Withholding tax on pensions and disability benefits applies to:

• pensions from the National Insurance Scheme
• public occupational pensions
• private occupational pensions
• other private pensions
• disability benefits from the National Insurance Scheme
• disability benefits from other schemes

No withholding tax is to be paid on children's pensions to children under the age of 17.

The following exemptions from the tax liability apply for persons resident in Spain:

• Persons who can document that they are resident in Spain pursuant to the tax treaty between Norway and Spain are entitled to tax exemption in Norway.
• Persons who have not earned pension points or accumulated pension reserves in the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme are not liable to tax on pensions and disability benefits from private occupational pension schemes and other private pension schemes and war veteran pensions.

The tax treaty between Norway and Spain

Pursuant to the tax treaty between Norway and Spain article 18, pensions and disability benefits are only liable to tax in the recipient's country of residence. This means that the pension/disability benefit is not liable to tax in Norway if you can document that you are tax resident in Spain pursuant to the tax treaty.

Only persons who can document that they are liable to tax in Spain as residents pursuant to the tax treaty can be granted tax exemption in Norway. You must therefore be able to submit a Certificate of Residence (Residencia Fiscal en España. Convenio) from the Spanish tax authorities explicitly stating that you are tax resident in Spain pursuant to tax treaty with Norway.

A person who is unable to document that he/she is tax resident in Spain pursuant to the tax treaty cannot be garnted a tax exemption. All pensions/disability benefits will then be liable to tax in Norway.

Deduction of withholding tax for the income year 2023

If you are of the opinion that your pension/disability benefit is tax exempt in Norway pursuant to the tax treaty with Spain, you must submit an application for tax exemption to the tax office.

If you had a tax exempt pension/disability benefit on 2021 and/or you received a tax exemption card for the income year 2022, you do not need to apply for a tax exemption card for the income year 2023. The tax office will issue a new tax exemption card on the basis of the information the tax office has about your tax liability.

When applying for a tax exemption card for 2023, you must:

• state who pays the pension/disability benefit
• enclose a Certificate of Residence (Residencia Fiscal en España. Convenio) from the Spanish tax authorities.

The Certificate of Residence (Residencia Fiscal en España. Convenio) must be issued by the Spanish tax authorities and explicitly confirm that you are tax resident in Spain pursuant to the tax treaty with Norway. The certificate must be an original or an internet printout of the certificate from the website of the tax authorities with authorization code. The certificate must not be older than three months.

Applications for a tax exemption card will be processed as they are received. You will receive information on your tax deduction card (Tax Deduction Notice) instead of a tax deduction card. In this notice you will find information on the estimated tax deduction rate/tax exemption. You are not to send this notice to the payers of the pension/disability benefit. They collect the tax exemption card electronically from the tax authorities. The Tax Deduction Notice will be sent to your registered address in the National Registry. If you are an eUser, you will receive the tax notice in your mailbox in Altinn.

If you move from Spain or your tax liability to Spain ceases for other reasons, you must apply for a new tax deduction card.

If tax has been deducted before you are issued with a tax exemption card, you can apply for a refund of the tax deducted. For more information, see refunds of deducted withholding tax on pensions.

The tax assessment for the income year 2022

Persons covered by the provisions on withholding tax on pensions and disability benefits will receive a Norwegian tax return in March 2023.

If you are of the opinion that the pension/disability benefit is tax exempt in Norway, you must submit the tax return and state that the income is not liable to tax in Norway.

The tax office may request that you submit a Certificate of Residence (Residencia Fiscal en España. Convenio) that explicitly confirms that you are tax resident in Spain pursuant to the tax treaty with Norway.

The Certificate of Residence (Residencia Fiscal en España. Convenio) must be issued by the Spanish tax authorities (Agencia Tributaria). It must be an original or an internet printout of the certificate from the website of the tax authorities with authorization code. The certificate must not be older than six months. You can submit a Certificate of Residence issued by the Spanish tax authorities before they have finished the tax assessment for 2021.

If you do not submit your tax return a 15 per cent tax will be calculated on your pension/disability benefit in the tax settlement notice. This also applies when you have had a tax exemption card.

If you have not received the Norwegian tax return before 15 April 2023, you can contact Tax Administration Norway.

Have you not earned pension points or accumulated pension reserves in the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme and have private pensions/disability benefits or war veteran pensions

If you have not earned pension points or accumulated pension reserves in the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme you are not liable to pay tax in Norway on pensions and disability benefits from private occupational pension schemes and other private pension schemes. Nor are you liable to tax on war veteran pensions.

You must contact the one that pays the pension/disability benefit to notify that you believe the payment not to be liable to tax in Norway.

If you receive a war veteran pension you must contact the tax office. If you receive only a war veteran pension you can apply for a tax exemption card. If you also receive a retirement pension you can apply for a tax deduction card with a lower tax rate than 15 per cent. You must then document how large a proportion of the pension the war veteran pension amounts to.

The provisions on withholding tax on pensions and disability benefits apply only to you who have emigrated from Norway for tax purposes. If you are still tax resident in Norway pursuant to the Tax Act your tax will be assessed pursuant to the ordinary provisions. The provision in the tax treaty apply to you also.

All enquiries about withholding tax on pensions and disability benefits should be addressed to: