Norwegian law library: acts, supervision and standards

Acts

21

Areas

5

Questions and answers

30

Standards in the register

18

Read date

2026-09-09

Version

no-register-v1.1.0

• Municipal and administrative law5

  The rules that govern municipalities, case handling, public access, archives and land use. These are the acts a business meets the moment it becomes a party before a public body or builds something.

• Health and medical law4

  The duties of health personnel and health service providers: sound practice, confidentiality, patient records and public health work.

• Finance and anti-money laundering4

  Authorisation, customer due diligence, payment systems and securities trading. These acts largely implement EU legislation through the EEA Agreement.

• SME, employment and contracts6

  What small and medium-sized businesses meet every week: hiring and dismissal, holiday, contracts, consumer sales, complaints and dispute bodies.

• Data protection and trust services2

  The Personal Data Act implements the GDPR in Norwegian law, and the Act on electronic trust services makes the eIDAS Regulation Norwegian law.

• Local Government Act

  LOV-2018-06-22-83In force: 2019-11-01Sivilombudet

  The Act governs how municipalities and county authorities are organised, their elected bodies, meeting procedure, financial management, internal control and state supervision. It determines who may take a decision in a municipality and how that decision is made.

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• Public Administration Act

  LOV-1967-02-10In force: 1970-01-01Sivilombudet

  The Act applies to the activities of administrative bodies and sets the rules on impartiality, the duty to provide guidance, advance notice, party access, reasons, appeal and reversal. It is the general procedural act of Norwegian public administration.

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• Freedom of Information Act

  LOV-2006-05-19-16In force: 2009-01-01Sivilombudet

  The Act gives a right of access to case documents, journals and similar registers held by the administration, and states when access may be refused. It also applies to independent legal entities where the state or a municipality has controlling influence.

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• Archives Act (Act on documentation and archives)

  LOV-2025-06-20-96In force: 2026-01-01Arkivverket

  The Act requires public bodies to document their activities and to keep archives ordered and properly stored, and regulates disposal, transfer to the National Archives and the preservation of private archives of particular value. It replaced the Archives Act of 4 December 1992 no. 126, repealed on 1 January 2026.

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• Planning and Building Act

  LOV-2008-06-27-71In force: 2009-07-01Direktoratet for byggkvalitet

  The Act governs land-use planning at national, regional and municipal level, and its building part sets the requirements for applications, responsibility, control, completion certificates and supervision. It determines both what may be built where and who answers for the works.

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• Health Personnel Act

  LOV-1999-07-02-64In force: 2001-01-01Statens helsetilsyn

  The Act sets the duties of the individual health worker: sound professional practice, confidentiality, documentation, disclosure duties and the rules on authorisation, licence and revocation. The duties follow the person, not only the organisation.

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• Patient Records Act

  LOV-2014-06-20-42In force: 2015-01-01Statens helsetilsyn

  The Act regulates the processing of health information in patient records: who may be given access, cooperation between providers, information security and the patient's right of access and blocking. It applies alongside the Personal Data Act.

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• Specialised Health Services Act

  LOV-1999-07-02-61In force: 2001-01-01Statens helsetilsyn

  The Act regulates the duty of the regional health authorities to provide services, the hospitals' duties to deliver sound care, guidance, teaching and research, and the approval of providers.

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• Public Health Act

  LOV-2011-06-24-29In force: 2012-01-01Folkehelseinstituttet

  The Act places responsibility for public health work on the municipality, the county authority and the state, and gives the municipality powers over environmental health protection, health status overviews and measures against harmful conditions.

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• Financial Institutions Act

  LOV-2015-04-10-17In force: 2016-01-01Finanstilsynet

  The Act regulates authorisation, ownership control, organisation, capital requirements, conduct of business and crisis management for banks, credit institutions, finance companies, insurers and pension undertakings.

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• Anti-Money Laundering Act

  LOV-2018-06-01-23In force: 2018-10-15Finanstilsynet

  The Act requires obliged entities to carry out risk assessments, keep procedures, apply customer due diligence, monitor relationships, investigate and report to Økokrim, and retain records. The duties also apply outside the financial sector, including to accountants, auditors, lawyers and estate agents.

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• Payment Systems Act

  LOV-1999-12-17-95In force: 2000-04-14Norges Bank

  The Act regulates interbank systems and payment service systems, authorisation from Norges Bank, and the legal protection of netting and settlement where a participant becomes insolvent.

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• Securities Trading Act

  LOV-2007-06-29-75In force: 2007-11-01Finanstilsynet

  The Act regulates investment services, the organisation and conduct of investment firms, market abuse and inside information, prospectus duties, continuing disclosure for listed companies and the duty to flag holdings.

