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NORWAY EXPLAINED

What are the rules for taking annual leave in Norway?

If you've just started working in Norway or if you've been employed in the country for a while but need clarification on its annual leave rules, this is what you need to know.

Published: 15 May 2024 12:41 CEST
Updated: 31 May 2024 17:09 CEST
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If you're unfamiliar with how the rules governing annual leave work under Norwegian law, here's what you need to know. Photo by Wallace Fonseca on Unsplash

While annual leave isn’t among the top reasons people usually decide to move to Norway and work there, it is an important component of Norwegian work and social culture.

Compared to some other European countries, Norway has quite a generous annual leave policy, which ensures that workers have enough time to rest and recover from the stress of their jobs.

READ MORE: How to maximise Norway’s public holidays in 2024 – five essential tricks

The basic annual leave quota – and holiday pay

As an employee in Norway, you have both a right and a duty to take your annual holiday, and every employee in the country is entitled to at least 25 working days of annual leave each year.

This quota includes Saturdays as working days, which equates to approximately four weeks and one day of holiday per calendar year (Sundays and public holidays are not counted as working days).

When it comes to holiday pay, workers need to accumulate their holiday pay rights in their first year of employment.

Thus, as the amount of holiday pay you get is a collective monthly percentage of what you have made in the past year, you will not have earned holiday pay if you were not employed the previous year. 

However, you are still entitled to take leave days.

If you want to learn more about how holiday pay works in Norway, check out The Local’s explainer on the issue.

Collective agreements and additional holidays

While the minimum quota of 25 days of holidays is in place, employees can get even more holiday days than this legally required minimum.

Many workers in Norway are entitled to a five-week holiday through a collective agreement or separate agreements with their employer. This extra time off is often accompanied by an increased holiday pay rate.

Furthermore, if you’re nearing retirement, you’re in luck, as all employees aged 60 or over are entitled to an extra week of holidays.

Airport

You should discuss your holiday schedule with your employer well in advance – be sure to do so before booking a vacation outside of Norway. Photo by Hanna Kretsu on Unsplash

How to schedule and take leave in Norway

Per Norwegian laws, employers must ensure all employees take full annual leave.

It’s a good idea to have a chat with your boss about your holiday plans well in advance.

If you can’t agree on dates, your boss gets the final say on when you can take time off.

But don’t worry, in Norway, you’re guaranteed at least three weeks of continuous vacation time between June 1st and September 30th.

If you prefer, the rest of your holiday days can also be lumped together without any breaks.

Note that your boss can ask you to give them a heads-up about your vacation plans at least two months beforehand.

The relevant sections of the Norwegian Holiday Act, available here and here, provide more details on holiday scheduling and duration.

What you need to know about fellesferie 

The term fellesferie is used for the collective vacation period or general staff holiday period that many Norwegian companies stick to, typically occurring in July.

The concept of fellesferie is a tradition – companies aren’t legally obligated to adhere to it – but, in practice, you’ll find that may do. The Local has an entire article on how this tradition started and what makes it special.

How do holidays work if you’re ill – or on parental leave?

Of course, special situations and life events may also occur during or before your holidays.

If you fall ill before or during your leave, you may have a right to a new holiday – or to postpone your holiday.

Should you become sick before your holiday, you can ask your employer to postpone it until later in the holiday year.

You’ll need to get a medical certificate to prove that you’re ill and submit an official request for postponement by no later than the day before the holiday starts.

The right to defer or be granted a new holiday only applies to the statutory holiday period.

As an employee, you have the right, but not an obligation, to take statutory holidays during the period of leave when you receive parental benefit.

If you choose to defer it, the leave will be deferred by a period corresponding to your holiday.

Can I carry leave days forward – or take my leave in advance?

If you reach an agreement with your employer, you can also carry forward up to two weeks of the statutory holiday to the following year.

Similarly, you can also take up to two weeks of your holiday in advance.

However, make sure to check your employment contract (and collective agreement, if you fall under one), as the rules concerning the carrying forward of holiday and advance holiday may be set differently based on these contracts.

READ MORE: What is a Norwegian collective bargaining agreement?

If you have an agreement that allows you to have extra holiday days on top of the statutory holiday quota, you can also agree with your employer that these additional holidays can be carried forward to the following year.

