How Long Must Accounting Records Be Kept in Norway?
How Long Must Accounting Records Be Kept in Norway?
Hello, I've been running an ENK since 2022, I have invoices in emails, receipts in a box and some documents with my accountant, but I want to close the business at the end of 2026. Can I delete/throw all this away after closing the business? It's piled up a bit 😅
When running a business in Norway, you need to maintain your own accounting archive. This applies to both ENK (sole proprietorships) and AS (limited companies). The obligation may cover paper documents, electronic files and data stored in a system.
In this article, we explain which documents must be retained, how to calculate the retention period, and what the business owner, accounting firm and software provider are responsible for.
Who the obligation applies to and the basic deadlines
The obligation to retain documentation follows from the Norwegian Bookkeeping Act. It applies primarily to:
- AS companies and other entities that prepare financial statements,
- owners of ENK businesses who report income from business activities,
- companies required to submit MVA returns (Norwegian VAT),
- employers maintaining payroll and tax withholding records.
The most important retention periods are 5 years and 3 years and 6 months.
| Type of documentation | Examples | Retention period |
|---|---|---|
| Primary documentation | Sales and purchase invoices, bank and cash documents, payroll lists, payment documentation, accounting reports, account, customer and supplier statements, balance documentation, tax returns and mandatory reports | 5 years after the end of the financial year |
| Supplementary documentation | Material contracts, orders, shipping documents, supplementary business correspondence, required price lists | 3 years and 6 months after the end of the financial year |
| Staff registers in industries subject to this requirement | Staff registers and related code lists, including in restaurants, hairdressing, beauty services and car care | 3 years and 6 months after the end of the financial year |
| Employer payroll documentation | Payroll lists, payments, tax withholdings, allowances, travel and expense reimbursements | Generally 5 years after the end of the year |
If supplementary documentation is needed to understand an accounting entry, it becomes part of the primary documentation. For example, an invoice with the description "sale according to contract" requires that contract to be retained for 5 years, because without it, it is impossible to determine what the transaction concerned.
Do you issue invoices yourself? We discuss the rules for preparing them in the article How to issue an invoice in Norway and what must it include?, and for invoicing we recommend e-faktury.no.
How to calculate the deadline and when a longer period applies
The deadline is not calculated from the date an individual invoice was issued. The period starts after the end of the financial year to which the document relates.
For a company with a financial year matching the calendar year, the deadlines are as follows:
| Documentation from 2026 | Retention period | Earliest end of the period |
|---|---|---|
| Primary documentation | 5 years | 31 December 2031 |
| Supplementary documentation | 3 years and 6 months | 30 June 2030 |
| Documentation subject to a 10-year period | 10 years | 31 December 2036 |
If the company has a different financial year, the deadline must be calculated from the end date of that year.
Construction and installation documentation
In the construction, installation and shipbuilding industries, project accounting documentation must be retained for 10 years. This includes, among other things:
- project accounts and the documents posted in them,
- offers and cost estimates,
- drawings,
- contracts with subcontractors,
- timesheets,
- order lists.
In 2026, the obligation to maintain separate project accounts applies to projects where the quoted price or estimated sales value exceeds 5G, or NOK 682,745 excluding MVA. This amount is based on the G applicable from 1 May 2026, which is NOK 136,549. G is updated every year, so the threshold should be checked before starting a larger project. We discuss the other obligations in this industry in the article What are my obligations as a construction company in Norway?
Property investments
Documentation relating to the construction, expansion or refurbishment of property must be retained for 10 years after the end of the financial year if the MVA charged on the investment is at least NOK 100,000 and the investment is subject to MVA adjustment rules.
Special retention periods also apply in selected financial and petroleum industries, and to temporary activities of foreign businesses in Norway. Before destroying industry-specific documents, you should therefore check whether they are subject to a 10- or 15-year deadline.
