials may only be suspended by the King, and must then without delay be charged before the Courts, but they may not, except by court judgment, be dismissed nor, against their will, transferred.
All senior officials may, without a prior court judgment, be discharged from office upon attaining the statutory age limit. It may be determined by law that certain senior officials who are not judges may be appointed for a term of years.
Article 23.
The King may bestow orders upon whomever he pleases as a reward for distinguished services, and such orders must be publicly announced, but no rank or title other than that attached to any office. The order exempts no one from the common duties and burdens of citizens, nor does it carry with it any preferential admission to senior official posts in the state. Senior officials honourably discharged from office retain the title and rank of their office. This does not apply, however, to Members of the Council of State or the state secretaries.
No personal, or mixed, hereditary privileges may henceforth be granted to anyone.
Article 24.
The King chooses and dismisses, at his own discretion, his royal household and court officials.
Article 25.
The King is commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the realm. These forces may not be increased or reduced without the consent of the Storting. They may not be transferred to the service of foreign powers, nor may the military forces of any foreign power, except auxiliary forces assisting against hostile attack, be brought into the realm without the consent of the Storting.
The territorial army and the other troops which cannot be classed as troops of the line must never, without the consent of the Storting, be employed outside the borders of the realm.
The Government does not have the right to use military force against the inhabitants except according to law unless an assembly disturbs the public peace and does not immediately dissolve after the statutory provisions that relate to revolt, three times loudly and clearly, are read to the assembly by the civil authorities.
Article 26.
The King has the right to call up troops, to engage in war in defence of the realm and to make peace, to conclude and denounce treaties, to send and to receive diplomatic envoys.
Treaties on matters of special importance, and, in all cases, treaties whose implementation, according to the Constitution, necessitates a new law or a decision by the Storting, are not binding until the Storting has given its consent thereto.
Article 27.
All Members of the Council of State shall, unless lawfully absent, attend the Council of State. No decision may be adopted there unless more than half the number of Members are present.
Article 28.
Recommendations regarding appointments to senior official posts and other matters of importance shall be presented in the Council of State by the Member within whose competence they fall, and such matters shall be dealt with by them in accordance with the decision adopted in the Council of State. However, matters strictly relating to military command may, to the extent determined by the King, be excepted from proceedings in the Council of State.
Article 29.
If a Member of the Council of State is prevented due to lawful absence from attending the meeting and from presenting the matters that fall within his competence, these shall be presented by another Member temporarily appointed by the King for the purpose.
If so many Members are prevented due to lawful absence from attending that not more than half of the stipulated number are present, the requisite number of other men or women shall be temporarily appointed to take a seat in the Council of State.
Article 30.
All the proceedings of the Council of State shall be entered in its records. Diplomatic matters which the Council of State decides to keep secret shall be entered in a special record. The same applies to military command matters which the Council of State decides to keep secret.
Everyone who has a seat in the Council of State has the duty frankly to express their opinion, to which the King is bound to listen. But it rests with the King to make a decision according to his own judgment.
If any Member of the Council of State is of the opinion that the King’s decision conflicts with the form of government or the laws of the realm, it is his duty to make strong remonstrances against it, as well as to enter his opinion in the records. A Member who has not thus protested is deemed to have been in agreement with the King, and shall be answerable in such manner as may be subsequently decided, and may be impeached by the Storting before the Court of Impeachment.
Article 31.
All decisions drawn up by the King shall, in order to become valid, be countersigned. Decisions relating to military command are countersigned by the person who has presented the matter, while other decisions are countersigned by the Prime Minister or, if he has not been present, by the highest-ranking Member of the Council of State present.
Article 32.
The decisions adopted by the Government during the King’s absence shall be drawn up in the King’s name and be signed by the Council of State.
Article 33.
(Repealed by Resolution 14 May 2020 announced by Resolution 29 May 2020 No. 1088, moved to article 120 a.)
Article 34.
The King shall make provisions concerning titles for those who are entitled to succeed to the Crown.
