If you are going to purchase gifts online from abroad or receive gifts from family and friends abroad, you will find information about Customs regulations for this here.
| Note: An update of this article is pending. Please note that some terms and/or references may differ from the Movement of Goods Act and the Customs Duty Act that enters into force from the 1st of January 2023. |
You may receive a gift shipment free from duties and taxes provided the value is NOK 1 000 or less and provided the shipment is sent from a private individual residing abroad to you as a private individual in Norway. However, there may be some restrictions or a ban on some types of goods being sent as gifts, and you can read more about this further down.
If you order gifts from abroad and they are sent directly from the online shop to the person you wish to give the gift to in Norway, the shipment will be Customs cleared as normal and the receiver will be charged import duties and taxes. The same applies if you order gifts from abroad and have them sent to yourself. Then you will be charged import duties and taxes.
If you receive a gift shipment containing gifts for several family members, you do not pay import duties or taxes provided the value of the gift to each individual family member is NOK 1 000 or less. This means that as an example, if your family consists of five members, a gift shipment may have a value of NOK 5 000 and you will not pay any import charges provided the gifts are marked to the different family members and the value of the gift to each individual is NOK 1 000 or less. The sender must clearly mark this both on the outside of the shipment and in the transport documents.
Gifts to be sent abroad
If you intend to send a gift to someone abroad, please be aware that different countries have different rules and regulations for gifts shipments. You should contact the Customs authorities in the country you intend to send the gift to for information about rules and regulations for receiving a gift shipment from Norway.
A gift shipment is a shipment from a private individual residing abroad to a private individual in Norway. The receiver in Norway shall not pay anything for the gift and it must be for the receiver’s private use. The shipment is free from duties and taxes provided the value is NOK 1 000 or less. However, there may be some restrictions or a ban on some types of goods being sent as gifts, and alcohol is exempt from free import as gift. You will find more information about this under the other Q & A further down.
All shipments from abroad is sent with a transport company. When the shipment arrives in Norway, it is registered into the transport company’s bonded warehouse and stored there. If the value is NOK 1 000 or less, it will be delivered to the receiver without any import charges.
If the value is more than NOK 1 000, the transport company will Customs clear it on behalf of the receiver. If necessary, the transport company will contact the receiver for more information / documentation. Therefore, it is important that the shipper clearly marks the shipment with content and the value so the shipment can be cleared quickly by the transport company.
When the transport company Customs clear the shipment, they pay the import duties and taxes up front on behalf of the receiver. After clearance, they deliver the shipment to the receiver and the receiver will be charged the import duties and taxes from the transport company. In addition, the transport company charge the receiver a handling fee. This fee has various names depending on which transport company being used. Examples are «Pris forenklet fortolling», «Fortollingsgebyr», «Ekspedisjonsgebyr», «Tollagerkostnad» and «Utleggsgebyr». If you have questions about this fee, you must contact the transport company.
The receiver in Norway must pay import duties and taxes of the entire value including the shipping costs.
You may send alcohol but be aware that alcohol is exempt from free import, even as a gift. If you send alcohol, the receiver must pay ordinary import duties and taxes regardless value of shipment. Read more about this here.
No, tobacco, cigarettes, snuff and other tobacco products cannot be sent as a gift due to strict regulations to health warning marking. All tobacco products must be marked with a Norwegian health warning according to Regulations on the contents and labelling of tobacco products. Read more about this here.
Yes, you can provided you send this from a country within EU / EEA. If you send this from a country outside EU / EEA, there may be restrictions, and we recommend that either you or the receiver check this with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority. You can read more about this here.
The receiver in Norway may receive these types of goods provided you send them from a country within EU / EEA. A private individual in Norway cannot receive meat / meat products, milk or dairy products from countries outside of EU / EEA without a special permit from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority. This applies regardless level of processing, also for tinned products. Read more here.
No, the receiver in Norway must pay ordinary import duties and taxes since the gift is not sent from a private individual residing abroad.
Yes, you may send gifts to several family members in one shipment. This will be free from import duties and taxes provided the value of the gift to each individual family member is NOK 1 000 or less.
When you send a shipment like this, it is important that you clearly mark the shipment on its outside and the transport documents that it contain gifts to several family members and that the value of the gift for each individual is NOK 1 000 or less.
Yes, your customers will be have to pay ordinary import duties and taxes even if you send this as a gift without any charges.
No, the Customs do not receive nor store shipments from abroad. If you are missing a shipment, you must always contact the transport company for information about it’s whereabouts.
Then you have to apply to us for reimbursement. Read more here.