Hiring in Norway

The contract sets out role, salary in NOK, working time, leave, notice, pension and any restrictive covenants. The EOR is the counterparty to the employee, which is what removes the need for your own entity.

English is accepted for international roles, although Norwegian is the norm for local hires.

Fixed-term contracts are allowed only on specific grounds such as substitute cover, so most EORs default to permanent full-time terms.

Set probation from day one. It can only be extended by the length of any absence, and only if the contract allows it and the employee is told in writing before it ends.

Some EORs shorten probation as policy because they, not you, carry the dismissal risk. Ask before you agree a start date.

Overtime is paid at a supplement of at least 40% on the hourly rate, capped at 10 hours a week, 25 hours over four weeks and 200 hours a year unless extended by agreement.

The exemption for senior roles is read narrowly, so do not assume a professional hire sits outside the rules. Put the position in writing either way.

Market practice is five weeks, usually set by collective agreement or company policy, so quote the market figure when you budget. Employees aged 60 and over get an extra week.

Sick pay splits into an employer period and a state period: the employer pays the first 16 calendar days, then NAV takes over. Parental benefit is paid by NAV up to a cap, so confirm whether the EOR tops up salary above it.

Dismissal needs objective justification, a consultation meeting first and written notice in a prescribed form. Exits are usually closed with a negotiated settlement agreement rather than a fixed statutory formula.

The EOR runs the process as the legal employer and will want the paperwork in order, including final pay, holiday pay and any agreed settlement. Employees can often stay in post while a challenge is heard, so keep a documented reason.

Private health insurance, group life and pension contributions above the 2% floor are common for professional roles even though they are not mandatory.

EORs often bundle benefits through a group scheme. Ask what is included in the fee and what is billed on top.

Employer national insurance adds 14.1% on top of gross salary in the main zone, which includes Oslo, Bergen, Stavanger and Trondheim, with lower rates in parts of the north. Add at least 2% for pension. That is before the EOR fee.

Holiday pay is the trap. It is earned in one year and paid the next, at a minimum of 10.2% of the previous year's earnings, and leavers take any accrued holiday pay with their final salary. Build that into the offboarding budget.

Ask whether the EOR sponsors directly or refers to a partner. UDI will not process an application without a Norwegian employer, and pay and conditions must be no worse than Norwegian norms for the role.

Set start dates after approval, not before.

Get the data processing terms in the service agreement, not just the privacy notice. Transfers outside the EEA need a valid mechanism such as an adequacy decision or standard contractual clauses.

Ask where payroll data is hosted and who in the partner chain can see it. Norwegian rules also tightly limit employer access to an employee's email.

Incorporating an AS is straightforward, but the running cost is the point: share capital, a board, accounting, audit thresholds, A-melding reporting and pension administration set an annual floor.

Norwegian law can treat an EOR as hiring-in when you direct the work, and hiring from staffing agencies has been tightly restricted since 2023. Take local advice before relying on the model long term, and remember that permanent establishment risk turns on what people do, not where payroll sits.