Loans to personal shareholders
From 7 October 2015, loans (credit and/or the provision of security) from private limited companies, etc. to personal shareholders and their close relatives will be taxed as dividend for the recipient according to the shareholder model.
In general, these rules apply to all types of credit (loan) and provision of security made directly or indirectly from a company to a personal shareholder/partner who directly or indirectly owns shares or securities in the company, and to their close relatives.
The part of the loan that, combined with any ordinary dividends, exceeds the deduction for risk-free return, must be adjusted upwards by a factor that changes each year. For 2023, the factor is 1.72, and the effective tax rate on taxable loans is 37.84 percent. The upward adjustment is automatically completed in connection with the tax calculation.
Read more about upward adjustment of dividends and other owner income with factors.
The repayment of loans that have previously been subject to dividend taxation is treated as investment of new capital by the shareholder.
Read more about taxation of shareholder loans
Rules regarding loans taken out before 7 October 2015
Generally, the rules specifying that loans from your own company are taxed as dividend apply to loans taken out after 7 October 2015.
This means that a loan taken out before that date is not covered by the regulatory changes if it's deemed to meet the criteria for being considered a real loan for tax purposes.
An increased balance on an existing loan will nevertheless be taxed as dividend, as such an increase is considered equal to a new loan. This may also apply to the continuation or extension of a loan that has fallen due to payment.
You can read more about loans from private limited liability companies and to shareholders in general:
- Read more about loans in private limited liability companies
- In the guide Skatte-ABC you can read more under the topic Lån til aksjonær/deltaker (Loan to shareholder/partner – in Norwegian only).
- See examples of how loans to shareholders should be completed and reported in the Shareholder register statement.
Factors for previous years
- For 2022, the factor was 1.60 for share income earned up to and including 5 October and 1.72 for share income earned after 5 October 2022.
- For 2021, the factor was 1.44.
- For 2020, the factor was 1.44.