Books

The exemption from VAT also generally applies to:

• newspapers and magazines
• comicspublished in book form
• songbooks
• audiobooks with the same content as a printed book

Books that are tax-free are also exempt from declaration to Customs when the value is less than 3 000 kroner. If the value is 3 000 kroner or higher, they are still tax-free, but then there is a declaration obligation. This means that the transport company must declare the shipment to Customs electronically without charging import duty. Please note that the transport company will charge a fee for this.

Exemptions do not apply to books sold together with another product, which are part of a common product unit.

Examples

• You pay VAT on a book that you order with a t-shirt as a single item with a common price.
• You do not pay VAT if you order a book simultaneously with other items from the same store, provided that the book is ordered independently of the other goods.

It can sometimes be difficult to know what qualifies as a book. 

Examples of what is not considered a book:

• Musicsheets
• Photobooks
• You may find a definition of books in the Regulations relating to value added tax (Norwegian) in section 6-4-2.

The administrative responsibility for VAT on imports belong to the Norwegian Tax Administration. Please visit the Norwegian Tax Administration's webpage for further information regarding the exemption of VAT on imported books (Norwegian).