Advance tax deductions not paid – what now?

From 2026, advance tax deductions have to be paid directly to Skatteetaten by the first working day after the salary is paid. They carry stricter rules than most other running liabilities, and the money withheld must not be used as working capital. Pay the missing amount as soon as you can.

The rules changed in 2026

Up to 2025, tax withheld from salaries normally had to sit in a restricted tax withholding account and be paid on to Skatteetaten every two months. That arrangement has gone. From 1 January 2026 both the withholding account and the bank guarantee arrangement have been abolished. The employer instead pays the advance tax deduction (forskuddstrekk) directly to Skatteetaten after each salary payment. Skatteetaten explains the new payment rules for advance tax deductions.

There are two different mistakes here

You withheld the tax but did not pay it on. The salary was calculated with the deduction, the employee received net pay, but the business did not pay the withheld amount on by the deadline. This is serious – money withheld is not ordinary working capital. You paid salary without withholding the right amount. That is a different mistake. An employer has to calculate and withhold the advance deduction before the salary is paid. Where salary was paid without the correct deduction, the employer can become liable for the amount that should have been withheld.

Do not pay net salary if you cannot cover the deduction

This matters particularly where the company already has cash problems. Calculating the deduction in the payroll system is not enough if the business does not in reality have the money to pay it. Where the business only has funds for part of the agreed gross salary, the payment has to be handled in a way that also secures the correct advance deduction. If this is part of a wider cash problem, see Cannot pay tax and VAT – payment plan or bankruptcy?.

What should you do if the deadline has already passed?

Start by working out what amount should actually have been withheld and paid. Compare the payroll system, the bank payments, the tax card and what was actually reported in the a-melding. If the a-melding already shows the correct salary and the correct deduction, it should not be changed simply because the payment was late. In that case the problem is the payment. If the salary or the deduction itself was reported incorrectly, the a-melding has to be corrected through the right reporting channel. Then pay the outstanding deduction as quickly as possible, with the correct payment reference.

Interest and enforcement fines are two different things

If the advance deduction is paid after the deadline, late-payment interest runs from the day after the due date up to and including the day of payment. The rate changes over time and should always be checked against Skatteetaten's current rate in a specific case. Late payment and missing reporting have to be kept apart. If the a-melding was filed correctly, no enforcement fine arises for the a-melding simply because the deduction was paid late. A missing or incorrect a-melding can trigger its own consequences.

Can the business get a payment plan?

This is harder for advance tax deductions than for many other tax liabilities. Skatteetaten's ordinary criteria for a payment plan with a trading business assume, among other things, that advance deductions and attachment deductions have been paid. An unpaid advance deduction therefore does not normally fit the standard arrangement. Skatteetaten can consider solutions outside the standard criteria in individual cases, but a business should not plan its next payroll run on the assumption that such an arrangement will be granted.

Can the board or the general manager become personally liable?

Not automatically. In a limited company the company is normally the employer and the party liable to withhold. The company owing advance deductions therefore does not in itself mean each board member takes on the tax debt personally. Serious breaches of the withholding rules can still have personal consequences on other legal grounds. Where a question of personal or criminal liability arises, involve a lawyer. For a fuller explanation, see Directors' liability – when do you become personally liable for the company's debts?.

This is general guidance, not advice on your specific case. Deadlines, rates and amounts change – always check the current rules, or get in touch with us.

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