Seafarers resident abroad

Seafarers who are resident abroad but work on Norwegian ships will generally be liable to pay tax in Norway. Their tax liability may be limited by a tax treaty. This article does not apply to those who work in the petroleum sector on the Norwegian continental shelf.

Below, you'll find information on what you must do in order to pay the right amount of tax to Norway.

Your employer (the shipping company) must apply for a D number on your behalf. You don't have to attend in person, but approved identification must be enclosed with the application. You'll receive information about your D number.

Seafarers who are resident abroad won't receive a tax deduction card. Separate deduction tables apply. The deduction tables incorporate the deductions you are entitled to and are based on equal deductions over 12 months. When choosing a table, your employer must know whether you have to pay national insurance contributions and whether you are entitled to the special allowance for seafarers.

The various deduction tables are shown below:

  • Table 0101 applies to seafarers who must pay national insurance contributions and who fulfil the conditions for the seafarer's allowance.
  • Table 0100 applies to seafarers who are not required to pay national insurance contributions in Norway.
  • Table 7350 applies to seafarers who don't meet the conditions for the seafarer's allowance.
  • Table 7500 applies to seafarers who don't meet the conditions for the seafarer's allowance and who are not required to pay national insurance contributions in Norway.
  • There is no table for seafarers who are required to pay national insurance contributions in Norway but who are not liable for tax in Norway. Your employer will still deduct national insurance contributions from your salary.

All seafarers are entitled to the 10 percent standard deduction and all the deduction tables therefore include this deduction.

Note that if you work in a petroleum-related sector on the Norwegian continental shelf, you must have a tax deduction card. More information on tax deduction cards for continental shelf workers

Seafarers who are not resident in Norway for tax purposes but who are employees on a Norwegian ship are liable to pay tax to Norway. The tax liability may be limited by a tax treaty. More information on tax residence.

Persons who are resident in the Nordic region are also liable to pay tax to Norway on income that is earned onboard foreign-registered ships owned or operated by a Norwegian company.

Exceptions apply to persons resident outside the Nordic region who serve onboard a ship registered in the Norwegian International Ship Register (NIS). Such persons are not liable to pay tax to Norway.

The tax treaty between Norway and your country of residence may also limit Norway's right to tax your salary income.

Even if you are not liable to pay tax to Norway, you may still have to pay national insurance contributions to Norway.

Note that seafarers who work onboard vessels in a petroleum-related sector on the Norwegian continental shelf are liable to pay tax to Norway under the Petroleum Tax Act. Such persons are not considered to be seafarers. More information for continental shelf workers.

National insurance contributions

If you are an employee onboard a Norwegian ship, you must pay national insurance contributions to Norway if you are

  • a Norwegian citizen,
  • resident in the Nordic region,
  • a citizen of an EEA Member State or Switzerland, or
  • employed onboard a ship in limited service (domestic shipping in Norway).

Exemptions from the obligation to pay national insurance contributions to Norway

Even if you are a citizen of an EEA Member State, you can in some cases apply for exemption from the obligation to pay into the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme. You must then contact the national insurance authorities in your country of residence and ask them to send form A1 to NAV. The Norwegian Tax Administration will be informed when the exemption is granted.

You will receive a pre-completed tax return from the Norwegian Tax Administration in March or April. The tax return is a summary of your income and deductions for one calendar year. The summary is based on the information that was registered for you as of 31 December in the calendar year concerned.

To make sure you don't pay too much tax, you must check that the information given in your tax return is correct. You are responsible for ensuring that the tax return is correct and complete. You must check the information and correct any errors and add any missing information.

You should check the following:

1. Check that your salary income is correct

Every month, your employer will send you written documentation of the salary you have been paid and the amount of tax that has been deducted from your salary. Every January, your employer will also send you an annual statement showing your salary payments and tax deductions over the previous year. When you receive your tax return, you must check the information against these documents. You should also check that your salary is registered as seafarer's income.

2. Check whether the standard deduction has been included

You are entitled to the 10 percent standard deduction. Check that this is included in your tax return.

3. Check that the seafarer's allowance has been included

If you are entitled to the seafarer's allowance, you must check that it has been included in your tax return.

4. Tax liability

If you don't think you're liable to pay tax to Norway, you should delete the income you believe is not taxable from your tax return. 

5. Check that the address stated in your tax return is correct

You must tell the Norwegian Tax Administration if your address is not correct. More information on address changes

6. Register your bank account details

Enter an account number for the payment of any amounts you are owed.

You must amend your tax return yourself

If you discover errors or have received new or late information, you must amend your tax return. You do this by submitting your tax return with the necessary changes to the Norwegian Tax Administration. This applies from the tax return for 2016 onwards. If you discover errors in your tax assessment notice for 2015 or earlier, you must submit an appeal.

  • You can change or appeal against your tax return electronically in Altinn
  • or by post to:

Skatteetaten
Postboks 9200 Grønland
0134 Oslo
Norway

Deadline

The deadline for submitting the tax return is 30 April.

You can apply to defer submission by up to one month. You must apply by 30 April.

If all the information is correct and you don't  make any changes, you don't have to do anything. 

If you haven't received your tax return, contact the Norwegian Tax Administration and ask to be sent a new return. This also applies if you have lost your tax return.

You can claim the seafarer's allowance if you have worked onboard a ship in service for at least 130 days during the same income year. The deduction amounts to 30 percent of your salary and any taxable allowances, subject to a maximum of NOK 80,000.

By ‘ship in service’ we mean a

  • ship which is employed in international shipping and which has its own propulsion machinery, regardless of the ship's size;
  • vessel in the petroleum sector which is being used to provide supply, preparedness and/or anchor-handling services or carry out seismic or geological investigations or other comparable activity, and/or construction, pipe-laying or maintenance activity;
  • marine vessel with a commando hoist;
  • ship with a gross register tonnage of at least 100 tonnes, which has its own propulsion machinery and which is not exempt below.

By ‘ship which is not in service’ we mean a

  • ferry or passenger vessel which only operates on scheduled routes between Norwegian ports where the route distance between the first and last ports of call is less than 300 nautical miles;
  • vessel in the petroleum sector which is carrying out investigations, exploratory drilling, extraction, recovery and/or pipeline transport;
  • ship which primarily sails on Norwegian lakes and/or rivers;
  • ship engaged in stationary operations and/or port traffic, or other activity across a limited shipping area where the distance sailed doesn't exceed 30 nautical miles;
  • accommodation vessel or ship which is used as a work platform, mission ship, theatre ship or similar;
  • pleasure craft, hospitality vessel, transport vessel, etc.;
  • fishing and hunting vessel, but only during the period when the vessel is being used for fishing or hunting purposes;

If you have worked less than 130 days, you may still be entitled to the deduction if:

  • your employment is covered by a collective agreement which assumes an average of at least 130 working days onboard during the year;
  • you started late or finished early during the year and your employment is covered by a collective agreement referred to above;
  • you were ill and received sickness benefit during part of the year. The condition is that the sickness benefit replaces seafarer’s wages which would have qualified for the special allowance for seafarers. The same applies in the case of care leave where parental benefit from the National Insurance scheme is granted.

Short periods spent onboard (less than 130 days) to cover for other employees or similar don't give entitlement to the special allowance for seafarers. This applies even if you are covered by a collective agreement.

 

You'll find information on the tax assessment here