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• Working Environment Act

  LOV-2005-06-17-62In force: 2006-01-01Arbeidstilsynet

  The Act sets the requirements for the working environment, working hours, hiring, temporary employment, hired labour, safety representatives and working environment committees, and the rules on protection against dismissal. It is the central act for every Norwegian employer.

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• Working Environment Act chapter 15, dismissal and notice

  LOV-2005-06-17-62 kap. 15In force: 2006-01-01Arbeidstilsynet

  The chapter sets the requirements for a discussion meeting before the decision, objective grounds, the formal requirements of the notice, notice periods, the right to remain in post and the deadlines for negotiation and legal action. Formal defects and a missing discussion meeting are the most common reasons a dismissal is set aside.

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• Holidays Act

  LOV-1988-04-29-21In force: 1990-01-01Arbeidstilsynet

  The Act gives both a right and a duty to take holiday, and regulates holiday pay, the qualifying year and holiday year, consultation and setting of holiday dates, carry-over of holiday and settlement when employment ends.

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• Contracts Act

  LOV-1918-05-31-4In force: 1918-07-03Forbrukertilsynet

  The Act regulates how contracts become binding through offer and acceptance, agency, and invalidity in cases of duress, fraud, unreasonableness and failed assumptions. Section 36 is the general basis for setting aside unreasonable contract terms.

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• Consumer Purchases Act

  LOV-2002-06-21-34In force: 2002-07-01Forbrukertilsynet

  The Act applies to sales of goods to consumers and regulates defects, complaint deadlines, repair, replacement, price reduction, cancellation and damages. The complaint deadline is two years, and five years for goods intended to last significantly longer.

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• Consumer Complaints Act

  LOV-2020-06-23-98In force: 2021-01-01Forbrukerklageutvalget

  The Act regulates the handling of consumer disputes before the Consumer Authority and the Consumer Disputes Commission: which cases may be brought, mediation before the Consumer Authority, decisions by the Commission, and the effect of a decision that is not taken to court. It replaced the Consumer Complaints Act of 17 February 2017 no. 7.

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• Personal Data Act

  LOV-2018-06-15-38In force: 2018-07-20Datatilsynet

  The Act makes the General Data Protection Regulation Norwegian law and fills in the national choices: processing in the employment relationship, camera surveillance, the age of consent, freedom of expression and research, and the powers of the Data Protection Authority and the Privacy Appeals Board.

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• Act on electronic trust services

  LOV-2018-06-15-44In force: 2018-06-15Nasjonal kommunikasjonsmyndighet

  The Act makes the eIDAS Regulation Norwegian law and regulates electronic signatures, seals, time stamps, registered electronic delivery and website authentication, together with supervision of qualified trust service providers.

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• How long is the notice period for an employee in Norway?
• When is a dismissal objectively justified?
• Must the employer hold a discussion meeting before dismissal?
• What formal requirements apply to a dismissal from the employer?
• How much holiday pay is an employee entitled to?
• May the employer decide when holiday is taken?

All questions

Standards are not statute. They are purchased documents from Standard Norge that parties agree to, or that regulations refer to. We carry the designation, edition and scope, never the text.

All standards18

• What is a Norwegian act, and what does the LOV number mean?

  A Norwegian act is passed by the Storting and published with a LOV number in the form LOV-year-month-day-no. The number is the act's permanent address, and each of the 21 acts here carries it together with a link to the official text on Lovdata.

• Where do I find the official text of a Norwegian act?

  The official and legally binding text is on Lovdata. We do not reproduce statutory text. We keep register data such as the LOV number, ministry, supervisory body and entry into force, and link on to Lovdata for the text itself.

• Which Norwegian acts does the library cover?

  The library covers 21 central Norwegian acts across employment, company law, data protection, public administration and construction, with 30 questions and answers tying each act to a practical situation.

• How often is the register checked?

  The register is checked against Lovdata and Standard Norge in fixed rounds, most recently on 2026-09-09. The read date and register version are shown on the page, so you can see how fresh the basis is before you rely on it.

• Who supervises Norwegian law?

  Supervision follows the legal area: the Labour Inspection Authority for the working environment, the Data Protection Authority for privacy, Finanstilsynet for finance and the Building Authority for construction. Every act shows its ministry and supervisory body.

• Can I use the register machine to machine?

  Yes. The Norwegian layer is available through the Nordic Law API with the same register data and the same official links, so your own system can read acts and standards directly instead of scraping the pages.