§ 61. Does the Consumer Purchases Act (forbrukerkjøpsloven) apply abroad?
If you buy in a physical shop abroad, that country's laws apply. If you buy from a foreign online shop that targets Norwegian customers (Norwegian prices, Norwegian text), the Norwegian Consumer Purchases Act applies.
Machine-translated from Norwegian. The Norwegian text is the one that applies. Read the original in Norwegian.Norsk English العربية Polski Українська
The text of the law (unofficial translation)
For agreements on the purchase of goods between parties who have their place of business (forretningssted) or residence in different states outside the EEA (EØS), the Act applies to purchases of goods for the personal use of the buyer or the buyer's family or household, unless the seller, before or at the time the agreement was made, neither knew nor ought to have known that the goods were bought for such a purpose.
What does this mean?
Online shopping: If you order from an online shop that targets Norwegian customers (Norwegian prices, Norwegian text, VOEC-registered), the Norwegian Consumer Purchases Act applies. The problem is purely practical — forcing a Chinese company to follow Norwegian law is difficult.
Holiday purchases: If you buy in a physical shop in the USA, Thailand or similar, that country's laws apply. There is no Norwegian 5-year rule to fall back on.
Example
Kari buys a smartwatch from a British online shop that advertises to Norwegian users and charges in Norwegian kroner. After one year the watch stops working. The shop claims a 6-month British guarantee (garanti). Kari can argue that Norwegian law applies — the shop targeted Norwegian consumers (forbruker).
Common mistakes
- Arguing with an eBay seller in the USA and referring to "Norwegian law on 5-year complaints" — they operate under American law
What should you do?
Avoid expensive purchases from sellers (selger) outside Europe unless you are prepared for the fact that it may in practice be impossible to make a complaint about a defect (reklamasjon).