Article 35.
As soon as the heir to the throne has completed her or his eighteenth year, she or he is entitled to take a seat in the Council of State, although without a vote or responsibility.
Article 36.
A Prince or Princess entitled to succeed to the Crown of Norway may not marry without the consent of the King. Nor may he or she accept any other crown or government without the consent of the King and the Storting. For the consent of the Storting two thirds of the votes are required.
If he or she acts contrary to this rule, they and their descendants forfeit their right to the throne of Norway.
Article 37.
The Royal Princes and Princesses shall not personally be answerable to anyone other than the King, or whomever he decrees to sit in judgment on them.
Article 38.
(Repealed by Resolution of 18 November 1905.)
Article 39.
If the King dies and the heir to the throne is still under age, the Council of State shall immediately summon the Storting.
Article 40.
Until the Storting has assembled and made provisions for the Government during the minority of the King, the Council of State shall be responsible for the administration of the realm in accordance with the Constitution.
Article 41.
If the King is absent from the realm unless commanding in the field, or if he is so ill that he cannot attend to the Government, the person next entitled to succeed to the throne shall, provided that he has attained the age stipulated for the King’s majority, conduct the Government as the temporary executor of the Royal Powers. If this is not the case, the Council of State will conduct the administration of the realm.
Article 42.
(Repealed by Resolution of 18 November 1905.)
Article 43.
The election of trustees to conduct the Government on behalf of the King during his minority shall be undertaken by the Storting.
Article 44.
The Princess or Prince who, in the cases mentioned in Article 41, conducts the Government shall make the following oath in writing before the Storting: «I promise and swear that I will conduct the Government in accordance with the Constitution and the Laws, so help me God, the Almighty and Omniscient.»
If the Storting is not in session at the time, the oath shall be made in the Council of State and later be presented to the next Storting.
The Princess or Prince who has once made the oath shall not repeat it later.
Article 45.
As soon as their conduct of the Government ceases, they shall submit to the King and the Storting an account of the same.
Article 46.
If the persons concerned fail to summon the Storting immediately in accordance with Article 39, it becomes the unconditional duty of the Supreme Court, as soon as four weeks have elapsed, to arrange for the Storting to be summoned.
Article 47.
The supervision of the education of the King during his minority should, if both his parents are dead and neither of them has left any written directions thereon, be determined by the Storting.
Article 48.
If the royal line has died out, and no successor to the throne has been designated, then a new Queen or King shall be chosen by the Storting. Meanwhile, the executive power shall be exercised in accordance with Article 40.
C. Rights of Citizens and The Legislative Power
Article 49.
The people exercise the legislative power through the Storting. The Members of the Storting are elected through free and secret elections.
The inhabitants have the right to govern local affairs through local democratically elected bodies. Specific provisions regarding the local democratically elected level shall be laid down by law.
Article 50.
Those entitled to vote in elections to the Storting are Norwegian citizens, men and women, who, at the latest in the year when the election is held, have completed their eighteenth year.
The extent, however, to which Norwegian citizens who on election day are resident outside the realm but who satisfy the aforementioned conditions are entitled to vote shall be determined by law.
Rules may be laid down by law concerning the right to vote of persons otherwise entitled to vote who on election day are manifestly suffering from a seriously weakened mental state or a reduced level of consciousness.
Article 51.
The rules on the keeping of the electoral register and on the registration in the register of persons entitled to vote shall be determined by law.
Article 52.
(Repealed by Resolution of 26 October 1954.)
Article 53.
The right to vote is lost by persons:
| a) | sentenced for criminal offences, in accordance with the relevant provisions laid down by law; |
| b) | entering the service of a foreign power without the consent of the Government. |
Article 54.
Elections shall be held every fourth year. They shall be concluded by the end of September.
Article 55.
Elections shall be conducted in the manner prescribed by law. Disputes regarding the right to vote shall be settled by the Election Commission, whose decision may be appealed to the Storting.
Article 56.
