Can I Claim Lønnskostnader (Employee Wage Costs) as a Business Expense in Norway?
Fully deductible. All employment costs are deductible including gross wages, arbeidsgiveravgift (14.1% employer payroll tax), holiday pay (feriepenger, minimum 10.2%), mandatory pension contributions (OTP, minimum 2%), and any employer sick pay top-ups.
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What Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration) says
Skatteloven § 6-1 and § 6-40 to § 6-50. All ordinary employment costs are deductible as business expenses. The employer must run an A-melding (monthly payroll report) via Altinn. Arbeidsgiveravgift is calculated on all wage elements including benefits in kind.
When you can claim
- Gross wages and salaries for all employees including the AS director/owner-employee
- Arbeidsgiveravgift (14.1% national rate, or reduced rate if in a qualifying region)
- Feriepenger (holiday pay): minimum 10.2% of wages (12% for employees aged over 60 on a portion)
- OTP tjenestepensjon: minimum 2% of wages between 1G and 12G (Grunnbeløp); higher amounts fully deductible up to limits
- Employer-paid sick pay (days 1–16 are employer's liability; NAV reimburses from day 17)
- Benefits in kind at their arbeidsgiveravgift valuation (company car, subsidised meals, etc.)
When you cannot claim
- Wages not actually paid or documented via A-melding — must be reported to be deductible
- Payments to family members for work not actually performed
- Excessive remuneration above market rates for the role (risk of partial disallowance and reclassification)
- Dividends from the AS — these are not wages and not deductible
Good to know
Pro tip: Use a payroll system (Visma Lønn, Tripletex, or Zmart.no) to automate A-melding filings, arbeidsgiveravgift calculation, and OTP reporting. Manual A-melding errors result in reclassification penalties and are difficult to correct retrospectively.
Important: Norway's Grunnbeløp (G, the National Insurance basic amount) is adjusted annually on 1 May. OTP pension thresholds and some benefit caps are expressed in multiples of G — check the current value (approximately NOK 124,028 for 2025) each year.
Related expenses
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