Tax cards and withholding tax explained
Updated June 4, 2026
Your tax card tells your employer how much tax to deduct from your salary — this is called withholding tax (forskuddstrekk). The employer retrieves the card electronically from the Tax Administration before each payroll, withholds the tax and pays it to the state.
What is a tax card?
The tax card is the Tax Administration’s estimate of how much tax you should pay through the year, based on expected income and deductions. You can change the card yourself if your income changes.
Table, percentage and zero cards
- Table card – used by your main employer; the deduction follows a table that accounts for the tax-free amount and deductions
- Percentage card – a fixed percentage deduction, often for a secondary employer or variable income
- Frikort (zero card) – for those earning below the threshold; no tax is withheld
What is withholding tax?
Withholding tax is the amount the employer holds back from gross salary and pays to the Tax Administration on your behalf. It is placed in a separate tax-deduction account and paid bi-monthly, together with the employer’s contribution.
How the employer gets the tax card
Employers retrieve tax cards electronically from the Tax Administration before payroll — the employee doesn’t need to submit anything.
Kantax calculates the withholding in the payroll run and reports it in the A-melding to Altinn, together with the employer’s contribution and other details.