About 50,000 borrowers have had part of their student loans cancelled under a Norwegian scheme aimed at encouraging people to live and work in rural areas, NRK reports, citing the first figures from the State Educational Loan Fund, Lånekassen.
Since 1 January, people in work who live in 189 designated rural municipalities have been able to apply to have up to 25,000 kroner a year written off. The cost so far is about 1.4 billion kroner.
The scheme was launched by the former Labour-Centre coalition in 2024. The Labour government later proposed scrapping it in its budget, before reversing course. In Vestvågøy in Lofoten, one of the municipalities with the most beneficiaries, 986 residents have had debt cancelled. The local mayor, Jonny Finstad, said the scheme appeared to be working well.
Source: NRK
