Can artificial intelligence contribute to safe and efficient case processing? The Norwegian Immigration Appeals Board (UNE) aims to find out through an AI project in 2026.
The project is called “the AI Lab” and consists of two main activities:
- A group of up to 20 experienced case officers will use Copilot Chat as support for carefully selected case‑preparatory tasks, including drafting the background of a case in decision drafts. The rest of the case processing will take place in the usual manner.
- Development of internal services, including anonymising decisions and translating documents.
It is necessary to test AI tools in practice in order to understand the opportunities and limitations the technology offers, explains UNE Director Marianne Jakobsen:
– AI is a strategic priority in UNE. We want to be bold and explore how we can improve our task performance with AI in a responsible way, she says.
However, this does not mean that artificial intelligence can be used freely in case processing, the Director emphasises.
– We proceed step by step and in a controlled manner, focusing on specific tasks with clear purposes, says Jakobsen.
Mapping risks
Information security and data protection are essential as the basis for UNE’s task performance, and the use of AI tools is no exception.
Ahead of the project, it has been necessary to identify risks, provide training and establish new routines. To achieve this, various departments within UNE have engaged in close, interdisciplinary collaboration.
The pilot will provide valuable insight and experience related to the use of AI as support for case preparation. These experiences will be incorporated into a new assessment of risks and vulnerabilities, before it is potentially considered for broader use of the same AI tools with personal data across the organisation.
Copilot Chat as a support tool
The pilot is conducted within the following case types: family immigration, asylum cases from Ukraine and the Middle East, cases concerning revocation of citizenship, as well as cases relating to work, studies and expulsion.
Case officers may upload case documents containing personal data into Copilot Chat to receive assistance in drafting the case background. A dedicated enterprise agreement with Microsoft will ensure that personal data is not compromised.
The purpose of the pilot is limited to writing assistance in work on the factual circumstances of cases—it will not be used as support for assessments against legislation.UNE has recently updated the privacy statement on une.no (link) with the following text:
“In some cases, we may use AI systems as support tools to organise, structure and draft descriptions of the facts of a case. AI is not used to support decision‑makers in the assessment of the case. We have solutions, frameworks and procedures that ensure responsible and controlled use of AI systems, in compliance with applicable regulations.”