In what form documents must be retained
Documents can be retained on paper or electronically. Throughout the required period, they must be:
- legible and complete,
- organised in a way that makes it possible to find a specific transaction,
- protected against loss, destruction and unauthorised changes,
- printable,
- available during an inspection together with data that makes it possible to trace the bookkeeping.
A paper document can be scanned and then destroyed if the scan is complete, legible and covered by a backup. Exceptions may apply to documents for which special rules require the paper original to be retained temporarily, such as certain timesheets in construction.
A backup is mandatory
Electronic accounting documentation requires a separate backup. The frequency of backups must be adjusted to the number of transactions and the nature of the business, and the ability to restore the backup must be tested at least once a year.
The company should have a list specifying:
- which data is backed up,
- how often backups are performed,
- where the original is located,
- where the backup is stored.
This list must also be retained for 5 years after the end of the financial year.
Data that was originally available electronically must remain available in that format for 3 years and 6 months after the end of the financial year. This does not shorten the five-year deadline for invoices and primary data. It only means that for the first 3.5 years, the system must allow electronic access, inspection and export.
From 1 January 2027, an electronic invoice must also be retained in its original structured format. If the original is a file intended for automated processing, a PDF alone or a printout may not be sufficient.
Where can the archive be located?
Paper documentation must generally be retained in Norway. Electronic data may be located in another EEA country, the United Kingdom or Switzerland if the company notifies Skatteetaten in writing of:
- the type of documents retained,
- where they are retained,
- how access for Norwegian authorities is ensured.
Documents must be immediately available, legible and printable in Norway. Storage outside this area requires individual approval from Skatteetaten. When using cloud services, you should check the actual location of the servers and backup, not only the provider's registered office address.
Responsibility of the business owner, accounting firm and software
The business owner is ultimately responsible for retaining the documentation. Outsourcing accounting or archiving to an external party does not transfer the legal responsibility.
| Party | Scope of duties and responsibility |
|---|---|
| Business owner | Must provide complete documentation, monitor retention periods, ensure access to the archive and arrange for its transfer after ending cooperation with the provider |
| Accounting firm (e.g. Efirma Regnskap AS) | Maintains and organises the accounting records in accordance with the agreement, protects the data it handles, and enables their transfer or export. Efirma Regnskap AS is prepared to meet these requirements |
| Accounting software (e.g. Efirma.no) | Should provide a clear archive, appropriate safeguards, backups, access to data and export capabilities. Efirma.no meets these requirements and allows documentation to be retained in an organised form |
When changing your accounting firm (e.g. Efirma Regnskap AS) or accounting software (e.g. Efirma.no), download a complete archive of documents, reports, accounting data, and account, customer and supplier specifications. A PDF file with an annual statement alone will usually not allow the full history of bookkeeping entries to be recreated.
Altinn and Skatteetaten systems are not a company archive. Submitting a return or report does not replace your own copy of the document or a backup.
Closing an ENK or winding up an AS also does not shorten the deadlines. After an ENK is closed, the owner remains responsible for the archive. When an AS is wound up, securing the documentation is the responsibility of the liquidation board. If you are considering ending a company's operations, we discuss winding up an AS company separately.
In connection with an inspection, Skatteetaten may order primary documentation to be retained for longer than 5 years. For failure to comply with a bookkeeping order in 2026, a penalty of NOK 1,345 for each day may be imposed, up to a maximum of NOK 1,000,000.
FAQ - frequently asked questions
Summary
- Invoices, bank documents, payroll documents and core accounting data should generally be retained for 5 years after the end of the financial year.
- Contracts, orders and other supplementary documentation should usually be retained for 3 years and 6 months, unless they are needed to understand the bookkeeping entry.
- Construction documentation, selected property investments and other special documents may be subject to a 10- or 15-year retention period.
- Using an accountant or a system does not release the business owner from responsibility for the availability of the archive and backup.
If you need help retaining accounting documents, call us: +47 21 38 38 21. We will help you organise your company's accounting records in Norway.
Article author: Marcin - marcin@efirma.no