Sales to residents of Sweden, Denmark and Finland
For an item to qualify for a refund, its sale price must be at least NOK 1.000, exclusive of VAT. First, you must pay VAT at the time of purchase. You then declare the item to customs officials upon arrival in your home country and pay VAT there. Finally, you must send the customs declaration receipt back to the point of purchase, who will refund the Norwegian VAT to you.
Sales to residents of other countries and to persons staying in Svalbard/Jan Mayen
The purchase price of individual items must be at least NOK 250, exclusive of VAT. (For those staying in Svalbard/Jan Mayen, the individual purchase price must be at least NOK 1.000, exclusive of VAT). You must pay VAT at the time of purchase.
There are two ways to have the VAT refunded:
1. Certification of export by Customs and Excise
This requires the use of a special form (Form RD 0032) at the time of purchase. The form is to be filled out by the seller. On leaving Norway you
must show the item to Customs and Excise so that they can attest to its export on the form. You must have the item with you personally. Customs and Excise may not certify the export of an item before or after it is exported. Because Customs and Excise certifies that an item is on its way out of the country, it can only provide certification in connection with an immediate departure. No more than a month may pass from the time an item is delivered to the buyer until it is taken out of the country.
In order for the seller to refund the Norwegian VAT to you, you must send the form back to the store yourself.
Business hours for Norwegian Customs and Excise
If you require certification by Customs and Excise, you must depart Norway at a border point staffed by Customs and Excise. If you leave the
country at a point where there are no Customs and Excise personnel, you will not be able to have your form certified. You must also keep in mind that Customs and Excise may have limited hours of operation even at border points that are usually staffed. At airports and ferry terminals, Customs and Excise may not be present for all departures. You are therefore advised to contact Customs and Excise well before departure to learn where and when you can receive a certification of export. Customs and Excise is ordinarily open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Oslo Airport (Gardermoen), Svinesund N/Svinesund S, Ørje/Hån, Eda and Helligskogen/Kilpisjärvi are always staffed.
2. Tax-Free Shopping
There are private enterprises that has contract with numerous stores in Norway to simplify tax-free sales to visitors. The visitor
pays the VAT at the time of purchase, the seller then issues a cheque for the VAT amount minus a commission. This cheque may be cashed at special refund offices located at most airports, ferry terminals and major border crossings.
For more information, contact the Customs Information Center
Tel.: +47 0 30 12
This brochure is not exhaustive. Moreover, the reader should be aware that the information provided is subject to change.