Norway

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Operating a Business in Norway

Types of companies and capital (max/min)	Number of partners/shareholders and liability	Registration fees
Limited Company (Aksjeselskap, AS) NOK 100000	No minimum. Liability is limited to the amount contributed.	About NOK 5,000
Public Limited Company (Allmenne aksjeselskap, ASA) NOK 1 million	No minimum. Liability is limited to the amount contributed.	About NOK 5,000
General Partnership w. shared liability (Ansvarslig selskap med delt ansvar, DA) No minimum capital.	No minimum. Unlimited, but each owner is responsible for debt corresponding to his/her share of the ownership	About NOK 2,000
General partnership (Ansvarslig selskap, ANS) No minimum capital.	No minimum. Liability is unlimited.	About NOK 2,000
Sole proprietorship (Enkeltmannsforetak) No minimum capital.	Only 1 person. Liability is unlimited.	About NOK 2,000

Business setup procedures: New businesses must register with the tax and customs authorities and with the Central Coordinating Register for Legal Entities (CCRLE - Enhetsregisteret) at the Brønnøysund Register Centre. Make sure that the business name is not already registered in Norway. More information about the registration process can be found here.
The competent organization: Brønnøysund Register Centre maintains open annual accounts on all Norwegian companies.

Legal weekly duration: 35,5 hours for shift workers and 37,5 hours for others. This includes a half an hour lunch break.
Retirement age: Official retirement age is 67, but early retirement is allowed at 62. Employees have the right to continue working until the age of 70.
Working contracts: Legal clauses regulate employment contracts and to a lesser degree collective agreements and individual negotiations. The terms of employment contracts are rather rigid.

Minimum wage: There is no legally mandated national minimum wage.
Average wage: In 2006 average wage was NOK 30,600 per month.
Social contributions: Social security contributions paid by employers: Varies regionally, between 0 and 14,1 %.
Social security contributions paid by employees: 7,8 %.

Social dialogue and involvement of social partners: Norway has strong traditions in collective bargaining and trade unions hold a prominent position. Strong emphasis is placed on central organizations of employers and employees. Compulsory collective agreements supplement legislation in wages, working conditions and benefits. Results of central wage negotiations between the large employee's and employer's organizations serve as guidelines for the local wage negotiations.
Unions: Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions
Confederation of Unions for Professionals
Federation of Norwegian Professional Associations
Unionization rate: 60 %.
Labor regulation bodies: Ministry of Labor and Social Inclusion

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