Employees have occupational injury coverage while working, at their place of work and during working hours. An apprentice has the same occupational injury coverage as an employee. National Insurance defines who is considered an employee (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).

In order for the occupational injury coverage to apply, conditions in terms of time, place and task normally apply. At your ordinary place of work, you will have occupational injury coverage during rest breaks, meal breaks, exercise activities, etc. during working hours.

Normally, as an employee, you do not have occupational injury coverage en route to or from your place of work or your first or last assigned location. Nor do you have occupational injury coverage in your time off or while on personal errands during working hours.

Some exceptions apply, such as for employees on ships or petroleum installations, during transport organised by the employer and on business trips with overnight accommodation.

Separate rules concerning occupational injury coverage apply to Norwegian employees on Svalbard. You may also have coverage during your time off, and on your first journey to Svalbard and on your last return journey. The Act relating to occupational injury insurance for workers at Norwegian enterprises in Svalbard specifies which rights apply (lovdata.no).

If you are an employee on board a ship of no less than 100 gross register tons, the entire time you spend on board will be considered working time.

The same applies if you are an employee on an offshore petroleum installation.

This means you will have occupational injury coverage in your time off, as long as you are on board the ship or installation. You do not have occupational injury coverage in your time off onshore.

When your employer organises your transport to and from shore, you have occupational injury coverage.

Self-employed persons and freelancers must apply for voluntary occupational injury insurance to qualify for occupational injury coverage through National Insurance.

The occupational injury coverage takes effect from the date on which NAV received your application. It covers injury, illness and death while engaged in your business activity.

Self-employed persons in small vessel transport and lighterage do not need to take out voluntary occupational injury insurance.

Owners of fishing and whaling vessels will have occupational injury coverage while working on board the vessel.

The National Insurance Act defines who are considered freelancers and self-employed persons (in Norwegian).

The following groups have extended occupational injury coverage:

• Service personnel in the Armed Forces and Home Guard
• Service personnel in the Norwegian Civil Defence
• Service personnel in the civilian national service
• Service personnel in the police

This means you have occupational injury coverage for any personal injury or illness sustained during service.

There is no requirement that the injury or illness be the result of an occupational accident. The injury or illness must have occurred or been inflicted in the period between your entering the service uand your dismissal from service.

If you have participated or are participating in international operations abroad for the Armed Forces, you have occupational injury coverage for your entire stay abroad, including your time off.

You have occupational injury coverage for any personal injury or illness sustained during service.

There is no requirement that the injury or illness be the result of an occupational accident. The injury or illness must have occurred or been inflicted during your service abroad.

If you are a military or civilian employee of the Armed Forces or enlisted personnel, you will normally have the same occupational injury coverage as other types of employees.

Exceptions from this main rule apply to military employees during refresher training, manoeuvres or field-like conditions. In these situations you will have extended occupational injury coverage for the duration of the refresher training or manoeuvre, but not during leave.

If you are attending a public school, a training course or a private school with public funding, you will automatically have occupational injury coverage for occupational injuries sustained at your place of instruction in connection with instructional activities.

The same applies if you are a student at a university or public university college. Courses without exam accreditation are not included in the mandatory occupational injury coverage.

The term place of instruction includes the school and university campus, but also other locations where pupils and students are gathered in connection with instructional activities, such as field trips and museum visits.

Pupils in grades 1–4 who attend public after school programmes, such as SFO and AKS, have occupational injury coverage for the time period while in the school’s care.

A pupil will normally not have occupational injury coverage en route to and from school, unless the transport is organised by the school. One example can be organized school bus transport for pupils who are entitled to that.

Students who are members of Norwegian National Insurance and who study abroad with loans or grants from the Norwegian State Educational Loan Fund may also have occupational injury coverage.

Boarding school

Pupils under the age of 18 who attend boarding schools have occupational injury coverage while under supervision by the school or dormitory, including outside school hours, provided the school or dormitory is obligated to supervise the pupils. If the pupils leave the school or dormitory, the same rules as for pupils at regular schools apply.

Voluntary insurance for pupils and students

A pupil or student not included in any of the groups above may have occupational injury coverage if voluntary occupational injury insurance has been taken out for said pupil or student. The school is responsible for taking out voluntary occupational injury insurance for the pupil.

Apprentice

An apprentice has the same occupational injury coverage as an employee.

Kindergarten

Children in kindergartens and preschools do not have occupational injury insurance.

If you are participating in an employment scheme, training or similar NAV-administered scheme, or in a qualification programme or introduction programme under municipal administration, you will have occupational injury coverage at your place of work during working hors or at your place of instruction during instruction hours.

It is a condition that the activity must provide vocational training, work or work training.

If you are in an institution or serving a community sentence, you will hace occupational injury coverage while working or during educational activities.

If you are a fisherman or hunter registered in Fiskermanntallet – the fisherman register – you have occupational injury coverage. The same applies if you are a catch sharer on board a fishing or hunting vessel.

