Since then, Scandinavia has been a mostly non-Catholic (Lutheran) region and the position of Nordic Catholics for many centuries after the Reformation was very difficult due to legislation outlawing Catholicism.
However, the Catholic population of the Nordic countries has seen some growth in the region in recent years, particularly in Norway, in large part due to immigration and to a lesser extent conversions among the native population.
In Sweden, a patent letter of tolerance rescinded some of the anti-Catholic laws and Catholics were once again allowed to settle and practice their religion in 1781 under Gustavus III.
[2] The Norwegian Constitution of 1814 denied Jews and Catholics (particularly Jesuits) entrance in Norway.
In 1845, with the passing of the Dissenter Act, most restrictions on non-Lutheran Christian denominations were lifted, and Catholics were now allowed to practice their religion freely and invite most religious orders to settle in the country.