International visitors to Norway can, in certain circumstances, claim a refund of the sales tax paid on souvenirs.
Unlike the United States, Norway refunds sales tax to foreign visitors who are only in Norway on a temporary basis.
The refund is not available for residents of Norway, Sweden, Denmark or Finland.
Participating shops will display a “Tax Free” logo at the entrance and at the point of payment, so ask if you don't see a logo or you are unsure.
How the process works
If you use the tax free shopping service offered in these stores, you can claim a cash refund when leaving Norway.
Note: Although you must begin the process in the store, you will not receive the money until you are leaving the country.
Refund points are sited at various exit points including most airports, road borders, and on board ferries and cruise ships. Which refund point you can use depends on how you leave the country.
To qualify for a tax refund, there is a minimum purchase threshold you must meet from a single shop.
At the time of writing this stands at NOK 315 for regular goods and NOK 290 for food. The goods in question must be exported in unused condition within 30 days from date of purchase.
This is really important. For example, if clothing has been obviously worn (labels torn off etc) or electronic items opened, the refund will be refused. There are no exceptions to this rule!
To claim the refund when leaving the country, you'll need to present the goods, the completed refund form and your passport.
If you are unable to present the goods the refund will be refused, so make sure to pack any such items in your hand luggage!
Checklist
You should receive a leaflet at the point of sale which has answers to all your questions, but sometimes it's easy to misunderstand the bigger picture.
So as a reminder, to claim a refund you must:
- Not be a citizen of Norway, Sweden, Denmark or Finland
- Be leaving Norway within 30 days of purchase
- Get a form completed at the point of purchase
- Not open or use the goods until you have left Norway
- Show the completed form, your passport and most importantly the goods when exiting Norway
More information on the process can be found via the two companies that run the tax free operation in Norway: Global Blue and Premier Tax Free.
Ok, now if I buy a laptop in Norway for 15000 NOK where exactly I need to fill out the application or forms for tax refund?
The best thing to do is ask for the form at the retail store when you make the purchase. Bear in mind if you buy a laptop in Norway it’s highly likely going to come with a Norwegian keyboard layout, which you may or may not want 🙂
Where is the Tax refund in Oslo if I leave the country by high speed train to Stockholm via Oslo Central Station?
What is the office operation hours as my departure day is Sunday? My flight is departing back home at Schilpol Amsterdam to Malaysia? Please advise. Thanks
We were told to get the VAT refund when we leave Norway. Our last stop in Norway is Tromso. From Tromso, we fly to St. Petersburg.
Today, we were told we could not get our refund in Tromso airport. So where do we get our VAT refund?
Hi!
Live in Norway since juni. Have a D number. Applied for the P number but have to wait 6 more weeks.
Go for a trip to germany saturday. Thinking about to buy a new mobile phone with tax free option.
Is it possible for me?
I have the tysk passport and no Norwegian adress is in it.
What do you think?
I bought a macbook and ipad in a store in Stavanger, asked for a form in the store and when at the airport my purchases were checked and the form was signed. I was advised to send a copy by email to the store, because due to the amount of the refund, it was not through global blue, the refund would be direct with the store. I made several contacts with the store, sent some emails, and they didn’t answer me. On the store’s instagram, I replied, but when I spoke about taxfree and the emails I sent, they stopped responding. What can I do in this case? I had bought this electronic equipment only because I would be entitled to taxfree, without this return to the purchase it would be worth it.