Norway invoice requirements: the practical rules to check before sending
Norwegian invoices have several details worth checking carefully: controlled invoice numbers, the correct use of MVA, company-register information, VAT expressed in NOK when an invoice uses foreign currency, retained void numbers, and EHF electronic invoicing — required for public-sector customers today and, from 1 January 2027, for most invoices between Norwegian businesses. This guide brings those points together from official Norwegian sources.
Reviewed: 21 September 2026 · Les guiden på norsk
The Norway-specific details worth checking
Use this as a practical checklist, then follow the official sources linked below for the rules that apply to your business and transaction.
| Topic | Practical requirement | InvoiceCraftly Norway |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice number | Machine-controlled, traceable sequence rather than freely editable numbers | Keeps Norwegian invoice numbers in a controlled sequence and prevents silent restarts |
| Unused/error number | Retain the number/history and mark it void | Makuler keeps the number and reason in the document history |
| Organisation number | Seller name and organisation number on business/sales documents | Nine-digit organisation-number and seller identity fields |
| MVA suffix | Show MVA after the organisation number when VAT-registered | Seller records VAT-registration status explicitly so the document can show MVA correctly |
| AS/ASA identity | Legal form, head-office address, relevant register and liquidation status | Dedicated fields for the supported Norwegian company details |
| Foreign currency | Where Norwegian VAT applies, the VAT amount itself must also be shown in NOK | Calculates a separate NOK VAT amount from the documented rate details you enter |
| EHF | Public-sector customers require EHF today. From 1 January 2027, bookkeeping-obligated businesses must send e-invoices to other bookkeeping-obligated businesses registered in ELMA. Consumer and cash sales are outside the requirement. | Not supported; use an EHF-capable system or portal for covered B2B invoices. Check who the requirement applies to → |
1. Norwegian invoice numbers must stay in a controllable sequence
Altinn explains that invoice numbers should be assigned by the invoicing program or come from pre-numbered forms so the issuer cannot simply choose the number. Skatteetaten guidance also emphasizes a controllable sequence for the individual bookkeeping entity.
In practice, avoid treating the invoice number like an ordinary text field that can be freely replaced after a number has been assigned. Keep the numbering history aligned with the records you actually use.
How InvoiceCraftly helps: the Norway workflow keeps invoice numbers in a controlled sequence. If the previous numbering record is unavailable, InvoiceCraftly asks you to restore or confirm the previous sequence before continuing instead of quietly starting again from 1.
Sources: Altinn — Faktura (salgsdokumentasjon) and Skatteetaten — Inntekter.
2. Keep unused or erroneous numbers in the history
When a numbered sales document is unused or erroneous, Norwegian guidance describes keeping the invoice in the number series and marking it as void rather than making the number disappear from the history.
In InvoiceCraftly, Makuler keeps the number, marks the unissued document as void, and records a reason. If an invoice has already been issued, use the appropriate correction path such as a credit note instead.
3. MVA after the organisation number depends on VAT registration
Norway VAT number format: a Norwegian organisation number contains nine digits. For a seller registered in Merverdiavgiftsregisteret, Norwegian business-document guidance uses the same nine-digit organisation number followed by MVA, for example 123 456 789 MVA. The MVA marker reflects VAT-registration status; not every Norwegian organisation is VAT registered.
For correspondence with other countries, Altinn recommends placing Norway's NO country code before the organisation number. The international display is therefore NO + nine digits + MVA, commonly written NO123456789MVA for a VAT-registered business. A line-item tax percentage by itself does not establish registration.
Record the seller's VAT-registration status explicitly. InvoiceCraftly uses that status to present the organisation number and MVA marker, while Bedriftssøk Norge can help you find public company details for customers.
Sources: Brønnøysundregistrene — About the organisation number and Altinn — company information on websites and business documents.
4. AS and ASA need more company identity than an organisation number
For Norwegian limited companies, business documents carry additional identity requirements. The company form and head-office address matter, Foretaksregisteret presentation is relevant, and a company under liquidation must identify that status. The Foretaksregister Act also contains additional requirements for a Norwegian branch of a foreign enterprise (NUF).
InvoiceCraftly provides dedicated fields for the supported Norwegian company details. If you invoice as a NUF, check the additional foreign-enterprise information required for your situation rather than treating a generic seller address as a complete NUF checklist.
Sources: Altinn and Foretaksregisterloven § 7-2.
5. Foreign-currency invoices need the VAT amount itself in NOK
A Norwegian invoice can use another commercial currency, such as EUR or USD. Where Norwegian VAT applies, Skatteetaten guidance says the VAT amount itself must also be stated in Norwegian kroner. Printing only an exchange rate is not a substitute for the NOK VAT amount.
