September 7, 2026 · ← Blogg

Tips in the restaurant 2026 — rules, tax and fair distribution in Norway

Tips were long a cash phenomenon that went straight into the pocket and were rarely discussed. Since 2019 they are part of the payroll base in Norway, with reporting obligations, tax withholding and employer's national insurance contributions. At the same time, cash has disappeared: in 2026 almost all tips arrive via card terminal, Vipps or QR payment, and land in the restaurant's account before reaching staff. That gives you as an employer both a responsibility and an opportunity. This guide walks through the rules as they are actually applied, the most common distribution models, what you are allowed to deduct, and how to avoid tips becoming the source of conflict in your team.

Tips are wages: the main rule since 2019

From 1 January 2019 the rules changed so that the employer has full responsibility for tips received by employees. Concretely this means four things. The employer must record all tips, both cash and digital. The employer must report the tips as wages in the a-melding (monthly payroll report) for the employee who receives them. The employer must withhold advance tax on the tips in the usual way. And the employer must pay employer's national insurance contributions on the amount, just as on ordinary wages.

For the employee this means tips count as taxable income, pension base, and the basis for sick pay, parental benefit and unemployment benefit. That is a benefit: a server with 40,000 kr in annual tips accrues more than before 2019, when tips were in practice invisible to NAV.

For the employer it means tips are no longer "the staff's business". Whether tips are handed out in cash at the end of the night or paid with wages, you have a duty to keep track. Skatteetaten has been clear on this in audits since 2020, and failure to report tips has become a common finding in the hospitality sector.

Note that tips are not included in the holiday pay base under the Holiday Act unless agreed. Most employers choose to keep tips outside the holiday pay base, but this should be stated explicitly in the employment contract or staff handbook.

Cash tips: still legal, but needs a routine

Cash tips given directly to the server are still legal, and the employee can in principle keep the money the same evening. But the amount must be recorded and reported by the employer. In practice this is solved in one of two ways.

The first is that staff put all cash tips in a shared box that is counted and booked at the daily close, and then paid out via payroll together with digital tips. This gives tidy documentation and equal treatment with digital tips, but staff lose the immediate pleasure of cash in hand.

The second is that staff keep the cash but record the amount on a form or in the till at the end of the shift. The employer reports the amount in the a-melding and withholds tax and employer contributions from the next pay run. This is legal but requires trust and discipline. An under-reported amount is a breach of the rules for both employer and employee.

With the cash share in Norwegian food service below 5% of revenue at most venues, more and more choose the first model because it is easiest to defend during an audit.

Digital tips via terminal, Vipps and QR

In 2026 most tips arrive digitally. The most common channels are a tip prompt on the payment terminal, where the guest is asked to add an amount or percentage before the card is charged, tips via Vipps either as a separate amount to the business's Vipps number or as an addition to the payment, and tips via QR payment where the guest chooses a tip amount on their phone before confirming payment.

All of these go into the restaurant's bank account together with sales. It is important to separate tips from sales from the first second. Tips are not revenue and must not be subject to VAT. Make sure the terminal, Vipps setup and QR system report tips as a separate item in the daily close, so your accountant can book them to a separate balance sheet account ("tips owed to employees") and not as sales income.

A practical detail many overlook: the transaction fee. The payment provider takes a fee on the whole amount including tips, typically 1–2.5% depending on your agreement. You can choose to cover this yourself or deduct it from the tip pool. Both are legal, but it must be agreed with staff in advance.

The experience from venues that have introduced a tip prompt on the terminal or in QR payment is that total tips increase noticeably, often 30–60% compared with cash practice. Preset percentages, for example 5, 10 and 15%, yield more than an open field. But do not overdo it: Norwegian guests react negatively to 20% as the default or to a tip prompt on a counter sale of a coffee. Set the options so it feels natural for your type of venue.

Distribution models: pool, percentage and the kitchen

How tips are shared is not regulated by law. Employer and employees must agree, preferably in writing. The models used in Norway can roughly be divided into three.