If you’re changing jobs, know that if you do not take your holidays during the current year before your employment ceases and move to a new employer before September 30th of the same year, you will be entitled to take your remaining holiday with your new employer.

For more information on the specifics of the holiday rules in Norway, consult the Norwegian Holiday Act (available in English).

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For members

WORKING IN NORWAY

The key things you need to know about employment contracts in Norway

All employees in Norway must have a written employment contract, regardless of whether they are full-time or not. Here are a few key things to look out for with your contact.

Published: 1 July 2024 11:56 CEST
The key things you need to know about employment contracts in Norway

Along with relatively high wages compared to other countries and a healthy work-life balance, employee rights are one of the things that make a career in Norway attractive.

One thing that helps with employee rights is that every employee needs to be presented with a contract, and an employer can be punished with hefty fines for failing to do so.

Essentially, the contract secures both the employer and employee. Norway’s employment laws were changed in July 2024, meaning workers must receive a written employment agreement within one week of starting their job.

What information must be included in the contract has also been changed to try and provide employees with more security and rights and to ensure a more predictable working environment.

What should a Norwegian working contract contain

All work contracts must contain the name of the employee, employer, and workplace in addition to a description of the work they will be doing. If the worker will need to work at different locations or has the opportunity to be flexible with remote work, then this must be stated.

The contract should describe the worker’s role and working hours, outline breaks, and indicate whether the position is temporary or permanent.

Any probation period needs to be stated in the contract. Typically, probation is limited to six months.

Information on holidays, holiday pay, and the rules for taking a holiday should also be outlined.

Furthermore, the contract should include the salary, when wages will be paid, any other supplements, pension payments, or overtime, and the payment method.

Notice periods for termination should also be included, and the process by which the employer and employee can end the work agreement should be described.

If you are working for a staffing company, you must include the name of the staffing company and the company hiring from the agency.

There should also be a description of the right to skills development and training that the employee will have access to.

Other benefits will also need to be stated in the contract, and any information about how collective agreements affect the employment relationship will need to be outlined, which should include the names of the parties involved in the collective bargaining agreement.

The Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority’s website provides an overview of everything that should be included in a contract. It also has several example contracts available in different languages. However, at the time of writing, these example contracts are not 100 percent up to date with the new regulations, which came into effect on July 1st, 2024.

Signing the contract

When it comes to signing the contract, you will need to check the details between it and the job offer and make sure everything aligns.

Furthermore, new employees also have the right to ask a union rep or staff representative for help when drafting or amending a work contract.

The contract should be signed by both parties. The Labour Inspection Authority also recommends that both parties involved in the contract signing put their initials on each page to highlight that they agree to the content on each page.

What to look out for

You will need to brush up on some of the more important aspects of Norwegian working law.

This is because employers cannot opt out of the law with contract clauses. For example, if a worker decides to work in a sector where there is a minimum wage (such as hospitality), they must be paid this wage regardless of whether the worker has consented to less.

Another example would be the rules on notice periods, probation and overtime. Workers cannot waive their right to overtime unless the worker is considered exempt from the overtime rules.

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Furthermore, as six months is the legal limit for probation, it cannot be extended any longer unless you were signed off work sick for some of the period. You must always keep a copy of your contract handy and not lose it.

What to do if you are involved in a contract dispute

If you have a well-written contract, had it checked by a staff representative before signing, and have checked the terms and conditions against what the law says, you shouldn’t run into many problems.

Another insurance policy is to always keep a copy of your contract, as some rogue companies give one contract with illegal terms and conditions to workers who might not know better but a second legal contract to show the authorities in case of inspection.

READ ALSO: How foreign workers can be exploited in the Norwegian labour market

Still, if you do have issues, you can go down two avenues. The first is reporting any potential illegality of your work agreement to the Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority.

They will punish the employer if the contract or other working conditions are illegal.

They cannot, however, solve individual employer-employee disputes. For this, you would need to contact a lawyer or union representative.

Union members will benefit more as the union can approach the employer on their behalf and get access to free legal aid. If the situation escalates, it may need to go through the courts, which could be a very costly and time-consuming process.  

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