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Norway NRIs · Dividend Tax

Dividend tax on Indian shares for NRIs in Norway

Dividends from Indian companies are withheld at the non-resident rate before they reach you in Norway. Here's the treaty position and how to reclaim any excess.

When an Indian company pays you a dividend while you live in Norway, the company withholds tax at source before the money reaches you. India's default withholding on non-resident dividends is 20% under Section 393(2), the successor to Section 195. The India-Norway treaty position is more favourable, capping the rate at 10% for individual residents, a real saving over the 20% default (Article 10). To claim it you need Form 41, the successor to Form 10F, and a Tax Residency Certificate on file with the company or your broker.

India-Norway key facts: dividend tax

Default non-resident TDS rate20%
India-Norway DTAA treaty rate10%
Your saving via the treaty10%
Treaty article / basisArticle 10: 10% flat rate on Indian-source dividends to resident beneficial owners (no shareholding sub-rate)
Your TRC issuing authoritySkatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration)

Rates reflect India's domestic withholding under Section 393(2) (Section 195 until 31 March 2026) and the India-Norway treaty. Surcharge and cess apply on top where relevant.

How it works on the India side

Since the 2020 shift back to classical dividend taxation, dividends from Indian companies are taxable in the shareholder's hands and the company deducts TDS before paying. For a non-resident the default is 20% under Section 393(2) (Section 195 until 31 March 2026), plus surcharge and cess, and Section 115A taxes those dividends at 20% of the gross amount with no expenses allowed. A lower rate only ever comes from a treaty, and only where that treaty writes one for individuals: several of India's treaties reserve the reduced dividend rate for companies holding a large stake in the Indian payer, and some countries have no treaty with India at all, so portfolio investors there stay at the domestic rate.

Where a lower individual rate does apply, you claim it with Form 41 (formerly Form 10F) and a Tax Residency Certificate lodged with the company or broker, and any dividend withheld at the higher rate before your paperwork was on file is reclaimed through your Indian return. Where no lower rate applies, the 20% is generally your final Indian tax, so the questions worth asking are whether the payer withheld more than the correct rate and surcharge, and whether the country you live in gives you a credit for that Indian tax.

What changes because you live in Norway

Norway taxes what you own, not just what you earn, so Formuesskatt reaches your Indian assets. Your flat in India, your NRO and FD balances and your fund units all sit in the Norwegian net wealth base, charged at about 1% a year above NOK 1.9 million (2026), even in a year you take nothing out of India. The number people get wrong is the property: an Indian home enters at an opening 30%, taken from cost price or market value at the time, and then moves only on a general adjustment or an improvement, so it never tracks today's market. Shares and equity fund units go in at 80%. Reporting the flat at full current value overpays, but the skatteloven 4-10 reduction only bites where the recorded value exceeds 30% of documented market value, which on an appreciated flat it usually will not. Don't expect the Indian tax to rescue you here either. Norway credits foreign income tax only against Norwegian income tax, and India levies no wealth tax, so nothing at all offsets Formuesskatt.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions from Norwegian NRIs

India's default is 20% under Section 393(2), but the India-Norway treaty caps it at 10% for individual residents, a saving of 10%. To get the lower rate you file Form 41 with a Tax Residency Certificate from Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration). Any excess withheld beforehand is reclaimed on your Indian return.

Yes. With Form 41 and a Tax Residency Certificate on file, the treaty rate of 10% applies instead of the 20% default, a 10% reduction. Dividends withheld at the higher rate before your paperwork was lodged are reclaimed when you file your Indian return.

Dividend Tax sorted, by an Indian CA who works with Norwegian NRIs

Tell us your situation and a practising Chartered Accountant will confirm the rate that applies, the paperwork you need, and what you can reclaim, on a free call with no obligation.

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