(Repealed by Resolution of 23 March 1972.)
Article 57.
The number of Members of the Storting shall be one hundred and sixty-nine.
The realm is divided into nineteen constituencies.
One hundred and fifty of the Members of the Storting are elected as representatives of constituencies and the remaining nineteen Members are elected as members at large.
Each constituency shall have one seat at large.
The number of Members of the Storting to be chosen from each constituency is determined on the basis of a calculation of the ratio between the number of inhabitants and surface area of each constituency and the number of inhabitants and surface area of the entire realm, in which each inhabitant counts as one point and each square kilometre counts as 1.8 points. This calculation shall be made every eighth year.
Specific provisions on the division of the realm into constituencies and on the allotment of seats in the Storting to the constituencies shall be determined by law.
Article 58.
The polls shall be held separately for each municipality. At the polls votes shall be cast directly for representatives to the Storting, together with their proxies, to represent the entire constituency.
Article 59.
The election of representatives of constituencies is based on proportional representation and the seats are distributed among the political parties in accordance with the following rules.
The total number of votes cast for each party within each separate constituency is divided by 1.4, 3, 5, 7 and so on until the number of votes cast is divided as many times as the number of seats that the party in question may be expected to obtain. The party which in accordance with the foregoing obtains the largest quotient is allotted the first seat, while the second seat is allotted to the party with the second largest quotient, and so on until all the seats are distributed.
List alliances are not permitted.
The seats at large are distributed among the parties taking part in such distribution on the basis of the relation between the total number of votes cast for the individual parties in the entire realm in order to achieve the highest possible degree of proportionality among the parties. The total number of seats in the Storting to be held by each party is determined by applying the rules concerning the distribution of constituency seats correspondingly to the entire realm and to the parties taking part in the distribution of the seats at large. The parties are then allotted so many seats at large that these, together with the constituency seats already allotted, correspond to the number of seats in the Storting to which the party in question is entitled in accordance with the foregoing. If a party has already through the distribution of constituency seats obtained a greater number of seats than it is entitled to in accordance with the foregoing, a new distribution of the seats at large shall be carried out exclusively among the other parties, in such a way that no account is taken of the number of votes cast for and constituency seats obtained by the said party.
No party may be allotted a seat at large unless it has received at least four per cent of the total number of votes cast in the entire realm.
Specific provisions concerning the distribution among the constituencies of the seats at large allotted to the parties shall be determined by law.
Article 60.
Whether and in what manner those entitled to vote may deliver their ballot papers without personal attendance at the polls shall be determined by law.
Article 61.
No one may be elected as a Member of the Storting unless he or she is entitled to vote.
Article 62.
Officials who are employed in government ministries, except however state secretaries and political advisers, may not be elected as representatives. The same applies to Members of the Supreme Court and officials employed in the diplomatic or consular services.
Members of the Council of State may not attend meetings of the Storting as representatives while holding a seat in the Council of State. Nor may state secretaries attend as representatives while holding their offices, and political advisers in government ministries may not attend meetings of the Storting as long as they hold their positions.
Article 63.
It is the duty of anyone who is elected as a Member of the Storting to accept such election, unless they:
| a) | are elected outside the constituency in which he is entitled to vote, |
| b) | have as a Member attended all the sessions of the Storting following the previous election, |
| c) | has submitted a written declaration stating that he or she does not wish to be on an electoral list. |
Rules for the time within which and the manner in which anyone who has the right to refuse election shall assert this right shall be prescribed by law.
It shall similarly be prescribed by law by what date and in which manner anyone who is elected as representative for two or more constituencies shall state which election he will accept.
Article 64.
The Members elected shall be furnished with credentials, the validity of which shall be adjudged by the Storting.
Article 65.
Every Member and Substitute Member called to the Storting shall be entitled to receive from the Treasury such reimbursement as is prescribed by law for travelling expenses to and from the Storting, and from the Storting to his home and back again during vacations lasting at least fourteen days.
