Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Norway: Oslo (also covering Iceland)

Author: Azur Prnjavorac, attorney at law | Updated: 12 June 2026

The Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina (from French ambassade < Italian ambasciata, from Medieval Latin ambactia: service, from Gaulish ambactus: servant) is the highest-ranking diplomatic mission of the sending state (Bosnia and Herzegovina) in the receiving state (Norway); the word also denotes the building that houses it. In this part of Northern Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina maintains a single mission, the Embassy in Oslo, which performs consular tasks for Norway and, on a non-resident basis, for Iceland. There is no separate consulate, so every application, from a passport to a declaration of inheritance, is submitted in Oslo. This guide explains what you can arrange at the Embassy, and which actions in Bosnia and Herzegovina are instead carried out by a lawyer, as a rule without any need for you to travel from Norway or Iceland.

How an embassy is established: from the first preparations to the ambassador's arrival

After diplomatic relations are established and an agreement is reached on opening an embassy, the sending state customarily sends a junior diplomatic officer to the capital of the receiving state to prepare the practical groundwork (premises for the office and the residence, and the rest), to open the mission and to organise the ambassador's arrival. The minister of foreign affairs gives that officer a „letter of introduction” (French lettre d'introduction) addressed to the foreign minister of the receiving state, and until the ambassador arrives the officer acts as chargé d'affaires ad interim. In Northern Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina maintains a single mission for this region, the Embassy in Oslo.

Because one mission serves two countries, the Embassy in Oslo combines diplomatic and consular work for Norway and, without a resident office of its own, for Iceland. The practical consequence for citizens is straightforward: whether you live in Norway or in Iceland, your consular matter is dealt with through Oslo.

What the consular section of the BiH Embassy does

The consular section carries out the tasks that, under international treaties and diplomatic and consular practice, belong to the consular function. In doing so it acts in line with the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the law, the generally recognised rules of international law and confirmed treaties, and follows the instructions of the minister and of the accredited ambassador.

For the citizen, the useful line to draw is between an administrative act and a legal action. The Embassy performs administrative and consular acts; proceedings before courts and notaries in Bosnia and Herzegovina are conducted by a lawyer. The Embassy can certify your signature on a power of attorney, but it cannot litigate, draft a claim or register property on your behalf.

Consular services of the BiH Embassy in Oslo: what you can arrange

Loss or theft of a personal document. After you submit the police report on the loss or theft of a passport or identity card, the Embassy can (1) issue an emergency travel document for your return to Bosnia and Herzegovina or (2), where the statutory conditions are met, issue a new BiH passport.

Arrest or detention. You may request that the Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Oslo be notified. The consular officer can inform the local authorities that you are under the consular protection of BiH, ask about the reason for your detention, request permission to visit, and check whether local law has been observed. At your request the officer can obtain a list of lawyers who may defend you (the cost of your lawyer is borne by you).

Serious accident, illness or death abroad. The consular officer notifies your family through the competent authority and, at the family's request, explains the legal formalities for repatriation or burial. In the event of illness, the officer can help you find a suitable medical facility (treatment costs are borne by you).

Consular will. A last will in the form of a consular will may be made at the Embassy or, where there are justified reasons, on premises outside it. A request must be submitted at least one working day in advance for a will made at the Embassy, and at least seven working days in advance for one made elsewhere.

Certification of copies, signatures and declarations. Copies are certified only for documents issued by the competent authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina; the original must be presented and the consular fee paid. For certification of a signature on a power of attorney, for a declaration of inheritance or any other declaration, the person making it must attend in person and prove identity with a valid BiH passport, and the details of the authorised person must be given.

Personal identification number (JMBG) and registration of children. The JMBG can be determined through the Embassy for persons who do not have one and for newborn children whom the parents have first entered in the registers in BiH. Children born in Norway or Iceland can be entered in the birth register and the register of citizens of BiH either through the Embassy or before the competent registry office in BiH.

Life certificate for a pension. Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina can have the life certificate required to continue drawing a pension in BiH certified at the Embassy in Oslo.

What the BiH Embassy in Oslo cannot do for you

The Embassy cannot return you to your home country at the state's expense. It cannot pay your fines, hotel or hospital bills or any other costs. It cannot intervene in court proceedings to secure your release if you have committed an offence on the territory of the receiving state. The Embassy is not a substitute for travel agencies, banks or insurance companies, and it cannot grant you consular protection if you also hold the citizenship of the state in which you are present. For everything that involves a court, a notary or the land registry in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the appropriate course is to instruct a lawyer.

