On 1 July 2021, new rules were introduced in Chapter 15 of the Customs Act (intellectual property rights) that give the customs authorities the right to stop and detain goods of private persons.
| Note: An update of this article is pending. Please note that some terms and/or references may differ from the Movement of Goods Act and the Customs Duty Act that enters into force from the 1st of January 2023. |
What are pirated copies?
Pirated copies are imitations of goods of a particular trademark, design or patent. They are often cheaper copies of expensive and popular brand name clothing, bags, shoes, make-up, car parts, medicines, telephones, furniture, food, etc.
These products look almost exactly like the original ones, and it can be difficult to distinguish genuine goods from counterfeit goods. These products are sold through online shops, on digital marketplaces or they are marketed in various social media.
What happens if I order pirated goods and they arrive in Norway?
All goods that arrive in Norway from abroad can be removed for inspection by the Norwegian Customs Service.
The purpose of an inspection is to identify pirated copies. If there is a suspicion that a product is a pirated copy, Norwegian Customs will contact the rightsholder of the trademark in question.
If the rightsholder wishes to follow up the case, you will receive a notification from Norwegian Customs. This notice will contain more details about the further process.
Norwegian Customs can detain your goods when these criteria are met:
- the recipient of the goods is a private person
- the consignor of the goods is a commercial enterprise
- the customs authorities suspect that the goods are pirated copies
An example of this could be a purchase from a foreign website, or from a seller abroad who has a company or a registered business.