He shall further be entitled to remuneration, likewise prescribed by law, for attending the Storting.
Article 66.
Members on their way to and from the Storting, as well as during their attendance there, shall be exempt from personal arrest, unless they are apprehended in public crimes. Nor may they be called to account outside the meetings of the Storting for opinions expressed there. Everyone shall be bound to conform to the rules of procedure therein adopted.
Article 67.
The Members elected in the aforesaid manner shall constitute the Storting of the Kingdom of Norway.
Article 68.
The Storting shall as a rule assemble on the first weekday in October every year in the capital of the realm, unless the King, by reason of extraordinary circumstances, such as hostile invasion or infectious disease, designates another town in the realm for the purpose. Such a decision must be publicly announced in good time.
Article 69.
When the Storting is not assembled, it may be summoned by the King if he finds it necessary.
Article 70.
(Repealed by Resolution of 29 May 1990)
Article 71.
The Members of the Storting function as such for four successive years.
Article 72.
(Repealed by Resolution of 29 May 1990.)
Article 73.
The Storting appoints a President, five Vice Presidents and two Secretaries. The Storting may not hold a sitting unless at least half of its Members are present. However, Bills concerning amendments to the Constitution may not be dealt with unless at least two thirds of the Members of the Storting are present.
Article 74.
As soon as the Storting is constituted, the King, or whoever he appoints for the purpose, shall open its proceedings with a speech, in which he shall inform it of the state of the realm and of the issues to which he particularly desires to call the attention of the Storting. No deliberations may take place in the presence of the King.
When the proceedings of the Storting have been opened, the Prime Minister and the Members of the Council of State have the right to attend the Storting and, like its Members, although without voting, to take part in any proceedings conducted in open session, while in matters discussed in closed session only insofar as permitted by the Storting.
Article 75.
It devolves upon the Storting:
| a) | to enact and repeal laws; to impose taxes, duties, customs and other public charges, which shall not, however, remain operative beyond 31 December of the succeeding year, unless they are expressly renewed by a new Storting; |
| b) | to raise loans in the name of the realm; |
| c) | to supervise the monetary system of the realm; |
| d) | to appropriate the moneys necessary to meet government expenditure; |
| e) | to decide how much shall be paid annually to the King for the Royal Household, and to determine the Royal Family’s appanage, which may not, however, consist of real property; |
| f) | to have submitted to it the records of the Council of State, and all public reports and documents; |
| g) | to have communicated to it the treaties which the King, on behalf of the State, has concluded with foreign powers; |
| h) | to have the right to require anyone, the King and the Royal Family excepted, to appear before it on matters of State; the exception does not, however, apply to the Royal Princes and Princesses if they hold any public office; |
| i) | to review the provisional lists of salaries and pensions and to make therein such alterations as it deems necessary; |
| k) | to appoint five auditors, who shall annually examine the State Accounts and publish extracts of the same in print, for which purpose the Accounts shall be submitted to the auditors within six months of the end of the year for which the appropriations of the Storting have been made, and to adopt provisions concerning the procedure for authorising the accounts of government accounting officials; |
| l) | to appoint a person, not a Member of the Storting, in a manner prescribed by law, to supervise the public administration and all who work in its service, to assure that no injustice is done against the individual citizen; |
| m) | to naturalise aliens. |
Article 76.
Every Bill shall first be proposed in the Storting, either by one of its own Members, or by the Government through a Member of the Council of State.
Once the Bill is passed there, a new deliberation is to take place in the Storting, which either approves or rejects it. In the latter case the Bill, with the comments appended by the Storting, shall again be taken into consideration by the Storting, which either shelves the Bill or approves it with the said comments.
Between each such deliberation there shall be an interval of at least three days.
Article 77.
When a Bill has been approved by the Storting in two consecutive sittings, it is sent to the King with a request that it may receive the Royal Assent.
Article 78.
If the King assents to the Bill, he appends his signature, whereby it becomes law.
