Taxpayers in Norway have until May 2nd to check their tax notice, rectify any potential mistake in it, and submit it.

While most people make sure to take a close look at their tax returns, some don’t bother to do this until the very last moment, and just submit the first pre-filled version they get from the tax authorities.

As of April 25th, 2023, up to 1.4 million people in Norway haven’t opened their tax return notices, according to the Taxpayers’ Association.

• READ MORE: Tax returns in Norway: Five things you need to know

If you fall into this category, know that you might be leaving money on the table, as – for example – adding additional deductions to your tax return can help you get back the money that the Norwegian state owes you.

Step 1: Take the time to inspect the tax return notice thoroughly

The tax return notice you got from the Norwegian Tax Administration isn’t the complete and final version – you need to thoroughly analyse it, change any potential errors, and add any missing information before you submit it.

Regardless of whether you’ll get a return or need to pay extra tax, you need to set aside an hour or two to go through everything.

Don’t make the mistake of blindly submitting the pre-filled form. It’s your personal responsibility to ensure that all the included information is correct and complete.

The deadline for submitting the tax return is May 2nd – if you can, try to go through the document as soon as possible. Last year, as many as 500,000 taxpayers had not opened their tax returns until two days before the deadline.

That means that if you wait until the last moment, you’ll have a harder time reaching the Tax Administration in case of any questions or doubts.

Step 2: Change outdated and incorrect information, add missing information

Read through all the sections of the pre-filled tax return form, and make sure to update or change information if necessary.

Also, this is the time to add any missing information – especially when it comes to your income, as the Tax Administration might not have the latest data on your finances.

Once you’re done inspecting all the elements of the form, it’s time to focus on one of the more important tax return aspects for most consumers, deductions.

Step 3: Can you claim tax deductions?

Now is the time to check whether you can add tax deductions to your tax return.

The Norwegian Tax Administration has a handy tax deduction wizard that you can use to figure out whether you can claim any additional deductions based on your health and family, work and education, housing and property, loans, donations, and other factors. You can find it here.

It’s not uncommon to find an additional couple thousand kroner you can get back from the state in deductions – just make sure to follow the rules.

As the travel deduction rules in Norway have changed this year, double-check whether you can claim travel expenses in your tax return.

Travel is especially important as the Tax Administration has no overview of how many days you worked from a home office, so you need to add the relevant number of days and kilometres travelled in 2022 yourself.

Step 4: Contact the Tax Administration if you have any concerns or dilemmas

Once you’ve done everything you can, it’s usually smart to contact the Tax Administration and clear up any potential concerns that you might have.

It never hurts to get expert advice from the authorities. Remember, they’re here to help you; their job is to make the process as smooth as possible.

If you go through your tax return as soon as you get it, you’ll likely have no problem reaching someone to help you at the Tax Administration’s support centre in case of any dilemmas. Just don’t wait until May 2nd to call them – they’ll likely be swamped!

Bonus tip: If you realise that you missed out on some deductions in a previous year, you might still be able to claim them. Remember that you can make changes up to three years in the past. Major life events usually have financial repercussions, so if you changed jobs, bought a house, lost a spouse, have children who started going to kindergarten, or similar, you might need to add new information to the tax return document.

Step 5: If you need to pay additional taxes, do so within the set deadline

If you’re not getting a return but instead need to pay additional taxes, make sure to do so within the stated deadline (May 31st).

Should you fail to do so, you will have to pay interest on the tax you owe the state.

Note: It’s easy to make a mistake while filling out the tax return form, especially when you need to add information yourself (for example, quantifying some investments – such as crypto – can pose a challenge).

The Tax Administration has created multiple guides on its website to help taxpayers with questions and issues that are often brought up as complicated or demanding. You can find them here.

If you submit your tax return early on and are entitled to a return, you might get the money paid back already in April. However, this only applies to electronic submissions – the paper ones take a bit longer to process. However, most people can expect to get their payment by the end of June.

Furthermore, if you realise that you don’t have enough time to submit your tax return by May 2nd, contact the Tax Administration and apply for a postponement. The vast majority of people who do so get an automatic postponement of 30 days.