Division of loans and interest when you’ve taken out a joint loan with someone
If you’ve taken out a joint loan with someone, for example, your spouse, cohabiting partner, parents, or others, you should check that the loan and interest are divided correctly between you in the tax deduction card and the tax return.
Does this apply to me?
Everyone who has a joint loan with someone else should check that the division is correct, both in the tax return and the tax deduction card.
You need to do this to ensure you pay the right amount of tax.
You can claim a deduction for interest on a loan (debt). This means that you pay less tax. The deduction is 22 percent of your interest costs.
You can divide loans and interest as you wish if you’re
- married
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Two partners of the same sex who registered a partnership before the new Marriage Act in 2008.
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To be considered spouse-equivalent cohabitants, at least one of you must have applied for or receive a pension from the National Insurance Scheme or a contractual pension (AFP). In addition, you must either have been married or registered partners in the past or have or have had children together
For cohabiting partners or others who have a joint loan, the loan is divided equally between you.
- If you’re two people responsible for the loan, each of you have a share of 50 percent. If you’re three people, each of you have a share of 33.3 percent, and so on.
- It does not matter who has actually paid the interest. It’s the share or any other agreement that determines how you should make the division.
If you want to change the division in your tax returns, one of you must increase their share and the other must reduce their share, so that the loan and interest amount to 100 percent. You do not need to attach any agreement or supporting documentation in the tax return, as long as you agree and enter 100 percent of the loan and interest in total. Do you disagree about the division?
If more than one person is responsible for the loan, they are co-borrowers. This applies regardless of how much you pay and even if you do not pay anything. Most people are co-borrowers, not guarantors. This could, for example, apply to parents who are responsible for their child’s loan, even if the child pays the entire loan. The parents are then normally co-borrowers.
If you’re not responsible for the loan, but only guarantee for somebody’s loan, you’re a guarantor. You’re only responsible for the loan if the borrower does not pay and the guarantor’s responsibility is effectuated. Therefore, the loan is not included in your tax return. You’re not entitled to a deduction for interest before you take over the responsibility for the loan. Then you’re only entitled to a deduction for interest that’s accrued after you took over the responsibility for the loan.
How to change the division
You should have the same division of loans and interest in the tax deduction card and the tax return. If not, one of you may end up with underpaid tax while the other gets a refund. Both you and the persons you have a joint loan with must check the information in the tax deduction card and the tax return and make changes if there are any errors.
In the tax deduction card
Loans and interest are pre-filled based on your previous tax assessment. This means that the tax deduction card for 2026 uses the same division that you had in the tax assessment notice for 2024, which you received in 2025. If you’re two co-borrowers and the loan was split 50/50 in the 2024 tax assessment notice, the loan and interest will be split 50/50 in the tax deduction card as well.
You can change the division yourself in the tax deduction card. You must enter the loan amount. If you, for example, each have 50/50 of a loan of 1 million, you have NOK 500,000 each of the loan. The same applies to the interest.
In the tax return
Loans you share with others are divided equally between you. If there are two of you, you each get 50 percent of the loan. If there are three of you, you each get 33.3 percent, and so on. The interest is also divided equally.
Even if you change the division in the tax deduction card, the loan is equally divided in the tax return. If you’ve agreed on a different division, you may change the division in your tax return. You enter your share of the loan and interest to, for example, 70/30. You do not change the amounts.
There are two things you must do:
- All co-borrowers must change their shares so that the total adds up to 100 percent. If you reduce your share, your co-borrower must increase theirs, and vice versa.
- Make sure to update both the tax deduction card and the tax return. If your division is not the same in the tax deduction card and the tax return, one of you may end up with underpaid tax and the other will get a tax refund.
Specific information for
If you disagree about the division, you must divide the loan equally between you, unless you’ve agreed otherwise. If you believe that you should have a larger share, and your co-borrower does not want to reduce their share, you must be able to prove your share with an agreement. The agreement must show the division – for example, 100/0 – and it must be signed by all borrowers. You can also use supporting documents such as a court ruling or a settlement.
You cannot use bank statements to prove your share, because it does not matter who actually paid the interest or who owns the asset the loan was used for, such as a residential property or car. It’s the equal share or your agreement that determines how you can divide the loan.
If the co-borrower is not able to change the tax return online, they may change the share in the paper tax return and send it, or they may give others access to their tax return.
Give others access to your tax affairs
If your co-borrower is deceased, and you’re changing the share, the person responsible for the decedent’s estate must change the tax return for the deceased person.
Loans and interest on loans from the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund only appear on the main borrower in the tax return. Others who are responsible for the loan are guarantors, not co-borrowers. If there are two of you who should have an equal share of the loan, the person who has the full loan in their tax return must reduce their share to 50 percent. The person who does not have the loan must add it under Bank, loans, and insurance, and set their share to 50 percent.
If you have a flexible loan or a construction loan, the loan will be divided between you in the tax return, the same way as other loans. Often, the interest is only entered on the person who owns the account the loan is drawn from. If there are two of you who should have an equal share of the interest, the person who has the full interest in their tax return must reduce their share to 50 percent. The person does not have the interest must add the interest under Bank, loans, and insurance, and set their share to 50 percent.
Usually, the tax and wealth stay the same no matter how you divide the loan, even if one of you has a lower income. There are mainly two situations where it can be beneficial to change the division:
- One of you has ordinary income below the personal allowance.
- One of you has a low retirement pension under the National Insurance Act or contractual early retirement pension (AFP).
In these situations, you can give a larger share of the loan and interest to the person with the higher income, so that you’ll pay less tax overall.
This applies to spouses, spouse-equivalent cohabitants, and registered partners who may divide the loan and interest as they like.
Read more about:
Spouses, registered partners, and spouse-equivalent cohabitants may divide interests and loans differently. If you, for example, want to share the loan 50/50 but enter all the interest on one person, you may choose "Add more information" in the tax return and override the calculation.
Cohabiting partners and others who share a loan cannot divide interest and loans differently. You must have the same percentage of the loan and interest.
If one of you is not liable for tax in Norway, you must divide the loan equally between you. This also applies if you’re married.