If he does not assent to it, he returns it to the Storting with a statement that he does not for the time being find it expedient to give his assent. In that case the Bill must not again be submitted to the King by the Storting then assembled.
Article 79.
If a Bill has been passed unaltered by two sessions of the Storting, constituted after two separate successive elections and separated from each other by at least two intervening sessions of the Storting, without a divergent Bill having been passed by any Storting in the period between the first and last adoption, and it is then submitted to the King with a petition that His Majesty shall not refuse his assent to a Bill which, after the most mature deliberation, the Storting considers to be beneficial, it shall become law even if the Royal Assent is not accorded before the Storting goes into recess.
Article 80.
The Storting shall remain in session as long as it deems it necessary and shall terminate its proceedings when it has concluded its business.
In accordance with the rules of procedure adopted by the Storting, the proceedings may be resumed, but they shall terminate not later than the last weekday in the month of September.
Within this time the King shall communicate his decision with regard to the Bills that have not already been decided, by either confirming or rejecting them. All those which he does not expressly accept are deemed to have been rejected by him.
Article 81.
All Acts (with the exception of those mentioned in Article 79) are drawn up in the name of the King, under the Seal of the Realm of Norway, and in the following terms: «We, X, make it publicly known: that the decision of the Storting of the date stated has been laid before Us: (here follows the decision). In consequence whereof We have assented to and confirmed, as We hereby do assent to and confirm the same as Law under Our Hand and the Seal of the Realm.»
Article 82.
The Government is to provide the Storting with all information that is necessary for the proceedings on the matters it submits. No Member of the Council of State may submit incorrect or misleading information to the Storting or its bodies.
Article 83.
The Storting may obtain the opinion of the Supreme Court on points of law.
Article 84.
The Storting shall meet in open session, and its proceedings shall be published in print, except in those cases where a majority decides to the contrary.
Article 85.
Any person who obeys an order the purpose of which is to disturb the liberty and security of the Storting is thereby guilty of treason against the country.
D. The Judicial Power
Article 86.
The Court of Impeachment pronounces judgment in the first and last instance in such proceedings as are brought by the Storting against Members of the Council of State or of the Supreme Court or of the Storting for criminal or other unlawful conduct in cases where they have breached their constitutional obligations.
The specific rules concerning indictment by the Storting in accordance with this Article shall be determined by law. However, the limitation period for the institution of indictment proceedings before the Court of Impeachment may not be set at less than 15 years.
The judges of the Court of Impeachment comprise six Members elected by the Storting and the five longest-serving, permanently appointed Members of the Supreme Court, including the President of the Supreme Court. The Storting elects the Members and their deputies for a period of six years. A Member of the Council of State or of the Storting may not be elected as a Member of the Court of Impeachment. In the Court of Impeachment the President of the Supreme Court shall preside.
Any person sitting in the Court of Impeachment who has been elected by the Storting shall not lose his seat in the Court if the period for which he is elected expires before the Court of Impeachment has concluded the proceedings in the case. Nor shall a Justice of the Supreme Court who is a Member of the Court of Impeachment lose his seat in the Court, even if he resigns as a Member of the Supreme Court.
Article 87.
Specific provisions as to the composition of the Court of Impeachment and its procedures shall be laid down by law.
Article 88.
The Supreme Court pronounces judgment in the final instance. Nevertheless, limitations on the right to bring a case before the Supreme Court may be prescribed by law.
The Supreme Court shall consist of a President and at least four other Members.
Article 89.
In cases brought before the Courts, the Courts have the power and the duty to review whether applying a statutory provision is contrary to the Constitution, and whether applying other decisions under the exercise of public authority is contrary to the Constitution or the law of the land.
Article 90.
The judgments of the Supreme Court may in no case be appealed.
Article 91.
No one may be appointed a Member of the Supreme Court before reaching 30 years of age.
E. Human Rights
Article 92.
The authorities of the State shall respect and ensure human rights as they are expressed in this Constitution and in the treaties concerning human rights that are binding for Norway.
