Working Hours and Overtime in Norway

In Norway, your company must comply with working hour and overtime laws – including daily limits, overtime thresholds, and rest requirements – to stay compliant and build a strong employee experience.

As an employer, you are responsible for planning and recording working time so that employees do not exceed statutory limits, receive correct overtime compensation, and benefit from the required daily and weekly rest. You should regularly review work schedules, collective agreements, and internal policies to ensure they align with the Working Environment Act and any sector-specific rules. By 2026, regulators are expected to continue focusing on digital timekeeping, protection against excessive working hours, and enforcement of rest and night work rules, so robust documentation and transparent practices will be increasingly important.

• Standard Working Hours
• Overtime Thresholds
• Overtime Pay Rates
• Daily And Weekly Rest Requirements
• Night Work Restrictions
• Penalties For Non-Compliance

What Are The Standard Working Hours In Norway?

An employee whose age is 18 or younger has a maximum of 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week. An employee whose age is 18 or older is allowed to work 40 hours per week. A minimum meal interval of 30 minutes must be observed by employees who work more than 5.5 hours in a day. In typical working hours, Monday through Friday, the hours are 08:00 to 16:00.

Maximum Working Hours In Norway

Under the Norwegian Working Environment Act, the general limit for normal working hours is 9 hours per 24-hour period and 40 hours per 7-day week. Many collective agreements reduce the weekly limit to 37.5 hours, which in practice functions as the full-time norm in a large part of the labor market. As an employer, you must ensure that work schedules are planned so that employees do not exceed these statutory limits unless overtime rules are correctly applied and documented.

For shift work, night work, or work that is particularly strenuous or hazardous, the statutory weekly limit can be lower, typically 38 or 36 hours per week depending on the pattern and risk level. You must check any applicable collective bargaining agreement, as it may further reduce daily or weekly limits and introduce additional protections for employees working irregular or demanding schedules.

Industry-Specific Exceptions

• Health And Care Services
• Transport And Logistics Operations
• Offshore Petroleum And Maritime Work
• Hotels, Restaurants, And Tourism
• Retail And Seasonal Sales Campaigns
• Emergency, Security, And On-Call Services

Managerial And Exempt Employees

The Working Environment Act allows certain employees in leading or particularly independent positions to be exempt from the standard rules on working hours and overtime. These are typically senior managers or specialists who control their own working time and whose duties cannot be meaningfully measured against fixed daily or weekly limits. However, you cannot classify employees as exempt solely to avoid overtime obligations – the role, level of autonomy, and decision-making authority must genuinely meet the statutory criteria.

Even for exempt employees, you retain a duty to safeguard health, safety, and a reasonable work–life balance. Excessive workloads, constant availability, or extended working hours over time can still breach your general duty of care, even if the employee is formally outside the ordinary working-time provisions. It is good practice to document the basis for any exemption and to review it periodically.

Statutory Full-Time Working Hours In Norway

In Norway, statutory full-time work is generally understood as 40 hours per week under the Working Environment Act, although many sectors operate with a 37.5-hour week through collective agreements. Full-time is usually organized as 5 days per week, Monday through Friday, with 7.5–8 hours per day excluding unpaid meal breaks. Any work beyond the agreed normal hours is either treated as flexible working time within an approved scheme or as overtime, depending on how it is structured and recorded.

When drafting employment contracts, you should clearly state the agreed weekly working hours, the distribution of hours across the week, and whether a collective agreement or internal policy provides for shorter full-time hours. This clarity helps you determine when overtime is triggered, how to calculate overtime pay, and how to manage part-time employees who temporarily increase their hours.

Overtime Regulations In Norway

What Counts As Overtime In Norway?

Overtime in Norway is generally any work performed in excess of the statutory normal working hours – 9 hours in a 24-hour period or 40 hours in a 7-day period – or beyond the lower limits set by a collective agreement or individual contract. If you have agreed to a 37.5-hour week, hours above that threshold will usually be treated as overtime or additional hours, depending on the arrangement and whether the employee is part-time or full-time.

Overtime must be exceptional and linked to a specific and time-limited need, such as unexpected workload peaks, staff shortages, or urgent operational requirements. You must normally obtain the employee’s consent and ensure that overtime is recorded accurately. Systematic or permanent reliance on overtime can be considered a breach of the Working Environment Act and may indicate that staffing levels are inadequate.

Maximum Overtime In Norway

The Working Environment Act sets strict caps on overtime to protect employee health and safety. As a rule, you may not require more than 10 hours of overtime in any 7-day period, 25 hours over 4 consecutive weeks, or 200 hours in a 52-week period per employee. These limits include all overtime worked across different departments or locations within your undertaking.

In certain circumstances, and often with the involvement of employee representatives or the Labour Inspection Authority, extended overtime limits can be agreed. For example, by written agreement with employee representatives, the annual cap can be increased, subject to an absolute upper ceiling set by law. Even when extended limits are used, you must monitor total working time so that the combination of normal hours and overtime does not become excessive and that daily and weekly rest periods are respected.

Overtime Payout Rates In Norway

Norwegian law requires that overtime be compensated with a pay supplement of at least 40 percent on top of the employee’s ordinary hourly wage. Many collective agreements provide higher supplements, especially for night work, weekend work, or work on public holidays. You must always apply the most favorable applicable rule – statutory minimum or collective agreement – when calculating overtime pay.

Overtime compensation can be provided as a combination of pay and time off in lieu, but the total value must at least match what the employee would have received in cash. Any time-off arrangements should be agreed in writing, scheduled within a reasonable period, and documented in your timekeeping system. For employees who receive a fixed salary that is intended to include a certain amount of overtime, the contract must clearly specify what portion of the salary covers overtime and how additional overtime will be handled to avoid underpayment claims.

Rest Periods And Breaks In Norway

Employees in Norway typically work up to 9 hours per day and 40 hours per week under the Working Environment Act, with many workplaces applying a 37.5-hour week through collective agreements. Within these limits, you must organize work so that employees receive adequate rest periods and breaks – including meal breaks during the working day, daily rest between shifts, and weekly rest days – to protect health, safety, and productivity.

• Meal Break Requirements
• Daily Rest
• Weekly Rest
• Minors
• Employer Duties