Parental allowance

As a parent, you are entitled to a deduction for your documented expenses for the care of children aged 11 or under who live with you. You may also be entitled to a deduction for expenses for after-school-hours schemes.

Parents who have incurred expenses in caring for a child who they live with and who is 11 years old or younger during the income year can claim a parental allowance.

Parents who have child-care expenses for children aged 12 or over who have special care needs due to a disability or similar, can also claim the parental allowance. 

Parents who live with children abroad can also claim the parental allowance.

You can get a deduction for the following expenses:

  • day care
  • childminder
  • after-school-hours supervision scheme/sports schemes
  • transport to and from the above if it is a detour to your workplace. You can claim a deduction for your expenses for the extra distance you travel. If you’re not driving to your own workplace, you include the expenses for the entire trip.
  • your additional travel expenses for taking children to a childminder.
  • your expenses for a childminder for an older child if the child has special care needs. You must also be able to present a certificate from a doctor, the child welfare service or similar if we ask you to.
  • payment for provision of childcare services
  • Expenses relating to alternative after-school childcare schemes outside of the ordinary after-school childcare arranged by schools themselves qualify for deductions when the childcare scheme is organised by a club or association within sport, theatre, orchestras and brass bands, choirs, culture school or similar. There is a condition that the scheme is established as a recognised alternative to the ordinary after-school childcare scheme provided by primary schools, both in terms of time span and regularity. If the activity takes place at a weekend or in the evening, or only during the school holidays, no deductions will be given. More about alternative after-school childcare schemes here.

There are no deduction for expenses for food.

You can claim a deduction for documented expenses for the minding and care of children of up to NOK 25,000 for one child, and an additional NOK 15,000 for each child in addition to the first.

If you have received a subsidy from your employer for day care, the taxed amount is considered an expense for the minding and care of children, in addition to your personal contribution.

If you have received child care benefit as a single provider (se the annual statement from NAV regarding this year benefits), the benefit you received will reduce the basis used to calculate the deduction. You will be entitled to a parental allowance to the extent that your expenses exceed the benefit.

The deduction is given to the person with whom the child has lived for the majority of the year. If you wish to alter the pre-filled amount, both partners must alter their tax returns. If your previous partner does not wish to alter their tax return, you must alter your tax return and provide an explanation.

Spouses have a joint maximum amount available for deduction. They can distribute the deduction freely between themselves, or they can split it equally. If they choose to distribute it freely, both spouses must alter their tax returns. This is also the case when the deduction concerns children who are not shared children.

When spouses marry during the income year: If, for example, each spouse has a child from a previous relationship (and do not have any shared children), you can choose whether you wish to declare the children as your respective children or as two shared children, i.e. a maximum of 2 x NOK 25,000 or NOK 40,000 in allowance.

Spouse-equivalent cohabitants with shared children can distribute the deduction freely between themselves if they do not wish to have the deduction split equally between them, but both cohabitants must alter their tax returns in such cases.

In the case of cohabitants without shared children, the parental allowance is given to the parent who is the father or mother of the child/children from a previous relationship

The deduction is pre-filled

The deduction will normally be pre-filled with the amount you have paid. The amount is based on what was reported by the one you made the payment to, so you should check that everything is correct. The reported amount/deduction amount is automatically distributed equally between spouses/spouse-equivalent cohabitants with shared children.

Day-care centres and after-school-hours supervision schemes are obliged to submit a statement of parents'/guardians' expenses for childcare. If the expenses are not pre-filled in the tax return, you can still claim the deduction, but you must be able to document your expenses if we ask you to.

Cash-for-care benefits from NAV will not reduce the deduction.

Submit on paper

An itemisation of travel allowance to and from a day-care centre/childminder/after-school-hours supervision scheme must be entered in the tax return. See how.

You do not need to send us any documentation for this, but you must be able to present documentation if we ask for it.

If we ask for documentation, you must be able to document the following:

  • For expenses relating to the minding and care of children that are not pre-filled in your tax return, you must be able to document these by original vouchers that state the name and address of the recipient.
  • If you're claiming a deduction for the minding and care of children aged 12 or older due to special care needs, you must be able to document the child's special needs through a medical certificate, statement from the child welfare service or similar.
  • Expenses in excess of NOK 10,000 on an annual basis must be paid via a bank or through salary deductions in order for you to be entitled to a deduction. You must be able to document payments through bank statements or payslips.