Article 93.
Every human being has the right to life. No one may be sentenced to death.
No one may be subjected to torture or other inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
No one shall be held in slavery or required to perform forced labour.
The authorities of the State shall protect the right to life and oppose torture, slavery, forced labour and other forms of inhuman or degrading treatment.
Article 94.
No one may be taken into custody or otherwise be deprived of their liberty except in the cases determined by law and in the manner prescribed by law. Deprivation of liberty must be necessary and must not constitute a disproportionate infringement.
Persons arrested shall as soon as possible be brought before a court. Others who have been deprived of their liberty have the right to bring their deprivation of liberty before a court without unjustified delay.
Those responsible for the unwarranted arrest or illegal detention of a person shall be answerable to the person concerned.
Article 95.
Everyone has the right to have their case tried by an independent and impartial court within reasonable time. Legal proceedings shall be fair and public. The court may however conduct proceedings in camera if considerations of the privacy of the parties concerned or if weighty and significant public interests necessitate this.
The authorities of the state shall ensure the independence and impartiality of the courts and the members of the judiciary.
Article 96.
No one may be sentenced except according to law, or be punished except after a court judgment.
Everyone has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law.
No one may be sentenced to surrender property or accumulated wealth unless the assets have been used to commit or are profits from a criminal act.
Article 97.
No law must be given retroactive effect.
Article 98.
All people are equal under the law.
No human being must be subject to unfair or disproportionate differential treatment.
Article 99.
(Repealed by Resolution of 13 May 2014.)
Article 100.
There shall be freedom of expression.
No one may be held liable in law for having imparted or received information, ideas or messages unless this can be justified in relation to the grounds for freedom of expression, which are the seeking of truth, the promotion of democracy and the individual’s freedom to form opinions. Such legal liability shall be prescribed by law.
Everyone shall be free to speak their mind frankly on the administration of the State and on any other subject whatsoever. Clearly defined limitations to this right may only be imposed when particularly weighty considerations so justify in relation to the grounds for freedom of expression.
Prior censorship and other preventive measures may not be applied unless so required in order to protect children and young persons from the harmful influence of moving pictures. Censorship of letters may only be imposed in institutions.
Everyone has a right of access to documents of the State and municipalities and a right to follow the proceedings of the courts and democratically elected bodies. Limitations to this right may be prescribed by law to protect the privacy of the individual or for other weighty reasons.
The authorities of the state shall create conditions that facilitate open and enlightened public discourse.
Article 101.
Everyone has the right to form, join and leave associations, including trade unions and political parties.
All people may meet in peaceful assemblies and demonstrations.
The Government is not entitled to employ military force against citizens of the state, except in accordance with the law, unless an assembly disturbs the public peace and does not immediately disperse after the articles of the statute book relating to riots have been read out clearly three times by the civil authority.
Article 102.
Everyone has the right to the respect of their privacy and family life, their home and their communication. Search of private homes shall not be made except in criminal cases.
The authorities of the state shall ensure the protection of personal integrity.
Article 103.
(Repealed by Resolution of 13 May 2014.)
Article 104.
Children have the right to respect for their human dignity. They have the right to be heard in questions that concern them, and due weight shall be attached to their views in accordance with their age and development.
For actions and decisions that affect children, the best interests of the child shall be a fundamental consideration.
Children have the right to protection of their personal integrity. The authorities of the state shall create conditions that facilitate the child’s development, including ensuring that the child is provided with the necessary economic, social and health security, preferably within their own family.
Article 105.
If the welfare of the state requires that any person shall surrender their movable or immovable property for the public use, they shall receive full compensation from the Treasury.
Article 106.
Everyone who resides legally in the realm may move freely within the borders of the realm and choose their place of residence there.
No one may be denied the right to leave the realm, unless so required out of consideration for effective legal proceedings or the performance of military service. Norwegian citizens may not be refused entry into the realm.
Article 107.
(Amended by Resoultions of 6 May 2014 and 27 May 2014, content moved to article 117.)
