Payroll reporting obligations

Foreign entities with employees located in Norway will have payroll reporting and tax withholding obligations for all employees working in/from Norway. This applies regardless of the length of stay in Norway. 

In connection with the employees working in/from Norway there will also be other obligations e.g., employer’s national insurance contribution and others. Norwegian labour legislation will also apply.  

Annual accounts/financial statement

Entities which carry out or participate in activities in Norway, and which are taxable in Norway according to Norwegian domestic law, are required to file annual accounts. 

Audit

In general audit is required but may be exempt if certain criteria are met. 

Bookkeeping and SAF-T (Standard Audit File-Tax)

Entities which are required to file corporate income tax return, VAT returns or annual accounts are defined as a bookkeeping liable entity and is required to follow the Norwegian Bookkeeping Act. The Bookkeeping Act specifies requirements for the content of the information. 

Electronic accounting material must be able to be reproduced in the SAF-T format (Standard Audit File – Tax). 

Reporting of employees, contracts, and contracting parties

All assignments to foreign contractors must be reported in the Assignment and employee register by the client. The contractor is obligated to report the employees that work on the assignment. 

HSE//HMS) – Card for employees

Businesses within cleaning, car care and construction and building are obligated to order HMS-card for all employees from the Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority before the employee start their work in Norway. The card identifies the enterprise and the employee. 

When do you need to set up a branch or a Norwegian subsidiary?

All of the reporting obligations mentioned above requires a Norwegian Business Register Number. A Norwegian Business Register Number is received when registering a branch or a subsidiary in Norway. Hence, a registration in Norway will be mandatory to fulfil the reporting obligations in Norway.