Individual tips: the server keeps what the guests at her tables give. Simple and a direct reward for good service. The downside is that it creates competition for the best tables and the best shifts, and that kitchen, bar and dishwashing get nothing even though they contribute just as much to the guest experience. The model is on its way out in Norway but still exists at venues with low staffing.

Pool per shift: all tips during a shift go into a shared pot and are split among those who worked, usually equally or by hours. This is the most common model in Norwegian restaurants. It rewards the team, evens out randomness, and reduces conflict. A common variant is to weight by role, for example servers 1.0 points per hour, bartenders 1.0, runners 0.8 and kitchen 0.7.

Pool per week or month with kitchen included: all tips are collected over a longer period and distributed to all staff by hours, possibly with role weighting. The kitchen gets its share even though they never meet the guest. This is becoming more and more common, especially at venues competing for chefs in a tight labour market, and is the model that produces the least internal friction over time.

A variant that works well in practice: 70% to the floor (servers, bar, runners) split by hours, 30% to kitchen and dishwashing split by hours. The share is adjusted by concept. A venue with high drink sales and simple food might run 80/20, a venue with a complex kitchen and simple service 60/40.

Whatever the model: managers and owners who do not work operationally in the shift should not take part in the tips. It is not illegal in itself, but the team perceives it as theft, and with good reason.

What the employer can deduct from tips

This is the point that generates the most debate. The starting point under the 2019 rules is that the employer may deduct the costs that follow from administering the tips before they are distributed. This includes employer's national insurance contributions on the tip amount, which is 14.1% in most municipalities (lower in certain rural zones, check your zone), any transaction fees from the payment provider, and reasonable administration costs for payroll and accounting.

Many employers choose to cover the employer contributions themselves, as a benefit to staff. Others deduct it from the pot. Both are legal, but make the choice deliberately and communicate it clearly. If a server receives 10,000 kr in tips a month, the difference is about 1,400 kr before tax.

What is not legal: keeping tips as income for the business. Using tips to cover waste, breakage or till discrepancies. Deducting tips from employees as "punishment". Using tips to compensate for wages below the collective agreement or agreed pay. Tips come on top of agreed wages, never instead of them. The Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority (Arbeidstilsynet) has had cases on this, and the outcome is always repayment plus the risk of a fine.

Good advice: write down what is deducted and how it is calculated, in the staff handbook or a separate tip agreement, and show the calculation on the pay slip or in a monthly summary. Then the suspicion disappears.

How to report: a-melding and pay slip

Tips are reported in the a-melding as a separate pay type, not as ordinary hourly wages. The accounting systems used in Norwegian food service have this as a dedicated pay type. The amount is included in the base for tax withholding and employer contributions in the usual way.

The simplest routine for most is monthly: total all recorded tips (cash and digital) per employee based on the distribution model. Enter the amount as a separate pay type in the month's pay run. Let the system withhold tax and calculate employer contributions. Report in the a-melding together with other wages by the 5th of the following month. Pay out the net with wages.

Some venues choose to pay tips more often, for example weekly, because staff want it. Then each payment must be handled as a wage payment with withholding, which increases administration. A compromise many use is monthly payment with a visible running total, so staff can see what is accumulating.

Tips must appear on the pay slip as a separate line. The employee receives the amount pre-filled in their tax return the following year and does not need to do anything themselves.

Remember the balance sheet account: from the moment tips arrive in the bank account until they are paid out, they are a liability to staff, not the restaurant's money. Your accountant must book them that way. This also matters in practice if the business were to run into financial trouble.

Transparency and working environment: where it most often goes wrong

Tips are one of the most common sources of conflict in Norwegian hospitality workplaces, and it is almost never the amount itself that is the problem. It is ambiguity. Staff who do not know how much came in, how it is distributed, or why they got the amount they got, assume the worst.