Address, telephone numbers and opening hours of the BiH Embassy in Oslo

Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Norway – Oslo
Drammensveien 105, 0273 Oslo
Postal address: P.O. Box 4038 AMB, 0244 Oslo
Telephone: +47 22 54 09 60 and +47 22 54 09 61
Email: info@bhembassy.no
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 17:00; an appointment in advance is recommended.
Jurisdiction: the Kingdom of Norway and, on a non-resident basis, the Republic of Iceland.

Bosnia and Herzegovina does not maintain a separate consulate in Norway or in Iceland; all consular matters for both countries are handled by the Embassy in Oslo. For citizens in Iceland this means that documents and the certification of powers of attorney are arranged through Oslo, while documents issued in Iceland are apostilled by the competent Icelandic authority.

Note: the addresses and contact details of diplomatic and consular missions can change. Before visiting, we recommend checking the current details and opening hours on the official pages of the mission concerned.

What the Embassy handles, and what a lawyer in Bosnia and Herzegovina handles

A large share of the enquiries from citizens of BiH in Norway and Iceland in fact concern not consular but legal actions carried out in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Embassy can certify your signature on a power of attorney or take a declaration of inheritance, but it cannot conduct court proceedings on your behalf, draft a claim, record real estate in the land registry or conclude a contract of sale. Those tasks are carried out by a lawyer in BiH. Law office Prnjavorac, based in Tuzla, has for more than three decades represented clients from the diaspora and conducted their matters in BiH so that the client, as a rule, does not need to travel from Norway or Iceland.

Inheritance and probate from Norway and Iceland

Where the deceased leaves property in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the probate proceedings are conducted before the competent court or notary in BiH. Heirs living in Norway or Iceland do not need to travel: it is enough to make a declaration of inheritance at the Embassy and to certify a power of attorney for the lawyer. On that basis the lawyer obtains the death certificate and register extracts, establishes the circle of heirs and the estate, represents the heir at the hearing and, once the proceedings are concluded, records the inherited real estate in the land registry. You will find more on related pages about family and inheritance law and property relations.

Buying and selling real estate in BiH from the diaspora

The purchase or sale of a flat, house, plot of land or business premises in Bosnia and Herzegovina can be completed entirely from Norway or Iceland through a power of attorney. The lawyer first checks the state of the land registry, the possession sheets, encumbrances, mortgages and priority notices, so that you avoid the risk of acquiring an encumbered property. The lawyer then prepares the contract of sale, arranges the notarial deed, pays the real-estate transfer tax and records the ownership right. Details are available on the pages about real estate in BiH and the land registry.

A power of attorney certified at the Embassy

The power of attorney is the central document that enables the lawyer in BiH to act on your behalf. For it to be accepted without corrections, it should contain the exact details of the principal (surname, name, JMBG or passport number and residence), the exact details of the lawyer, and a precisely described scope of authority. We recommend that the draft be prepared by a lawyer before you have it certified at the BiH Embassy in Oslo or, in Iceland, before a notary with an apostille. This avoids repeated trips and lost time.

Citizenship and registration of children born in Norway or Iceland

A child both of whose parents are citizens of BiH acquires BiH citizenship by descent, regardless of place of birth; where only one parent is a citizen of BiH, a child born abroad acquires citizenship by registration and subsequent entry in the birth register and the register of citizens. The office assists with obtaining and translating the Norwegian or Icelandic documents, with the subsequent entry in the registers, and with questions concerning the acquisition of BiH citizenship. For situations with a foreign element, international private law is also relevant.

Representation before courts in BiH without travelling from Norway

With a valid power of attorney the lawyer can represent you in every type of proceeding in BiH: disputes over real estate and inheritance, the setting aside of gift contracts or wills, the dissolution of co-ownership, and proceedings before the Constitutional Court of BiH and the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Communication takes place by email and telephone, with a written report after each stage. If you need legal assistance, you can arrange an initial consultation with an attorney at law by email or telephone.

Apostille in Norway and Iceland and the use of those documents before BiH authorities

Documents issued in Norway or Iceland (for example an extract from the birth, marriage or death register, a power of attorney certified before a notary, or a court or administrative decision) must, as a rule, be properly legalised and translated before they can be used before authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Norway, Iceland and Bosnia and Herzegovina are all parties to the 1961 Hague Convention abolishing the requirement of legalisation for foreign public documents; for public documents, therefore, an apostille (the Hague apostille) is obtained instead of full diplomatic legalisation, from the County Governor (Statsforvalteren) in Norway and from the competent authority in Iceland. The document is then translated by a court-sworn translator into the languages officially used in BiH.

