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How to open a bank account and get BankID in Norway
To open a Norwegian bank account you need a Norwegian identification number — a D-number or a national identity number — plus valid photo ID, and you will normally have to appear in person at a branch. BankID is issued by your bank once the account exists, and it is the electronic identity you use to log in to tax, health, benefits and housing services, so the account is the thing that unlocks the rest of Norwegian life. A bank may not refuse you without a legitimate, individual reason.
Who this applies to
- You have arrived in Norway to work or study and have, or are applying for, a D-number or national identity number.
- You are being paid into a foreign account and want to stop losing money on transfers and exchange rates.
- You cannot log in to Skatteetaten, NAV, Helsenorge or Altinn because you have no electronic ID.
- Not yet you if you have no Norwegian identification number at all — get that first; it is the one hard prerequisite.
Step by step
- Get your identification numberA D-number is enough — you do not need to be a registered resident. Start there if you have not.
- Choose a bankAny bank operating in Norway can open the account. Compare on what you will actually use: monthly fees, card fees, whether BankID costs extra, and whether they have English-language service and app.
- Book an appointmentAlmost every bank requires a first meeting in person for identity verification. Some let you begin the application online and finish it at a branch.
- Bring your documentsPassport, identification number, employment contract or student admission, and your address in Norway. Some banks ask what the account will be used for and where your money comes from — this is anti-money-laundering law, not suspicion of you.
- Activate BankIDYour bank issues it, usually as BankID on mobile or a code device. Do this at the branch while someone can help; setting it up later on your own is where people get stuck.
- Give your account number to your employerAnd to Skatteetaten, so any tax refund goes to a Norwegian account rather than being held.
What you need to bring
- Passport or accepted national ID document — valid, not expired.
- D-number or national identity number.
- Employment contract, or proof of study.
- Your Norwegian address.
- For non-EU citizens, your residence permit or residence card.
What it costs
Opening an account is normally free. What varies between banks, and what you should compare before choosing, is the monthly account fee, the card fee, and whether BankID is included or charged annually — banks set these themselves and they change, so we do not publish figures that would be wrong within a year. Ask for the price list (prisliste) in writing at the appointment.
Nothing about opening an account, in itself, should cost a large sum. If it does, ask what for.
How long it takes
No bank publishes a guaranteed timescale, and the honest answer is that it depends on the branch, the season, and whether your paperwork is complete. Assume weeks, not days, and start in your first week in Norway rather than when your first salary is due.
BankID is usually issued in the same appointment or within a few days of the account opening.
Common mistakes
- Leaving it until you need it
- Everything else — tax, doctor, housing applications, benefits — waits behind BankID. It is the bottleneck of the first months, so it should be the first thing you queue for.
- Believing you have been refused when you have been asked a question
- Being asked where your money comes from is standard anti-money-laundering procedure applied to everyone. Answer it plainly.
- Accepting a refusal as final
- Norwegian law gives you a right to an account. See below.
- Sharing BankID codes
- Nobody legitimate will ever ask for them — not your bank, not the police, not Skatteetaten. Anyone who does is committing fraud against you.
- Not registering the account with Skatteetaten
- A refund with nowhere to go simply sits there.
If a bank turns you down
This is the part that is rarely explained, and it matters. Under the Financial Contracts Act a financial institution may not refuse to open an account or provide payment services without legitimate grounds, and it must tell you of a refusal without unreasonable delay. Finanstilsynet, the financial supervisory authority, has been explicit that people, whole groups or whole sectors may not be refused financial services simply because of a perceived money-laundering risk — the practice known as de-risking. A bank must make an individual assessment, and must consider whether limiting or blocking particular services would be enough before refusing the customer relationship at all.
In practice this means: ask for the refusal and its reason in writing, then ask another bank. If you believe you have been refused without an individual assessment, the refusal can be complained about — the Norwegian Financial Services Complaints Board (Finansklagenemnda) handles consumer complaints against banks, and Finanstilsynet supervises the rules themselves.
EU/EEA and non-EU
The account requirements are the same for everyone: a Norwegian identification number and verified identity. The difference is upstream. EU/EEA citizens can obtain a D-number as soon as they are working, so the path is short. Non-EU citizens normally need a residence permit before any of it begins, and should expect banks to ask to see the permit alongside the passport.
What to do next
- Get a D-number first if you do not have one
- Apply for a tax card so you are not taxed at 50%
- Read the full money and banking guide
What the first months in Norway actually cost →
Realistic figures for the period before your salary and your account catch up with each other.
Every rule on this page, at its official source
Financial Contracts Act ch. 4-1 — the right to an account (Lovdata) ↗Finanstilsynet — anti-money-laundering rules and the right to financial services ↗Skatteetaten — D-number ↗Skatteetaten — national identity number ↗This page brings official Norwegian information together in one place and explains it in plain English. Rules and amounts change, and your own situation may differ — check anything that matters against the official source above, and treat this as general information, not legal or tax advice.
Published 2026-08-02 · last checked against official sources 2026-08-02 · how NorgeStart researches and corrects its guides