Three principles solve most of it. First: share the total. Show each month how much came in altogether, how much was deducted for fees and employer contributions, and how much was distributed. A simple sheet in the staff room or a message in the team channel is enough.

Second: write down the model. Distribution key, weighting, who is included, what is deducted. Put it in the employment contract or a separate tip agreement that everyone signs. When someone new starts, go through it on day one.

Third: change the model together. If you are moving from individual tips to a pool, or including the kitchen, raise it at a staff meeting and give people time to have their say. The model can be decided by the employer, but staff must understand why. Changes in distribution are a change in pay terms and should be notified in writing with reasonable notice.

Also be aware of discrimination risk. A model where "those who get the most tips" are rewarded can in practice favour employees with certain characteristics, because guests' tipping behaviour is not neutral. Pool models eliminate this. Both Arbeidstilsynet and the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud have pointed to this as an issue in the industry.

Tips in Flowder and QR payment

When the guest pays via QR code at the table, the tip choice is a natural part of the flow: the guest sees the bill on their phone, chooses a tip amount or percentage if they wish, and confirms payment. Because the guest is alone with the screen, without a server waiting, it feels less intrusive than a prompt on the terminal. Venues using QR payment often report that the tip rate is higher than with terminal payment.

In Flowder, tips are recorded as a separate item on each transaction and totalled separately from sales in the daily close. That means your accountant receives the tips already separated out, ready to be booked to a balance sheet account and distributed according to your model. You can set which percentage options the guest sees, and switch the tip prompt off for take-away or counter sales if it does not suit the concept.

The actual distribution to staff happens in the payroll system, based on the shift schedule and distribution model. Flowder gives you the basis: exactly how much came in, per day and per shift, without manual counting.

Checklist: tips in order in 30 minutes

Go through this with your accountant and a union representative or staff representative.

All tip channels (cash, terminal, Vipps, QR) are recorded and reported as a separate item in the daily close. Tips are booked to a separate balance sheet account, not as revenue. The distribution model is written and signed by all staff. What is deducted (employer contributions, fees, administration) is documented and visible. Tips are reported as a separate pay type in the a-melding every month. Tips appear as a separate line on the pay slip. A monthly summary of receipts, deductions and distribution is shared with the team. Managers who do not work shifts are not part of the distribution. The holiday pay question is settled in the agreement.

This is not complicated, but it requires someone to take responsibility for it. Do it before the first pay run and you avoid cleaning up later.

FAQ

Do employees have to pay tax on tips in Norway?

Yes. Tips are taxable income for the employee. Since 2019 the employer must record the tips, report them in the a-melding, withhold advance tax and pay employer's national insurance contributions. The employee receives the amount pre-filled in their tax return.

Can the employer keep part of the tips?

The employer may deduct costs related to administering the tips, such as employer contributions, transaction fees and reasonable payroll costs. The employer may not keep tips as income, use them to cover waste or till discrepancies, or use them to replace agreed wages.

Should the kitchen get a share of the tips?

It is not regulated by law, but more and more Norwegian restaurants include kitchen and dishwashing in the tip pool, often with 20–40% of the total split by hours. It reduces conflict and makes it easier to recruit chefs. The model should be in writing and known to all staff.

How are tips paid via Vipps or card handled?

Digital tips go into the restaurant's account together with sales and must be separated out as a distinct item in the daily close. They are booked to a balance sheet account as owed to staff, distributed according to the agreed model and paid out via payroll with tax withholding and employer contributions.

Are tips included in the holiday pay base?

Not automatically. Tips are not considered remuneration from the employer under the Holiday Act, and are therefore not included in the holiday pay base unless agreed. Settle this in writing in the employment contract or tip agreement to avoid ambiguity.

What happens if the restaurant does not report tips?

Failure to report is a breach of the payroll reporting act and tax payment rules. Skatteetaten can set the amount at its discretion, demand back payment of tax and employer contributions, and impose penalty tax and enforcement fines. Hospitality is a priority audit sector, and tips are a standard item in audits.