HSE cards for building and construction sites

Employees working at building and constructions sites in Norway are required to carry an official ID card issued by the Labour Inspection Authority. These ID cards are called HSE cards.

Byggekort også kalt HMS-kort i bygge- og anleggsnæringen

What are HSE cards?

The HSE cards are meant to identify the employee and who they work for. The identification requirement will help prevent illicit work, social dumping, illegal immigration etc.

It is in the building sector’s interest that the regulation is upheld, as it makes it more difficult for untrustworthy businesses to gain competitive advantage.

The identification cards are issued by Evry Card on behalf of the Ministry of Labour. Jobbkort AS assists by acquiring and delivering approved HSE cards to businesses and individual contractors working at building and constructions sites.

Who are required to carry HSE cards?

The requirement applies to anybody working at building or construction sites, whether on a long-term or short-term basis, as well as individual contractors (sole proprietors) working at building sites on behalf of a company or a private person.

Cleaners, caterers, electricians, transporters and other professionals who access a work site on a regular basis also need to carry valid HSE cards. The same applies to those involved in building and construction work on the private market.

If you have a HSE card from a part-time engagement with a company, but also perform freelance work you are required to carry one HSE card per activity/entity.

Requirements for employers

The employers must be registered in:

  • the Central Coordinating Register for Legal Entities (Enhetsregisteret)
  • the VAT register (Merverdiavgiftsregisteret)*
*) Exceptions can be made for new companies or companies that for other reasons are not registered in the VAT register.

Requirements for employees

The employees/sole proprietors must be registered in:

  • the National Population Register (Folkeregisteret) or with the Central Office for Foreign Tax Affairs (Sentralskattekontoret for utenlandssaker)
  • must be registered in the NAV State Register of Employers and Employees (Aa-registeret)

If you are a foreign worker, you only need to register with the Central Office for Foreign Tax Affairs, who will assign a D-number and retain information about your employment.

Important: Jobbkort.no cannot procure your card if you fail to register in the required registers. Even if you have initiated a registration process it may not yet be finalized.

Orders that are submitted to Jobbkort before the required registrations are processed by the authorities will experience delays.

The consequences of not having valid HSE cards

The Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority (Arbeidstilsynet) is responsible for enforcing the law. They are authorized to issue fines to enterprises and individual contractors who fail to carry HSE cards.

Companies that have not procured HSE cards for their employees will be required to obtain these. Refusing to supply cards at this stage will lead to suspension of the company’s operations. Serious cases will be reported to the police, and could result in a prison sentence for up to three months.