A board hearing is one way in which the Immigration Appeals Board (UNE) considers and decides a case.

In a board hearing, the case is assessed and decided by a panel usually made up of three individuals, referred to as a board. The board consists of one board leader employed by UNE and two external board members.

UNE has more than 200 board members

Board members are appointed by the Ministry of Justice and Public Security based on nominations from the County Governors and a range of organisations.

The two external board members are randomly selected from two different groups. One is nominated by either a County Governor, the Norwegian Association of Lawyers, or the Norwegian Association of Social Scientists. The other is nominated by non-governmental organisations working in the field of asylum, refugee protection or immigration. Examples include the Norwegian Organisation for Asylum Seekers (NOAS) or the Norwegian Red Cross.

You can read more about the requirements for board members and the training they receive in this article.

The role of the board

The board is jointly responsible for ensuring that the case is sufficiently clarified and for making a decision in line with the legal framework.

The board is required to consider the case together and reach a decision independently. Neither UNE nor the nominating bodies may influence the outcome. The board is an independent decision-making body. All participants in a board hearing are bound by a duty of confidentiality.

You can read more about which cases are concidered in a board hearing on this page.

A board hearing may take place with or without the applicant present

There are different formats for board hearings:

  • A closed hearing where a case officer presents the case to the board. This is often referred to as a hearing without personal attendance.
  • A hearing where the applicant is present and may be accompanied by a legal representative or other authorised person, and an interpreter if needed. This is known as a hearing with personal attendance. The case officer will support the board, and other contributors may also be present for example, a country adviser from Landinfo (the Norwegian Country of Origin Information Centre).
  • In certain specific cases, the matter may be referred to an extended board. An extended board consists of three board leaders employed by UNE and four external board members. As a general rule, the applicant is entitled to attend the hearing.

Watch a video about board hearings

You can watch a short film explaining what happens during a board hearing with personal attendance.

Rules relating to board and extended board hearings can be found in section 78 of the Immigration Act and section 16-3 of the Immigration Regulations (available at lovdata.no).