New version of SAF-T will be introduced from January 1st, 2025.

SAF-T version 1.3 will be introduced from January 1st, 2025 and must be used when sending accounting data for accounting periods from this date. Unlike previous versions of SAF-T Financial version 1.3 will not be backward compatible, and it will therefore be mandatory to have the new version available by the end of the first accounting period in 2025 (for most, this will be within the deadline for the first VAT period). For accounting periods before 2025, it will still be possible to submit SAF-T according to the format requirements of previous versions (i.e. version 1.2, 1.1, or 1.0), in addition to version 1.3.

The transition to version 1.3 involves technical and structural changes that tightens the requirements of the standard format. This includes, among other a new balance account structure for customers and suppliers, a new way of presenting VAT and analysis dimensions in transactions, changing some voluntary elements to mandatory, introduction of three new fields, and several technical changes regarding data types and number of characters for several elements.

There has also been a change in the requirements for mapping the company’s own accounts to the standard chart of accounts. In previous versions, each company could choose between mapping its own accounts to the Norwegian standard chart of accounts or the chart of accounts in the Income statement, while in version 1.3, the company’s accounts must be linked to the new Business Specification (i.e. the chart of accounts also used in the Tax Return).

The purpose of the changes is, among other things, to facilitate better analysis and reconciliations, simplified transfer between systems, and generally a more user-friendly standard format for processing accounting data.

What companies need to do:

In the coming period, it is important that all companies stay informed about updates from their system vendors and ERP systems. As mentioned above, it will also be necessary to map the accounts to the new Business specification. Deloitte can assist you with this mapping if needed. Finally, we recommend that all our clients test the new SAF-T functionality when it is available. Deloitte can provide support with such testing, and we can also allow our customers access to our analysis tool to analyze the SAF-T file themselves if preferred. Deloitte can also support with a SAF-T 1.3 Readiness workshop. In such workshop we will go through the changes, analyses the impact for you, and propose actions.