Annual tax return in Norway for 2023 – get ready with Efremtid!

We will soon be entering the busy annual tax return period in Norway. If you want to prepare properly – read on to remind yourself what this obligation means for every taxpayer!

Remember that we can help you with your tax return. You do not even need to read this – just call us on +47 21 38 38 21. We answer on working days (Mon–Fri) between 9:00 and 21:00. If we do not answer, we always call back.

Let’s go through the details.

Where do I need to file my tax return?

Let’s start with the basics. If you have already been in Norway for some time, you probably know that there is such a thing as tax residence. If you know yours – you can skip this point and move on to the next one. If you do not know your tax residence – please read on.

A common myth about tax residence is that wherever we stay for more than 183 days in a year, that is where we have tax residence. This is not true; tax residence can depend on many things: where our family is, where we work, where our friends are and where our home is. Of course, where we stay for more than 183 days matters, but it is not the key factor and we can just as well spend the whole year in Norway and still have tax residence in Poland.

If you want to find out where your tax residence is, you can check it here (click). And if you also want to find out which deductions are worthwhile for you and what to do to file in both countries as efficiently as possible – I invite you to a tax consultation with one of our accountants (click).

What documents do I need to submit?

Depending on your tax residence:

Polish residence:

in Norway you must submit skattemelding. This normally happens automatically, so if you have no corrections, deductions, etc. you do NOT need to do anything!
in Poland you must submit: PIT-36 – standard annual tax return + PIT-ZG – to inform the tax office about foreign income + PIT-O – abolicja relief

Norwegian residence:

in Poland you must submit PIT-36 for Polish earnings, BUT only if you earned anything there.
in Norway you must submit skattemelding. This normally happens automatically, so if you have no corrections, deductions, etc. you do NOT need to do anything!
if you earned income in Poland or another country, you are obliged to add the income in skattemelding and add the taxes paid.

What tax deductions are available in Norway?

There are quite a few of these deductions; they relate to:

family and children
work or education
property
finances
and donations to selected charities (including two Polish ones!).

You can find the full list with detailed descriptions here (click). In the same link you can also ask us to help with your tax return!

What documents do I need for each deduction?

If, from the list above, you have spotted a deduction that applies to you or may apply to you, but you do not know which documents are needed to include it in your tax return – no problem. In most cases, documents are only required in the event of an audit, and we will inform you about any documents during the tax return process if you decide to file with us.

Are the deductions worthwhile for me? What about pendler?

In general, deductions in Norway are not always worthwhile – the same applies to pendler deductions / pendler status. Often, with Polish tax residence, due to double taxation, filing in Norway stops being worthwhile – in short: what we deduct in Norway we will still have to pay back in Poland. You can find a detailed discussion and explanation of this situation in our article here (click).

If you want to ask about any issue related to deductions or the annual tax return in general – write to us at info@efirma.no 🙂

Annual tax return in Norway for 2023 – get ready with Efremtid!