Holiday and Holiday Allowance in Norway - All an Employer needs to know.

Basic Rules for Holidays in Norway

• Holiday entitlement: Every employee is entitled to 25 working days of holiday per year. Working days are counted from Monday to Saturday, which equals four weeks and one day of holiday.
• Additional holiday: Employees over the age of 60 are entitled to an extra six days of holiday.
• Collective agreements: Employees covered by collective agreements may be entitled to an additional week of holiday, bringing the total to 30 working days.
• Main holiday period: Between June 1 and September 30, employees have the right to three consecutive weeks of holiday.
  
  

Holiday Allowance (Feriepenger)

• Accrual: Holiday allowance is accrued based on gross salary from the previous calendar year.
• Amount of allowance: Standard rate: 10.2% of gross salary
• Employees covered by collective agreements: 12%
• Employees over 60: additional 2.3%
• Payment: Holiday allowance must be paid no later than the last regular payday before the start of the holiday.
• Taxation: Although the allowance is taxable, it is common practice to increase tax withholding in other months so that the employee receives a higher net amount when the holiday allowance is paid.
  
  

Employer Obligations

Holiday planning: The employer is obliged to ensure that the employee can take their entitled holiday during the calendar year.
Informing employees: The holiday dates should be agreed upon with the employee well in advance.
Payment of allowance: The employer must pay the holiday allowance in accordance with the applicable rules and deadlines.
Documentation: The amount of holiday allowance and the number of holiday days should be clearly stated in the employment contract.

Special Cases

New employees: Those who start work after September 30 are entitled to six days of holiday in the same year.
Unused holiday: There is no monetary compensation for unused holiday days, unless the employment relationship is terminated.
Sickness during holiday: If an employee becomes ill during their holiday, they are entitled to postpone the holiday days, provided they present appropriate medical documentation.