The country is currently on a mission to reduce the number of legal procedures in order to allow companies to focus more on what they do best.

Norway made certain changes to its corporate laws for the benefit for Private Limited Liability Companies (AS) and Public Limited Liability Companies (ASA) in the country. Why? Because the Minister of Industry (næringsminister) Torbjørn Røe Isaksen believes that the everyday life of Norwegian companies should be simpler. Instead of focussing on local formalities, these companies should have more room to focus on what they do best: their business.

The following changes to the Norwegian Public Limited Liability Act (Allmennaksjeloven) and/or the Norwegian Private Limited Liability Act (Aksjeloven) have recently taken place. If you need further information about the changes, or help putting them into practice in your Norwegian business, don't hesitate to get in touch.

Reduction of administrative burden and costs to liquidate an AS

Since 1 January 2019, companies that have opted out of audits on their financial statements no longer need to audit their liquidation financial statements. And since 1 March 2019, there has been no need to audit the liquidation balance sheet and liquidation settlement.

Board members of an AS and an ASA to act as liquidators

Since 1 March 2019, the liquidation of an AS or ASA is the responsibility of all board members who form together a new, separate corporate body of the company under liquidation. Appointing separate liquidators is not necessary.

Simplification of the articles of association

It's no longer mandatory (since 1 March 2019) to incorporate in the articles of association of an AS the municipality (kommune) of the company's registered office. This change has come about due to the number of merging municipalities in Norway. The added bonus of this simplification is that it makes it easier for companies to move from one place to another in Norway, without having to change their articles.

As long as the articles state that the company has its registered office in a certain municipality, it can have its registered office there. To avoid changing articles just prior to a relocation, a change to the articles could be considered during the first coming shareholders' meeting, for example during the annual general meeting.

Talk to us

TMF Norway's expert team can manage your recurring compliance filings, take care of routine corporate changes and retrieve any official corporate documents from the relevant registries.

If you're interested to learn more about Norway's simplification measures or need corporate secretarial support with your local operations, Contact us today.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.