Your car to Norway: the engangsavgift, and why old is gold
No relocation exemption: whoever brings their car pays the engangsavgift (weight plus CO₂) and 25% VAT. But the age deduction pushes the bill down considerably, the NOx component has been abolished from 2026, and the Dutch BPM refund stands against it — so an old car often does win the sum and a young one doesn't. Plus: the thirty days, and what electric still yields.
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Written and checked by Auke on , against the sources at the bottom. Is something no longer right? Report it below and I'll fix it.
Yes, your car may come to Norway, but you pay tax on it. There is no relocation exemption for it: customs treats the car like any other import.
You pay three things:
- the engangsavgift, the one-off registration tax;
- 25 per cent VAT;
- a fixed vrakpant (scrap deposit) of NOK 2,400.
What makes the sum bearable is the age deduction. The older the car, the larger the share of the engangsavgift that falls away. Hence this article's rule of thumb: an old, written-off car often wins the sum, a young petrol or diesel car rarely.
The clock is short. After customs clearance you drive at most thirty days more on Dutch plates.
What does the bill consist of?
Besides the engangsavgift, Skatteetaten (the Norwegian Tax Administration) names three levies on importing a car:
| Levy | On what | What Skatteetaten states |
|---|---|---|
| Engangsavgift, weight | the kerb weight above 500 kilos | NOK 12.71 per kilo |
| Engangsavgift, CO₂ | the emissions according to the vehicle register | rising with emissions; NEDC values are first multiplied by 1.24 |
| NOx | — | abolished from 1 January 2026 |
| VAT | the customs value: purchase price, freight and insurance up to the Norwegian border | 25 per cent |
| Vrakpant | fixed amount for cars, vans and motorhomes | NOK 2,400 |
| Greenhouse gas | the refrigerant in the air conditioning | depends on the gas, usually about one kilo |
Two details make a difference for Dutch cars.
The CO₂ component uses the value from the COC, your car's European certificate of conformity. Was your car still approved under the old NEDC test, or can the Norwegian roads authority only register "other" for a car first registered abroad before 1 September 2018? Then Skatteetaten first raises the emissions by 24 per cent before calculating.
The VAT is on the customs value. If you did not buy the car recently, you may bring an up-to-date valuation from the Netherlands.
How does the age deduction work?
The bruksfradrag lowers the engangsavgift according to the car's age, counted from its first registration abroad to its first registration in Norway. The percentage rises in fixed steps until the car is twenty years old. That is why a solid eight-year-old family car often gets off lightly and a two-year-old car does not.
There is also an alternative calculation, based on the price and mileage of your car rather than its age alone. It can be more favourable for a car with a lot of kilometres, but Skatteetaten warns that it requires a lot of information and gives no advance advice. Whoever chooses it is bound by it. You first pay the ordinary calculation and then apply for the alternative one, within fifteen working days of registration.
Calculate both with Skatteetaten's official calculator: registration and details in, amount out. Do that before you leave, not at the border.
Which clocks are running?
Thirty days is the whole margin. After clearance at the customs office you may drive at most thirty more days on your Dutch plates, and only with a valid registration certificate and valid insurance. If either is missing, the car can only run on temporary Norwegian plates. So plan the inspection at Statens vegvesen in the first week, not the fourth.
The order in Norway is fixed:
- At the border you declare the car in the red zone, the lane for goods to declare.
- Customs issues a transit document for the drive to your own customs office.
- You usually call there within one to three days, with the purchase invoice or valuation, the Dutch registration certificate and the COC.
- Then comes the inspection at a trafikkstasjon, an inspection station of Statens vegvesen (the Norwegian roads authority).
- You pay the engangsavgift and the vrakpant electronically.
- Statens vegvesen registers the car.
You then get a temporary registration certificate. The final one arrives by post in two parts. You may not cross the border with the temporary one.
On the Dutch side the second clock runs. The Belastingdienst refunds part of the BPM if three conditions are met:
- the car got a Dutch registration on or after 16 October 2006;
- it has the status "Export" at the RDW;
- documents show it was registered in Norway within thirteen weeks of that status.
Norway is named explicitly there. For a car a few years old, that is an item that can tip the sum.
What does electric still yield?
An electric car pays only the weight component of the engangsavgift, not the CO₂ component. For anyone who already drives electric, bringing the car is therefore often the right sum, especially with a car that is not too heavy. Let the calculator work out the VAT too; that shows what remains for your car.
The decision rule in one sentence
Old and written off: bring it, collect the refund, done. Young and emitting: calculate first, because selling in the Netherlands will very likely win. Electric: calculate, and usually bring it. What the border does with the rest of your removal van is in the Norwegian border.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 3 of 5 of the journey: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Norway.
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- Skatteetaten — what the engangsavgift is, with the weight component of NOK 12.71 per kilo — skatteetaten.no
- Skatteetaten — the age deduction (bruksfradrag) and the alternative calculation — skatteetaten.no
- Skatteetaten — VAT on the customs value, scrap deposit and greenhouse gas tax — skatteetaten.no
- Skatteetaten — the import steps, from the red zone to Norwegian plates — skatteetaten.no
- Skatteetaten — the official calculator — skatteetaten.no
- Belastingdienst — BPM refund on export — belastingdienst.nl
- Tolletaten — cars and other motor vehicles are not exempt removal goods — toll.no
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