Parental leave in Norway: 100% or 80% pay
By Kalkulatorbanken · Last updated
Figures and rules are for 2026 and checked against the sources at the bottom of the page. Norwegian version of this guide.
When you apply for parental benefit (foreldrepenger) you choose between 100% and 80% coverage. At 100% you get 49 weeks of benefit and at 80% 61 weeks and 1 day, for one child born from 1 July 2024. The choice is made in the application, applies to both parents and cannot be changed later. The total paid out is about the same: 80% simply spreads it over a longer time.
Prefer to run your own numbers? Open the Norway Parental Leave Pay Calculator 2026.
In short
- 100% pays 49 weeks; 80% pays 61 weeks and 1 day. NAV describes the total paid out as about the same.
- The benefit replaces income up to NOK 819,294 (6G) a year in 2026. Pay above that is not covered.
- To qualify you need income in at least 6 of the last 10 months, at least half of G a year, and membership of the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme.
- Work in another EEA country counts towards the 6 months. Student loans and grants do not.
The choice you cannot undo
At 100%, NAV pays 100% of your income. At 80% it pays 80% of your income over a longer period. The mother's application decides for both parents, and the choice cannot be changed afterwards. For one child born from 1 July 2024 the weeks are split like this.
| Period | 100% | 80% |
|---|---|---|
| Before the birth (mother) | 3 weeks | 3 weeks |
| Mother's quota | 15 weeks | 19 weeks |
| Father's or co-mother's quota | 15 weeks | 19 weeks |
| Shared period | 16 weeks | 20 weeks and 1 day |
| Total | 49 weeks | 61 weeks and 1 day |
| Of which after the birth | 46 weeks | 58 weeks and 1 day |
The mother must start the benefit three weeks before the due date, and 15 days of it are reserved for her before the birth. For two children, NAV's table gives 66 weeks at 100% and 82 weeks and 2 days at 80%. Work out the daily rate with the parental leave calculator.
What 80% means in NOK
The daily rate is your yearly basis divided by 260, times your coverage rate. The benefit is paid for working days, so 100% gives 245 payments and 80% gives 306.
Worked example
The table shows one parent taking all the days. In practice you share the days and each of you gets a rate based on your own income.
| Yearly income | Rate | Per day | Per month | Period | In total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NOK 600,000 | 100% | NOK 2,308 | NOK 50,007 | 49 weeks | NOK 565,460 |
| NOK 600,000 | 80% | NOK 1,846 | NOK 39,997 | 61 weeks and 1 day | NOK 564,876 |
| NOK 950,000 | 100% | NOK 3,151 | NOK 68,272 | 49 weeks | NOK 771,995 |
| NOK 950,000 | 80% | NOK 2,521 | NOK 54,622 | 61 weeks and 1 day | NOK 771,426 |
- At NOK 600,000 the total differs by only NOK 584. The monthly amount falls from NOK 50,007 to NOK 39,997, but you stay home 12 weeks and 1 day longer.
- At NOK 950,000 the basis is capped at NOK 819,294. 100% covers 86% of your pay and 80% covers 69%.
So the choice is not about getting more money but about spreading the same money over a longer period. Some employers or collective agreements top up pay above 6G, so check your contract.
Quotas, shared period and the activity requirement
When both parents have earned the right, each has a quota reserved for them, and the rest is a shared period that can be split freely. The quotas are 15 weeks each at 100% and 19 weeks each at 80%. The first 6weeks after the birth are the mother's and cannot be combined with work or holiday. The father or co-mother can take two weeks of the quota at the same time as the mother, around the birth.
When the mother must be active
If the father or co-mother takes days from the shared period, the mother must be in approved activity: working, in approved full-time education, in a combination that adds up to full time, entirely dependent on help because of illness, in a health institution, in the qualification programme, or on the full-time introduction programme for newly arrived immigrants. If she works part time, the father's benefit is reduced accordingly, but a job of 75% or more counts as full time.
You must use the benefit before the child turns 3. To plan dates, see the Norwegian parental leave planner (in Norwegian). Cash-for-care can bridge the time until a kindergarten place: see the cash-for-care calculator and the child benefit guide.
Who qualifies, and what newcomers should know
You normally need to meet three conditions: income in at least 6 of the last 10 months before the benefit starts, yearly income of at least half of G (NOK 68,275), and membership of the Norwegian National Insurance Scheme. People living in Norway are usually members. If you are abroad for more than 12 months, or for more than six months a year in two consecutive years, NAV treats you as living abroad.
What this means if you are new to Norway
- Work in another EEA country counts as income when NAV assesses the 6 months. Student loans and grants from the State Educational Loan Fund do not.
- If the other parent is entitled to a comparable benefit in another EU/EEA country, you may be entitled to a quota in Norway. The benefit period abroad is coordinated with yours: weeks beyond the quota taken abroad reduce the shared period.
- The full-time introduction programme for newly arrived immigrants counts as the mother's activity in the shared period.
If you do not qualify: the lump sum grant
A mother who does not qualify can apply for a lump sum grant (engangsstønad) of NOK 92,648 per child. For a due date after 1 October 2024 you must have been a member of the National Insurance Scheme continuously for at least 12 months immediately before the due date, with an exception for those who were in week 22 of pregnancy or more on 1 October 2024. At half of G, 100% gives NOK 64,435 and 80% gives NOK 64,260 before tax, less than the grant. Compare for your own income in the Norwegian lump sum versus parental benefit calculator (in Norwegian).
If you receive parental benefit from NAV during a holiday year you also get holiday pay on part of it; see the holiday pay calculator. Pregnancy benefit before the leave is covered in the pregnancy benefit calculator.
Calculate with your own numbers
Norway Parental Leave Pay Calculator 2026 uses the 2026 rates and shows the working step by step. It takes under a minute. You do not need to log in or have BankID, and what you type stays in your browser.
Compare 100% and 80% pay →