Electronic communication – expense allowance
Concerns the benefit associated with electronic communication when this is covered through an expense allowance.
Brief information about electronic communication – expense allowance
Specify the benefit associated with electronic communication when the income recipient receives this in the form of an expense allowance.
This applies for example to:
- landline telephones
- mobile phones
- permanent broadband access
- mobile access to data communication, e.g. via a wireless network
The coverage of costs for the set-up/installation of electronic communication services is covered by the standard rule.
The information you must provide
| Amount | NOK x |
| Type of salary or benefit | Expense allowance, electronic communication |
| Subject to withholding tax | Yes |
| Basis for employer's national insurance contributions | Yes/No |
| Tax and contribution rules | If relevant |
| Additional information | - |
Amount
Specify the taxable benefit when you actually make the payment to the employee.
If the total coverage of the invoice causes the maximum standard amount to be exceeded, you should specify coverage up to the standard amount.
Type of salary or benefit
Specify “expense allowance” and “electronic communication”.
Subject to withholding tax
The benefit must always be specified as subject to withholding tax.
You don't have to make withholding tax deductions if the amount to be deducted is less than the minimum threshold for withholding tax.
In the case of payments in kind, you must make the deduction from the cash benefits as far as possible. You must notify the tax office via Altinn if the total withholding tax deductions exceed the cash benefits.
Basis for employer's national insurance contributions
You must calculate employer’s national insurance contributions on this benefit.
Exemption:
You don't have to calculate employer’s national insurance contributions when the income recipient:
- is covered by the national insurance legislation of another country in accordance with a convention or the EEA Agreement
- is a foreign employee who is not a member of the Norwegian National Insurance scheme and who works on the Norwegian continental shelf or in Norwegian territorial waters
In some cases, the employee has a confirmation of a membership that is being maintained by their national insurance authority (A1 or another form). The Labour and Welfare Administration’s division for membership and contributions to the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme, NAV Medlemskap og avgift, will consider all documentation, register any exceptions from membership in the National Insurance Scheme and the relevant periods of exception, as well as whether the exception applies to all or parts of the National Insurance Scheme. Registered exceptions from membership in the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme are sendt electronically from NAV to the Tax Administration.
Only exceptions registered with the Tax Administration will allow the employer to omit calculation of employer's national insurance contributions for an employee.
The Tax Administration may assess employer's national insurance contributions if there is no exception registered for the employee, and if the reported salary or benefit is not included in the taxable basis.
The employer or the employee can contact NAV regarding questions about whether an exception from the membership in the National Insurance Scheme is registered.
Tax and contribution rules
If the income recipient fulfils the conditions, you must use the following tax and contribution rules:
This tax and contribution rule concerns:
- income recipients who are covered by the Jan Mayen Tax Act.
If the income recipient fulfils the relevant conditions, you must specify “Jan Mayen and the Norwegian dependencies” for salary and other benefits.
You must also specify “Jan Mayen and the Norwegian dependencies” for the associated withholding tax.
See detailed information on withholding tax in the a-melding
Remember also to specify the correct deduction descriptions for Jan Mayen and the Norwegian dependencies regarding trade union fees and premium for pension scheme.
See also the detailed information concerning Jan Mayen and the Norwegian dependencies
This tax and contribution rule concerns:
- income recipients who are covered by the Svalbard Tax Act.
If the income recipient fulfils the relevant conditions, you must specify “Svalbard” for salary and other benefits.
You must also specify "Svalbard" for the associated withholding tax.
See detailed information on withholding tax in the a-melding
Remember also to specify the correct deduction descriptions for Svalbard regarding trade union fees, premium for pension scheme, National Insurance premiums and education and development fund premiums and portacabin rent.
This tax and contribution rule concerns:
- seafarers who are entitled to a special deduction (seafarer's allowance) from their salary and other benefits,
- when it is earned through work on-board a vessel in service.
If the income recipient fulfils the relevant conditions, you must specify “special allowance for seafarers” for salary and other benefits.
See also the detailed information concerning the special allowance for seafarers
If you submit an a-melding for a tax-free organisation, you can use the following tax and contribution rule:
If you submit an a-melding for a tax-free organisation (tax-free companies, associations and institutions referred to in Section 2-32 first paragraph of the Tax Act), you can specify “tax-free organisation” for the salary or benefit.
If you do this, you won't need to consider whether the income recipient will pass the reporting obligation threshold of NOK 10,000 during the year. The specification must be used from the first krone and for payments throughout the whole year.
See also the detailed information concerning tax-free organisation
Additional information
No additional information.
Earnings period (voluntary)
You can specify the earnings period for all types of salary and other benefits in the a-melding. Both the start date and the end date of the earnings period must fall within the same reporting month.
See also the explanatory information concerning the earnings period
When you must submit reports
Specify the benefit in the month in which the allowance is paid, regardless of which period (or which year) the invoice concerns.
