Tax on shares can seem complicated, but the rules for individuals in Norway rest on a few principles. This guide goes through them one by one, with worked examples for 2025 and 2026.
Principle 1: tax is due when the gain is realised
You pay no tax because a share rises in value. Tax is triggered only when you sell, when the gain is realised. The same applies to losses: they become deductible only when you sell at a loss.
The gain is the sale price minus the cost price. Brokerage fees and other costs of buying and selling are deductible.
First in, first out
If you have bought shares in the same company several times at different prices, the first-in, first-out principle applies. When you sell, you are treated as selling the shares you bought first. This determines which cost price is used, and therefore the size of the gain or loss.
Principle 2: share income is adjusted upwards
For personal shareholders, gains and dividends are multiplied by an adjustment factor before being taxed at 22 per cent. For 2025 and 2026 the factor is 1.72.
| Rate | |
|---|---|
| Tax on ordinary income | 22% |
| Adjustment factor for share income | 1.72 |
| Effective tax rate on share income | 22% × 1.72 = 37.84% |
Losses are adjusted in the same way, so the deduction for a loss is also worth 37.84 per cent of the loss.
Principle 3: dividends are taxed when paid
Dividends are taxed in the year you receive them, at the same effective rate as gains. This also applies to shares in a share savings account.
Principle 4: the shielding deduction makes part of the return tax-free
The shielding deduction makes a return equal to a risk-free rate tax-free. The deduction is the cost price multiplied by the shielding rate, which was 3.6 per cent for the 2025 income year. It is used against dividends and gains on the same share, and unused deductions carry forward.
Worked examples
Sale at a gain
You bought shares for NOK 100,000 and sell them for NOK 150,000.
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Sale price | NOK 150,000 |
| Cost price | NOK 100,000 |
| Gain | NOK 50,000 |
| Tax (50,000 × 37.84%) | NOK 18,920 |
If you have unused shielding on the shares, it is deducted from the gain before tax, and the tax is lower.
Sale at a loss
You bought shares for NOK 100,000 and sell them for NOK 80,000. The NOK 20,000 loss gives a deduction that reduces your tax by 20,000 × 37.84% = NOK 7,568.
Dividends
You own shares with a cost price of NOK 100,000 and receive NOK 5,000 in dividends in 2025. The shielding deduction is 100,000 × 3.6% = NOK 3,600, so the taxable dividend is NOK 1,400. The tax is 1,400 × 37.84% = NOK 530.
Share savings account and ordinary share account
| Share savings account (ASK) | Ordinary share account | |
|---|---|---|
| Gain on sale | Tax-free while the money stays in the account | Taxed the same year |
| Withdrawals | Tax-free up to your deposits, then taxable | Not applicable |
| Dividends | Taxed as paid | Taxed as paid |
| Losses | Deductible when the account is closed | Deductible the same year |
| What you can hold | Shares, equity certificates and equity funds in the EEA | All shares |
In an ASK you can therefore sell one share and buy another without tax. Tax applies only when you withdraw more than you have deposited, at the same effective rate of 37.84 per cent in 2025 and 2026.
Foreign shares
Gains and losses on foreign shares are taxed in Norway under the same rules. Dividends from foreign companies have often had withholding tax deducted in the company’s home country. Norway has tax treaties with many countries, and tax paid abroad can as a rule be credited against Norwegian tax, up to the Norwegian tax on that dividend. If more withholding tax was deducted than the treaty allows, you must reclaim the excess from the other country.
Wealth tax
Shares are part of your net wealth, and listed shares are valued at a discount for wealth tax. The size of the discount and the basic allowance are set in the national budget each year. The Norwegian Tax Administration has the current rates.
The tax return
For shares registered with the central securities depository and traded through Norwegian banks and brokers, sales, dividends and shielding are normally pre-filled in the tax return. You should still check that cost prices and holdings are correct, especially if you have moved shares, inherited shares or traded through a foreign broker.
Sources
- Norwegian Tax Administration: the shareholder model
- Norwegian Tax Administration: Skatte-ABC on the share savings account
- Nordnet: what is the adjustment factor
Next steps
- Read more about the shielding deduction
- Read more about the share savings account
- See how AksjeNet shows tax and accounting in your portfolio