A practical workflow is:
- calculate VAT in the invoice currency;
- use a documented exchange rate appropriate to the invoice time;
- record the rate, date and source used;
- calculate and display a separate MVA i NOK amount.
InvoiceCraftly lets you enter the documented rate details and calculates the separate NOK VAT amount. Confirm that the rate and accounting treatment you use are appropriate for the transaction.
Source: Skatteetaten — Salgsdokumentets innhold – merverdiavgift.
6. PDF and EHF solve different jobs — and the line moves in 2027
A PDF is a visual sales document. It is not an EHF electronic invoice, which is structured data that the recipient's accounting system can process automatically.
Today, EHF is required when invoicing Norwegian public-sector customers. From 1 January 2027, the requirement widens: businesses with bookkeeping obligations must send e-invoices to other bookkeeping-obligated businesses that are registered in ELMA, Norway's electronic recipient register. For those invoices, a PDF or paper invoice will no longer be a valid invoice. From 1 January 2030, businesses must also be able to receive e-invoices and keep their books in an electronic accounting system.
Invoices to private individuals and cash sales are outside the requirement.
InvoiceCraftly creates visual and structured documents, but it does not generate or transmit EHF. If your customer requires EHF — now or from 2027 — use an EHF-capable accounting or invoicing system.
Read who the 2027 requirement covers and which exemptions apply →
Sources: DFØ / Anskaffelser.no — Fakturering og betaling and Digitaliseringsdirektoratet — EHF requirement.
7. The 2027 structured e-invoice mandate
From 1 January 2027, changes to the Norwegian Bookkeeping Act (bokføringsloven) bring in a structured electronic-invoice requirement for sales between bookkeeping-obliged businesses. A regular PDF is not, by itself, the law's structured electronic-invoice format. The Ministry of Finance describes 2027 as the sending milestone, while digital bookkeeping and the practical receiving/processing duty phase in by 1 January 2030. Detailed format requirements and any thresholds or exemptions still depend on regulations (forskrift) not yet finalised.
Answer the same three questions the Norwegian authority page uses -- seller bookkeeping duty, buyer bookkeeping duty, and recipient capability -- to see how a situation fits the known B2B core.
Check a situation
Choose "Unsure" when you don't know the status. The date is optional and is used to distinguish 2027 preparation from a post-effective-date assessment.
2027 assessment result
Next checkpoints
For the full breakdown of who is covered, the proposed small-business exemption, and the complete source list, see Norway e-invoicing from 2027: who must send EHF invoices. For an interactive, source-linked check of a specific situation, see EHF og e-faktura 2027 i Norge (Norwegian tool).
Sources: Lovdata -- LOV-2026-06-19-39 and Lovdata -- FOR-2026-06-19-1154.
How InvoiceCraftly helps with the Norwegian invoice workflow
InvoiceCraftly's Norway invoice generator includes controlled invoice numbering, Makuler, explicit VAT-registration status, Norwegian company-identity fields, and a separate MVA-in-NOK amount for applicable foreign-currency invoices.
For customer details, use Bedriftssøk Norge. For EHF, use the readiness and recipient tools to prepare the workflow, then complete EHF creation and network delivery through the service required by your recipient — which matters more from 1 January 2027, when EHF becomes the default for most invoices between Norwegian businesses. NUF and transaction-specific accounting treatment may require additional information beyond the standard Norway fields.
Most Norwegian invoices carry a KID number as the payment reference, so an incoming payment can be matched to the right invoice automatically. Use the KID number calculator and checker to compute the Mod10 or Mod11 check digit, or to validate a KID you already have, before you add it to the invoice.
Norwegian invoice requirements
Can I choose my own invoice number in Norway?
A Norway-focused invoicing flow should use controlled program-assigned numbering rather than treating the number as a freely editable field.
What is the Norwegian VAT number format?
The organisation number has nine digits. A VAT-registered business shows MVA after it on relevant Norwegian business documents; for foreign correspondence, Altinn recommends NO before the number, giving NO123456789MVA. Confirm registration instead of inferring it from a tax rate.
Can I invoice a Norwegian customer in EUR?
Commercial amounts can use foreign currency, but where Norwegian VAT applies the VAT amount itself must also be stated in NOK using documented conversion evidence.
Can I delete an unused numbered invoice?
Keep the number in the history and mark the unissued invoice void/Makulert rather than removing it from the sequence.
Does InvoiceCraftly send EHF?
No. EHF/Peppol transmission is not supported. For invoices covered by EHF requirements, use an EHF-capable system.
Can I still send a PDF invoice in Norway after 2027?
Yes, for invoices to private individuals, and in cases the requirement does not cover. For invoices between bookkeeping-obligated businesses where the buyer is registered in ELMA, a PDF will no longer be a valid invoice from 1 January 2027. See the details →