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The benefits of checking your tax card in Norway right away

Norway's Tax Administration made tax cards for 2023 available on Thursday. The tax authority recommends people check the information on their cards to avoid paying too much tax.

Published: 15 December 2022 17:49 CET
Tax card 1
If you have a lot of debt, small adjustments to your tax card can free up thousands of kroner a month. Screengrab: Norwegian Tax Administration

As of Thursday, December 15th, people in Norway are able to access their tax cards on the Tax Administration’s website, here.

After you access your tax page, you will be able to see the estimate of taxes that you will have to pay in 2023 based on the Norwegian Tax Administration’s calculations.

Marta Johanne Gjengedal, divisional director at the Norwegian Tax Administration, asks people to take a second look at their tax cards.

“We make an estimate of what the individual will earn during 2023, how their most important deductions will change, and calculate the tax based on this information. But it is important to know that we base these calculations on figures from 2021 and that the tax card you receive now is not necessarily conclusive…

“If you have financial challenges, having correct tax deductions is the most important thing you can do. Then you know what money you have at your disposal,” Gjengedal told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK).

Why you should double-check your tax card for 2023

Gjengedal recommends people check and, if necessary, change their tax cards right away, before the New Year, so that they can get the full effect of the changes as early as their first salary or pension payment in January.

“There have been such big changes in 2022 that we probably weren’t able to account for them in our calculations,” she noted.

Norway’s central bank (Norges Bank) raised its key interest rate to 2.75 percent on Thursday, but the actual interest that your bank charges you will be even higher than that.

That means you will have to pay even more to banks for the money they lent you. As most people in Norway get a floating interest rate on their home loan, they can expect a rate of between 4 and 5 percent after the New Year.

That is where your tax card comes into play. As the interest rate will likely be more than twice as high as the last time you (likely) adjusted your tax card, you can also claim more interest deductions.

If you have a lot of debt, minor adjustments to your tax card can free up thousands of kroner a month.

An example based on a 3 million kroner loan

As NRK points out, in Norway, you get 22 percent of what you pay in interest back.

You can already calculate the sum you will pay in interest in 2023 and enter it into your tax card.

If you have a loan of, for example, 3 million kroner and an interest rate of 4.5 percent, you will pay some 135,000 kroner in interest in one year.

That means that you can get 2,475 kroner on your tax back every month, the national broadcaster notes.

If you don’t make the adjustment now, you will have to wait to get your money back in the tax settlement in a year and a half.

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MONEY

How Norway has become cheaper for tourists

The recent drop in Norway's price level has made it a more appealing destination for tourists looking to visit Scandinavia without breaking the bank.

Published: 21 June 2024 17:38 CEST
How Norway has become cheaper for tourists

Norway has long held a reputation for being one of the most expensive countries in Europe.

From sky-high prices for everyday items like groceries and dining out to costly accommodation and transportation, Norwegian prices often raise eyebrows among visitors and newcomers.

READ MORE: What will be cheaper and more expensive in Norway in 2024? 

The perception of Norway being unbelievably pricey is not unfounded; historically, its price levels have consistently ranked well above the European average.

Recent figures, however, indicate a potential shift in this dynamic.

The latest EU price statistics

In 2023, Norway’s price level was 25 percent higher than the average in EU countries, according to preliminary figures from the European purchasing power survey.

This marks a significant decrease from the previous year, when Norwegian prices were 43 percent above EU prices, as reported by Statistics Norway (SSB).

This decrease in price levels has implications for tourism.

As the cost differential shrinks, Norway becomes a more attractive destination for foreign visitors who may have previously been deterred by the high prices.

“The decrease in the price level in Norway compared to the rest of Europe has made it significantly more attractive for foreign tourists to holiday here with us.

“In return, it has become more expensive than before for Norwegians to holiday abroad,” Espen Kristiansen, a section manager at the SSB, said, according to the business newspaper e24.

Comparison with neighbouring countries

It must be noted that hotel and restaurant prices, which tend to be higher in Norway than in many European countries, still contribute to Norway’s overall high price level.

For these services, prices were still 43 percent higher than the EU average in 2023.

Comparatively, neighbouring Sweden’s prices were 14 percent higher than the EU average, down from 22 percent in 2022.

READ MORE: Five reasons why 2024 will be a good time to visit Norway

Denmark’s relative price level remained consistent, at 43 percent above the EU average, largely because the Danish krone is tied to the euro, unlike the Norwegian and Swedish currencies.

“Part of the explanation for the different developments in price levels in the Nordic countries is that the Danish krone follows the euro, unlike the Norwegian and Swedish ones,” Kristiansen said.

The most expensive country last year was Switzerland, with prices 74 percent above the EU average, according to the preliminary findings of the European purchasing power survey.

How a (relatively) weak krone also favours tourists visiting Norway

When travelling to Norway, tourists can still benefit from a favourable exchange rate (despite the currency’s recent uptick) even after taking inflation into account.

The weaker krone means visitors get more value for their money when exchanging foreign currency for Norwegian kroner.

READ MORE: How the weak Norwegian krone will affect travel to and from Norway

For instance, if a hotel room in Bergen costs 1,000 kroner per night, it would be around 88 euros at the current exchange rate. Three years ago, the same room would have cost approximately 100 euros.

Another example is dining out. A meal priced at 250 kroner (a main consisting of grilled salmon steak with vegetables, for example) is equivalent to 22 euros today, compared to 25 euros three years ago.

If you want a better understanding of how much cheaper a trip to Norway has become over time, you can use historical currency calculators to get a more exact estimate.

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