The occupational injury coverage covers injury, illness and death while engaged in commercial fishing activity.

Self-employed persons in small vessel transport and lighterage also have occupational injury coverage while engaged in commercial activity. Owners of fishing and hunting vessels will have occupational injury coverage while working on board the vessel.

If you get injured while attempting to save human life or prevent the loss of major cultural or material values, you have occupational injury coverage. It is not relevant whether the injury occurs while you are working or in your time off.

Even those who would normally not have occupational injury coverage, such as children or pensioners, could have injuries sustained during this type of event approved as an occupational injury. The determining factor is the amount of risk you subject yourself to.

If you perform what is called fire service, as defined by the Fire Protection Act, but you are not an employee of the fire and rescue service, you will have occupational injury coverage if you get injured during compulsory service or assistance, organised training or watch.

If you are a member of an organisation providing rescue services, you have occupational injury coverage during the rescue operation, during organised training and during training drills and organised transport and watch duty. The Norwegian Red Cross is an example of such an organisation.

If you have sustained a significant and permanent physical or mental injury or illness as a result of an occupational accident or harmful occupational exposure, you may be entitled to compensation for permanent injury from National Insurance.

Compensation for permanent injury is a personal compensation for a specific physical or mental permanent injury or illness. The compensation is calculated on the basis of how permanently disabling the injury or illness is. If your medical disability is less than 15 percent, you are not entitled to compensation for permanent injury.

Sickness benefit replaces earned income when you are unable to work due to illness or injury. If you are on sick leave for an approved occupational injury or illness, you may be granted an occupational injury advantage in the calculation of sick pay.

This advantage may apply to the conditions for being granted sickness benefit, the period during which sickness benefit is paid and sometimes even the amount of sickness benefit that is paid.

Read more about the occupational injury advantage for sickness benefit (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).

Read more about sickness benefit

AAP ensures you have an income in periods when you need assistance from NAV due to illness or injury.

Normally, your work capability must be reduced by at least 50 percent in order for you to qualify for AAP. If your reduced work capability is caused by an approved occupational injury or illness, having your work capability reduced by 30 percent is enough to qualify.

When NAV calculates AAP for the part caused by an approved occupational injury or illness, the basis applied cannot be lower than your presumed annual earned income at the time the injury occurred.

Read more about AAP 

Read more about the occupational injury advantage for AAP (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).

Disability benefit is compensation for the part of your work capability you have lost due to permenent illness or injury. If you have an occupational injury or illness that is the likely cause of your full or partial disability, you may be entitled to an occupational injury advantage when your disability benefit is calculated. This means it is sufficient that your earning ability has been permanently reduced by at least 30 percent in order to qualify for disability benefit.

If your period of national insurance coverage or membership in National Insurance is not long enough, your occupational injury advantage could mean that you qualify for disability benefit and child supplement. Your income at the time of your injury may sometimes affect the amount that is paid.

Read more about disability benefit

Read more about the occupational injury advantage for disability benefit (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).

When a death is caused by an occupational injury or illness, surviving spouse and any surviving children may be entitled to monetary support in certain circimstances. In these cases, it is not a condition that the deceased has been a member of Norwegian National Insurance for the past 5 years prior to death, or that the surviving spouse is a member of Norwegian National Insurance.

Other conditions, such as the surviving spouse either being married to the deceased for at least five years, having children with the deceased spouse or caring for the deceased’s children at the time of death, also do not apply.

If you were dependent on the deceased and are caring for the deceased’s children, even if you were not married to the deceased, you may also qualify for a pension.

Read more about the occupational injury advantage for survivor’s pension (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).

Children’s pension

Normally, children’s pension is paid until the child turns 18 years old. If the death was caused by an approved occupational injury or illness, children’s pension may be paid until the child turns 21 years old, provided he or she is a student, apprentice or intern.

The child is not required to be a member of Norwegian National Insurance in order to be entitled to children’s pension in the case of occupational injury.

Read more about the occupational injury advantage for children’s pension (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).

Old-age pension from National Insurance replaces your earned income when you retire. If you have previously been granted an occupational injury advantage and/or survivor’s pension, the occupational injury advantage may affect your old-age pension.

Read more about the occupational injury advantage for old-age pension (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).

The basic benefit is intended to cover additional expenses incurred as a result of a medical condition that other people normally do not incur. The term medical condition refers to a permanent injury, illness or functional impairment.

If the injury or illness is caused by an approved occupational injury/illness, you may qualify for basic benefit even if you are no longer a member of Norwegian National Insurance, but it is a condition that you were a member of Norwegian National Insurance at the time your illness or injury occurred.

Read more about the occupational injury advantage for basic benefit (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).

If the death was indirectly caused by an injury or illness approved as an occupational injury or illness, repatriation costs may be covered, even if the death occurred abroad or if the deceased lived abroad.

Read more about the occupational injury advantage for funeral grants (lovdata.no) (in Norwegian).