If you have the document certified at the BiH Embassy in Oslo, an apostille is generally not required, because it is a document of our own diplomatic and consular mission. The office checks which form of certification and translation a particular matter requires (probate, land-registry recording, entry in the registers, litigation), so that documents are not rejected for formal defects. You will find more on handling documents with a foreign element on the page about international private law.

From Norway to a resolved matter in BiH: six steps

1. Initial consultation and assessment. You describe the matter and send the available documents (extracts, contracts, land-registry extracts, decisions). We give an assessment, the proposed steps and the approximate costs.
2. Preparing the power of attorney. We draft a power of attorney with a precise scope of authority, tailored to your matter, so that it is accepted without corrections.
3. Certifying the power of attorney. You have it certified at the BiH Embassy in Oslo or, in Iceland, before a notary with an apostille, and send it to us.
4. Conducting the matter in BiH. On your behalf we obtain documents and represent you before the court, notary, land registry, cadastre and tax authority.
5. Reporting. After each stage you receive a written report by email, with clear next steps and deadlines.
6. Completion and registration. Once the decision is final, we carry out the registration, payment or other closing act, so that as a rule you do not need to travel to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Frequently asked questions: the BiH Embassy in Oslo and legal assistance in BiH

Where is the Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Norway?
Bosnia and Herzegovina maintains its mission for this region in Oslo, at Drammensveien 105, 0273 Oslo (postal address P.O. Box 4038 AMB, 0244 Oslo; telephone +47 22 54 09 60 and +47 22 54 09 61). It performs diplomatic and consular tasks for Norway and, on a non-resident basis, for Iceland.

Does the Embassy in Oslo also cover citizens of BiH living in Iceland?
Yes. The Embassy in Oslo covers the Republic of Iceland on a non-resident basis, so citizens of BiH in Iceland arrange consular matters and the certification of powers of attorney through Oslo, while documents issued in Iceland are apostilled by the competent Icelandic authority.

Is there a separate consulate of BiH in Norway or Iceland?
No. There is no separate consulate; all consular matters for both Norway and Iceland are handled by the Embassy in Oslo. It is best to arrange an appointment in advance.

How do I make a declaration of inheritance from Norway for probate in BiH?
A declaration of inheritance is made in person at the BiH Embassy in Oslo, with a valid travel document, or alternatively before a notary with an apostille and translation. The probate proceedings are conducted before a court or notary in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the lawyer represents you on the basis of a power of attorney, so your presence is not required.

Can I certify a power of attorney for a lawyer in BiH before a notary instead of at the Embassy?
Yes. A power of attorney can be certified at the BiH Embassy in Oslo or before a notary; in the latter case it needs an apostille and a translation into the languages officially used in BiH. We recommend that the draft be prepared by a lawyer beforehand so that it is accepted without corrections.

Can a lawyer in BiH conduct my matter without my travelling from Norway at all?
Yes. With a properly certified power of attorney a lawyer in BiH can represent you before courts, notaries, the land registry, the cadastre, the tax authority and other bodies without your personal presence. Communication takes place by email and telephone, with a written report after each stage.

How do I sell or buy real estate in Bosnia and Herzegovina from Norway?
The whole transaction is conducted through a power of attorney: the lawyer checks the state of the land registry and any encumbrances, prepares the contract of sale, arranges the notarial deed, pays the transfer tax and records the change, and on a sale ensures that the price is paid into your account.

Our child was born in Norway: how do we obtain BiH citizenship and documents?
A child both of whose parents are citizens of BiH acquires citizenship by descent; where one parent is a citizen of BiH, citizenship is acquired by registration and subsequent entry in the registers. The Norwegian birth certificate is apostilled and translated by a court interpreter, and the entry is made through the Embassy in Oslo or before the registry office in BiH.

Do I lose my BiH citizenship if I acquire Norwegian citizenship?
No. Under the current Law on Citizenship of BiH, voluntarily acquiring a foreign citizenship does not cause the loss of BiH citizenship, so citizens of BiH in Norway generally keep both. For older cases and special situations, a check on the specific matter is recommended.

How much does a lawyer in BiH cost for a client from Norway, and how is payment made?
The fee is set according to the attorneys' tariff and the complexity of the matter; for typical diaspora work, such as probate or a property sale, a fixed fee agreed in advance is also possible. You receive a cost estimate before instructing us, and payment is usually made by bank transfer from Norway.