The Norwegian Government has officially confirmed that the regulations on B2B electronic invoicing will come into force on 1 January 2027, following final approval by the King's Council.
From that date, all businesses subject to Norwegian accounting obligations, including foreign entities registered for Value Added Tax (VAT) in Norway, are required to be able to issue electronic invoices to other businesses registered with the Electronic Invoice Mandate Association (ELMA) or the Peppol network, provided that the latter are authorised to receive them.
The legislation defines an electronic invoice as a structured sales document that allows for automated processing by accounting systems. The detailed technical requirements are to be published at a later date, but it is anticipated that the required format will be EHF (Elektronisk Handelsformat).
The digitisation process will continue on 1 January 2030, when the receipt of electronic invoices and the use of accounting systems capable of processing them automatically will become mandatory.
In order to complement this reform, the Norwegian authorities have also published version 1.40 of the SAF-T Accounting format, which will likewise become mandatory from 1 January 2027. The latest version has been developed to maintain compatibility with earlier iterations, thereby facilitating a phased transition for business entities.
Versions 1.20 and 1.30 may be utilised for the submission of information relating to previous financial years, up to and including the 2026 financial year.
By implementing these measures, Norway is aligning the development of its standards for electronic invoicing and the exchange of accounting information, thereby strengthening a fully digital ecosystem for businesses' tax and accounting obligations.
Latest developments regarding B2B e-invoicing in Norway
On 16 March 2026, the Norwegian Ministry of Finance issued a letter (ref. 26/1569) to the Tax Administration, confirming its intention to introduce mandatory e-invoicing and digital accounting.
This communication is a response to the legislative proposal that was put forward by the Norwegian Tax Administration during the public consultation on 20 June 2025.
The proposal confers upon the Ministry the prerogative to establish technical requirements through secondary legislation, encompassing electronic invoice formats and specifications for accounting systems.
In this context, the Tax Authority has proposed the implementation of the EHF (Elektronisk Handelsformat) format as a mandatory standard, as well as potential exemptions for small businesses. Furthermore, the Authority itself will be responsible for developing and updating the accounting regulations, the details of which will be published sufficiently in advance of their entry into force.
Timetable for the implementation of B2B e-invoicing in Norway
The Ministry has delineated two pivotal milestones:
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1 January 2027. The requirement to issue structured electronic invoices in the B2B sector is to be implemented.
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1 January 2030. It is an obligation incumbent upon all companies to maintain accounting systems in electronic format, and to be equipped with the capacity to receive electronic invoices.
The evolution of e-invoicing in Norway
Since 2011, all central government entities in Norway have been required to receive and process invoices electronically. One year later, in 2012, it became mandatory for suppliers to central authorities to issue electronic invoices in accordance with the EN 16931 standard.
According to FOR-2019-04-01-444, as of 2 April 2019, all public entities must receive and process invoices electronically.
In addition, suppliers to public entities will be obliged to send electronic invoices and central government contracting authorities that issue invoices will be obliged to offer PEPPOL invoices to recipients.
The authority responsible for regulating e-invoicing in Norway is Skattetaten (The Norwegian Tax Administration). It authorises all registered PEPPOL access points in the country (there are currently 45 in total) and operates the ELMA registry, a PEPPOL service metadata publisher that contains the identities and receiving capacities of all public entities and private companies that communicate using PEPPOL.
On the other hand, B2B e-invoicing in Norway is voluntary.
Although it is not an EU member, the Scandinavian country has made efforts to comply with the requirements that EU member states follow. An example of this is the Digitaliseringsrundskrivet and Nye obligatoriske IT-standarder i offentlig sector law. This law transposed the European Directive 2014/55/EU.
How does the e-invoicing model work in Norway?
Norway relies on the PEPPOL network, particularly for cross-border transactions, and uses the PEPPOL BIS 3.0 format. However, Norwegian public bodies also recognise the EHF (Elektronisk Handelsformat) format.
Economic operators can submit e-invoices via their ERPs or authorised e-invoicing solution providers.
The e-invoicing process in Norway is largely automated, as the e-procurement infrastructure is based on the specifications of the PEPPOL interoperability framework and the PEPPOL network itself.
Most public entities have an economic system that can manage their invoices. Invoice flow systems are used for invoice approval prior to payment.
E-invoices do not require an electronic signature and must be archived for 5 years, except for the oil recovery and pipeline industry where the archiving period is 15 years.
Electronic tax reporting project in Norway
All businesses in the country are required to submit VAT reports electronically to the Tax Administration. Starting January 2022, Norway mandates VAT reporting through electronic SAF-T files.
What is the SAF-T file?
The SAF-T format allows for electronic reporting as companies can export data from their accounting books in XML format.
In Norway, this is achieved through the Altinn portal, which serves as a common platform for electronic communication between companies and authorities.
Furthermore, there is a proposal to introduce electronic reporting of all purchases and sales on a transactional level by 2024, as outlined in a discussion paper published by the tax authorities.
From the second quarter onwards, the standard declaration (RF-0002) and the agricultural sector declaration (RF-0004) will be replaced by SAF-T.
Characteristics of SAF-T in Norway
The SAF-T file contains 30 codes, of which 25 are mandatory in the digital VAT return when there is transaction activity related to the specific codes. The Norwegian version of SAF-T is divided into two parts:
- The Financial part includes the general ledger, customer, supplier, and tax master data, as well as stock movements, product data, and asset register.
- The Cash part includes locations, cash registers, and cash transactions.
What are the objectives of the SAF-T files in Norway?
The intention behind the SAF-T files is to facilitate tax compliance, streamline control processes and simplify external audits:
- SAFT- files in Norway act as a means to export accounting data as requested by the tax administration and other interested parties.
- It functions as a file format for those who are obliged to keep accounts according to the country's accounting legislation.
- You will be able to transfer data when changing accounting software and from accounting software to other financial systems (tax calculation or business intelligence software.
