Proposed changes to the Norwegian tonnage tax regime

The Norwegian tonnage tax regime is considered highly favorable and competitive compared to many other regimes, including those found in Europe. As mentioned in an earlier article, the Norwegian tonnage tax regime has been approved by the EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) for a new 10-year period until 31 December 2027.

On 22 June 2018, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) presented a bill to the Norwegian Parliament proposing amendments to the Norwegian tonnage tax regime. The proposal is in line with the rules that were approved by the ESA. The proposed rules are expected to be implemented in the Norwegian Tax Act once they are passed by the Norwegian Parliament.

We do not expect any material changes to be made to the rules by the Norwegian Parliament due to the pre-approval of the rules by the ESA. However, the proposal contains some clarifications which will be outlined in further detail in this article.