Article 108.
The authorities of the state shall create conditions enabling the Sami people to preserve and develop its language, culture and way of life.
Article 109.
Everyone has the right to education. Children have the right to receive basic education. The education shall safeguard the individual’s abilities and needs, and promote respect for democracy, the rule of law and human rights.
The authorities of the state shall ensure access to upper secondary education and equal opportunities for higher education on the basis of qualifications.
Article 110.
The authorities of the state shall create conditions under which every person capable of work is able to earn a living through their work or enterprise. Those who cannot themselves provide for their own subsistence have the right to support from the state.
Specific provisions concerning the right of employees to co-determination at their work place shall be laid down by law.
Article 111.
(Amended by Resoultions of 6 May 2014 and 27 May 2014, content moved to article 120.)
Article 112.
Every person has the right to an environment that is conducive to health and to a natural environment whose productivity and diversity are maintained. Natural resources shall be managed on the basis of comprehensive long-term considerations which will safeguard this right for future generations as well.
In order to safeguard their right in accordance with the foregoing paragraph, citizens are entitled to information on the state of the natural environment and on the effects of any encroachment on nature that is planned or carried out.
The authorities of the state shall take measures for the implementation of these principles.
Article 113.
Infringement of the authorities against the individual must be founded on the law.
F. General Provisions
Article 114.
To senior official posts in the State may be appointed only Norwegian citizens, men or women, who speak the language of the country, and who:
| a) | either were born in the realm of parents who were then Norwegian subjects |
| b) | or were born in a foreign country of Norwegian parents who were not at that time subjects of another State |
| c) | or hereafter have resided for ten years in the realm |
| d) | or have been naturalised by the Storting. |
Others may, however, be appointed as teachers at universities and institutions of higher learning, as medical practitioners and as consuls in places abroad.
Article 115.
In order to safeguard international peace and security or to promote the international rule of law and cooperation, the Storting may, by a three-fourths majority, consent that an international organisation to which Norway belongs or will belong shall have the right, within specified fields, to exercise powers which in accordance with this Constitution are normally vested in the authorities of the state, although not the power to alter this Constitution. For the Storting to grant such consent, at least two thirds of its Members shall be present, as required for proceedings for amending the Constitution.
The provisions of this Article do not apply in cases of membership in an international organisation whose decisions only have application for Norway exclusively under international law.
Article 116.
The purchase money, as well as the revenues of the landed property constituting ecclesiastical benefices, shall be applied solely to the benefit of the clergy and to the promotion of education. The property of charitable foundations shall be applied solely to the benefit of the foundations themselves.
Article 117.
Allodial right and the right of primogeniture shall not be abolished. The specific conditions under which these rights shall continue for the greatest benefit of the state and to the best advantage of the rural population shall be determined by the first or second subsequent Storting.
Article 118.
No earldoms, baronies, entailed estates or fidei commissa may be created in the future.
Article 119.
As a general rule every citizen of the State is equally bound to serve in the defence of the country for a specific period, irrespective of birth or fortune.
The application of this principle, and the restrictions to which it shall be subject, shall be determined by law.
Article 120.
The form and colours of the flag of Norway shall be determined by law.
Article 120 a.
Norges Bank is the central bank of Norway.
Article 121.
If experience shows that any part of this Constitution of the Kingdom of Norway ought to be amended, the proposal to this effect shall be submitted to the first, second or third Storting after a new parliamentary election and be publicly announced in print. But it shall be left to the first, second or third Storting after the following parliamentary election to decide whether or not the proposed amendment shall be adopted. Such an amendment must never, however, contradict the principles embodied in this Constitution, but solely relate to modifications of particular provisions which do not alter the spirit of the Constitution, and two thirds of the Storting must agree with such an amendment.
An amendment to the Constitution adopted in the manner aforesaid shall be signed by the President and the Secretary of the Storting, and shall be sent to the King for public announcement in print as an applicable provision of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Norway.