For this group we have used the designation “individual immigration” - also called “romance immigration.” It includes many people who have come to Oppland with personal intentions to marry, or study, and so forth. The numbers include many women from Russia, Thailand, and the Philippines among those from other countries who have married in Oppland. On January 1, 2010, 433 individuals from Russia, 318 from Thailand and 201 from the Philippines were registered as county residents.

On a national basis immigrant families were a large group in 2009; they composed 33% of all immigrants that year. This was a decrease compared to 2008.

Family immigrants can be divided into individuals who come with their family or to be reunited with family here, and individuals who come to Norway to establish a new family with someone already residing in Norway. Of the 13,700 persons who came in 2009 in family immigration, almost 9,700 were in the category of reunification or accompanying one another. And 4,000 more persons were in the category of intending to establish families. Of the last mentioned, 1,900, or 47%, married a person who was not an immigrant. Among these almost 600 individuals were from Thailand.

In the period from 1990 to 2009 a total of 98,000 people came in families or for reunification with other family members; 67,00 more came to establish new families. The greatest number of family immigrants is from Poland followed by Thailand, Iraq, Somalia and Pakistan.

While most family immigrants from Poland, Germany and Somalia come together or for reunification, most citizens from Thailand come to establish a family with a Norwegian.

4,900 of a total of 16,800 family immigrants came to Norway to marry. 2,200 of them entered marriage with an immigrant or someone born in Norway with immigrant parents. Among these, 752 were from Thailand, 248 from the Philippines, and 191 from Russia.

Since 1990 a total of 376,000 people without Norwegian citizenship immigrated here. Family immigrants compose the largest group being 40 per cent of the whole. Those groups who have immigrated to seek work or escape danger in their homeland each compose 24 per cent and those coming for education equal 11 per cent. Among people who immigrated after 1989, three-fourths are still residing in Norway. People who fled their homeland constitute the greatest share of these immigrants; 83 per cent of them still live in Norway. The immigrant group with the smallest percentage in continuing residence is those who came originally to study; 40 per cent are still here. (Source: Statistics Norway).