Hvorfor det lønner seg å kreve dine faktiske kostnader
Money you take as work is salary, so it is reduced by the administration fee, employer's tax (arbeidsgiveravgift) and income tax before it reaches you. Money that reimburses a real cost you paid to do the job is not salary, so it is not taxed.
The difference is large. Here is what you keep from 100 kr, depending on how it is claimed:
- Taken as work, extras or a bonus — you keep about 62 kr (after admin, employer's tax and income tax).
- Claimed as an expense (utlegg) — you keep about 95 kr (only the 4.9% admin fee applies).
- Mileage or diet within the tax-free rate — you also keep about 95 kr, paid out tax-free with only the same 4.9% admin fee.
So if you spent money doing the job — fuel, meals on a work trip, materials — claim it as mileage, diet or an expense rather than rolling it into your hourly work. It is your money; this is simply how you keep it.
Kjøregodtgjørelse
If you use your own car for an assignment, you can be reimbursed for the driving. Up to 3.50 kr per kilometre is tax-free (skattefri kjøregodtgjørelse). This covers fuel, wear and the running costs of the car.
To keep it tax-free you need a driving log (kjørebok) for each trip: the date, the purpose, the route, and the number of kilometres. If you are paid more than the tax-free rate per kilometre, the amount above 3.50 kr/km is added to your taxable salary — it is not lost, it is simply taxed like work.
Diett (per diem)
If a work trip keeps you away long enough, you can claim a diet allowance for meals. The tax-free day rates set by Skatteetaten are 200 kr for a trip of 6–12 hours and 400 kr for a trip over 12 hours. The trip must be a genuine work trip, more than 15 km from your usual workplace and lasting more than 6 hours.
If the trip involves an overnight stay, there are separate døgndiett rates depending on where you sleep, plus a night supplement for the accommodation itself — see the rate table below.
If meals are already covered — for example by the client or the venue — the tax-free amount is reduced: roughly 20% for breakfast, 30% for lunch and 50% for dinner. Anything paid above the tax-free rate is added to your taxable salary.
Utgifter / Regninger
Expenses are documented, out-of-pocket costs you paid to do the work: materials, tickets, tools, software. You are reimbursed against receipts, with no tax. An expense never enters the salary calculation — it is simply paid back to you, less the 4.9% administration fee.
That is why a 100 kr expense returns about 95 kr to you, while 100 kr taken as work returns about 62 kr. Keep your receipts: a reimbursement is only tax-free if it pays back a cost you can document.
Reglene som holder det skattefritt
These allowances are generous, and they stay tax-free as long as they are honest. A few principles:
- It must be a genuine, documented work cost — never income relabelled to dodge tax.
- Keep your receipts, and for mileage keep a log of date, purpose, route and distance.
- Amounts above the tax-free rate do not disappear — they move into your taxable salary.
- When in doubt, claim the real cost as an expense with a receipt rather than guessing at an allowance.
Payout Partner applies the right tax treatment to each line of your invoice and reports it correctly to the tax authorities, so you do not have to work out the splits yourself.
Skattefrie satsgrenser (2026)
These are the tax-free (trekkfrie) limits set by Skatteetaten for 2026. Rates are reviewed each year, so check the current satser if you are relying on an exact figure:
- Mileage, own car (incl. electric): tax-free up to 3.50 kr/km. Anything paid above that is taxed.
- Extra mileage supplements: 1 kr/km each for carrying a passenger, transporting equipment or materials, or driving on forest or construction roads.
- Diet — day trip, 6–12 hours: 200 kr (work trip more than 15 km away, lasting over 6 hours).
- Diet — day trip, over 12 hours: 400 kr.
- Diet — overnight (døgndiett): 693 kr with a hotel, 400 kr for a guesthouse without cooking facilities, 107 kr for private accommodation with cooking facilities.
- Night supplement (nattillegg), within Norway: 452 kr for a private overnight stay. Note: unlike the other allowances, if more than 452 kr is paid the entire supplement becomes taxable, not just the excess.
- Expenses / refunds (utlegg): the actual documented cost — no rate cap, as long as it is a genuine work expense with a receipt.