Annual income supplement - standard amount
|
Applies per income recipient and for one or more electronic communication services: |
|
| Actual amount covered limited to | NOK 4,392 |
You should only take account of the benefits your employee receives from you, not whether the person receives reimbursements from other employers.
See also the Tax ABC concerning electronic communication (in norwegian only)
When the standard amount is reached
When the maximum standard amount (annual income supplement) is reached for an employee, you should not report any further information for the person concerned. This applies even if the employee has electronic communication services covered later during the same year.
Example with electronic communication as an expense allowance
Anna works for an IT company and has her broadband expenses covered through an expense allowance. The IT company reimburses her broadband costs on an ongoing basis as she submits invoices.
Anna submits invoices in March, June and October. Each invoice is for NOK 1,500 and is paid in the month in which it is received.
The company specifies the following information concerning electronic communication services for Anna:
A-meldings for March and June:
- Broadband (expense allowance)
NOK 1,500 (actual amount) for coverage of broadband costs
A-melding for October:
During this month, the standard amount is exceeded by NOK 108.
- Broadband (expense allowance)
NOK 1,392 (NOK 1,500- 108) for coverage of broadband costs
The final NOK 108 of the invoice which is reimbursed is not reported or included in the calculation basis for deductions. Nor are employer's national insurance contributions calculated on the amount.
Remainder of the year:
During the remainder of the year, the company must not specify any coverage of electronic communication services, even if Anna submits more invoices or starts to use the company’s telephone as a payment in kind. It should also not be included in the basis for deductions or in calculations of employer's national insurance contributions.
Both payment in kind and expense allowance
If you cover electronic communication through a combination of payments in kind and expense allowances, you must specify these separately according to the type of benefit.
This means that you must specify
- the component that constitutes an expense allowance here as electronic communication – expense allowance, or
- the component that constitutes a payment in kind as electronic communication – payment in kind.
In such cases, the taxable benefit according to the standard rule will still be limited to a maximum of NOK 4,392 per year. The taxable benefit amounts to NOK 366 per month for the payment in kind, in addition to the amount that the employer covers as an expense allowance. Once the ceiling of NOK 4,392 has been reached, all coverage of electronic communication services during the rest of the year will be exempt from any tax liability.
Example with both payment in kind and expense allowance
William works for a law firm as an office worker. His mobile phone costs are covered as a payment in kind all year round and his broadband costs are covered as an expense allowance. William submits an invoice for NOK 1,500 for broadband for March and August.
The firm specifies the following information concerning electronic communication services for William during the year:
A-meldings for January and February:
- Mobile phone (payment in kind)
NOK 366 (4,392/12 months = NOK 366) for coverage of mobile phone costs
A-melding for March:
- Mobile phone (payment in kind)
NOK 366 (4,392/12 months = NOK 366) for coverage of mobile phone costs - Broadband (expense allowance)
NOK 1,500 (actual amount) for coverage of broadband costs
In total for March, NOK 1,866 (NOK 366 + 1,500) is included in the basis for the deduction.
A-meldings for April, May, June and July:
- Mobile phone (payment in kind)
NOK 366 (4,392/12 months = NOK 366) for coverage of mobile phone costs
A-melding for August:
In August, NOK 330 of the standard amount remains. The legal firm then specifies:
- Mobile phone (payment in kind)
NOK 330 (remaining amount) for coverage of mobile phones costs
No information must be given concerning expense allowance.
After this, the firm must not specify any coverage of electronic communication services for the rest of the year, even if William has electronic communication services covered later in the year.
Jointly invoiced services
The employer may cover the costs of jointly invoiced services and additional services tax-free for up to NOK 1,000 in the income year.
This tax-free amount is used first. You can allow all coverage of such services to be part of the tax-free amount without distinguishing between business and private use.
If the employer covers more than the threshold amount, you must assess the excess amount and determine what constitutes business use and what constitutes private use. The part of the excess amount that relates to private use will be taxed as salary under the ordinary rules.
If the cost is covered through the employee submitting invoices, you must specify the taxable component as cash benefit, other.
If the cover is provided in the form of payments in kind, the taxable component must be reported as payment in kind, unspecified.
Correcting errors
| MAGNET_EDAG-114 Invalid value |
| MAGNET_EDAG-114B Invalid value for this calendar month |
| MAGNET_EDAG-200 This income has been reported with incorrect information and is invalid |
| MAGNET_EDAG-230B Invalid value |
| MAGNET_EDAG-243 Information on earnings period is invalid |
| MAGNET_EDAG-298 This income has been reported with incorrect information and is invalid |
What do we use the information for
NAV uses information concerning salary and other benefits to calculate unemployment benefits and to check benefits such as sickness benefit, parental benefit, disability benefit and advance child maintenance payments.
The Norwegian Tax Administration uses information concerning electronic communication to pre-complete the tax return and for control purposes.
Statistics Norway (SSB) uses the information for statistical purposes.
Applicable regulations
These regulations are only available in Norwegian.
