NORWAY Trends and Developments Contributed by: Nicolai Julsvoll, Øyvind Mork Karlsen and Jørn Hove, Thommessen
shares will result in a taxable benefit, which is taxed as salary. However, from 2022 onwards, the Norwegian Tax Administration have implemented a new scheme for taxation of share option programs that meet certain requirements. Normally, the difference between strike price and market price is immediately taxable as salary for the option holder. For qualifying option schemes, the differ - ence will be taxed upon realization of the shares and taxed as capital gains, not salary, meaning that the company does not need to pay payroll tax. Requirements were updated in March 2025 – specifically, regarding the age of the company and the number of employees. This slightly increased the scope of the scheme. A few key requirements are that: • the option holder must not control more than 5% of votes and shares in the company: • share options must be issued after 1 January 2022; • the company must be younger than 12 years at the time of issue (increased from ten years); and • the company must not have more than 150 employees (increased from 50 employees). Innovation Norway Innovation Norway (IN) is a state-owned com - pany intended to stimulate entrepreneurship in Norway by way of grants, loans, guarantees and other services. IN have offices in 30 countries. For start-ups, they provide courses and advisory services (including with regard to IP rights), as well as financial services – namely, grants for market clarification, grants for commercialisa -
tion, innovation loans, start-up loans, grants for innovation contracts and growth guarantees. In 2023, IN contributed approximately NOK7.1 billion to development and innovation in Nor - wegian businesses. Around NOK2 billion was granted to founders in 2023, up from NOK1.5 billion in 2022. A key result of the support is that it statistically unlocks other financing. Accord - ing to IN, NOK1 provided as capital or advisory services is matched by NOK1.5 in self-financing and other financing, amounting to an estimated NOK19.6 billion provided to Norwegian compa - nies in 2023. Regulations on investment As a general rule, investments in Norway by a foreign person are not regulated and do not require approval by the authorities. Norway’s approach to investment regulation offers a stark contrast to more restrictive frameworks seen in other countries, such as the USA’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFI - US) framework. Norway’s liberal stance towards foreign investments, barring certain national security considerations, provides a welcoming environment for international investors. Foreign direct investment (FDI) The only regulations pertaining to investments by a foreign person are related to national secu - rity and sanctions, primarily the Act Relating to National Security (the “Security Act” ) ( Sikkerhet- sloven ). A company may be brought under the scope of the Security Act if it handles classi - fied information, information or infrastructure of major importance for fundamental national func - tions, or activities of major importance for fun - damental national functions. Where an under - taking/company has been brought within the scope of the Security Act, an acquirer is obliged to notify the relevant ministry if it is acquiring a
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