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Import of fertilisers and other fertilising products

Contents on this page

  1. Registration of companies
  2. Phytosanitary certificate for organic fertilising products
  3. Import of soil and organic growing media
  4. Import of Plants and Plant Materials
  5. National Regulations for Fertilising products
  6. Mutual recognition of products from other EEA Countries
  7. EU-fertilising products (CE-marketed products)
  8. Fertilising products with effects as plant protection products
  9. Other regulations may also apply

Registration of companies

Companies that produce, sell, import, or otherwise handle raw materials and fertilising products must register their company with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority before starting.

Registration is done electronically, and you will need a Norwegian company code to complete the registration. Registration may also be performed by a Norwegian-registered foreign business (NUF). For your information, we enclose link to other public information on the topic: Norwegian branch of a foreign company (NUF) (altinn.no)

Registration is free of charge. Registered companies may be contacted by the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO) for providing sales statistics to be used for the national statistics on nutrients in agriculture. More information about registration and guidance can be found on the registration page.

Registration of fertiliser business

Businesses that will produce, sell, import or otherwise receive or process raw materials and fertilisers must register the business's activities with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority before starting up.

Go to the form

Phytosanitary certificate for organic fertilising products

Most organic fertilising products need a phytosanitary certificate (plant health certificate) when imported into Norway. This also applies to EU fertilising products. Phytosanitary certificates are often exchanged digitally. Read more about electronic/digital phytosanitary certificates.

In the Plant health regulation (Appendix 5A, point 9), you will find an overview of fertilising products that must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate. You can see the appendix under "Regulations."

If you are importing fertilising products that require a phytosanitary certificate, you must first register as an importer of plants and plant materials, etc. Additionally, each import consignment must be notified to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority. The import notification must be sent to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority before the goods arrive at the place where you conduct the reception control. From October 2025 it needs to be sent before crossing the border.

If an electronic phytosanitary certificate accompanies the consignment instead of an original paper certificate, you must also register as an importer in Digiplant to retrieve your electronic certificates. When the consignment has arrived in Norway, you must conduct a reception control. This involves checking whether the phytosanitary certificate is valid and correctly filled out and that the content of the certificate matches the consignments content. There should be no visible residues of soil, weeds, or signs of pests in the batch. Furthermore, you must check that the wooden packaging, on which the goods are loaded, has valid ISPM 15 marks. If the reception control does not reveal any deficiencies, the fertilising products can be used or sold immediately. Contact the Norwegian Food Safety Authority if you find errors with the consignment during the reception control.

Import of soil and organic growing media

It is prohibited to import soil and organic growing media, except for unblended peat, from non-European countries according to the Plant health regulation, Appendix 3, point 10.

Import of Plants and Plant Materials

This form is used to notify certificate-required import consignments of plants and plant materials, etc.

The notification must be given before the import consignment arrives at the reception site. From October 2025 it needs to be sent before crossing the border. The notification obligation is regulated in the plant health regulation § 23.

To access the notification form, your business must be registered as an importer with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority. You do this in the form "New importer of plants and plant materials, etc."

When an import consignment has arrived and been reception controlled, this must be reported to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority according to § 23d. In the Norwegian Food Safety Authority's form service under the menu "Forms" and "My started forms," you will find a new task to report that the import shipment arrived and that it is controlled. The exception to this is import shipments with soil and fertilising products; for these shipments, no notification to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority is required after the reception control is completed.

New importer of plants and plant material, etc.

In this form, you can register as an importer of plants and plant material. The form can also be used if you want to register as a recipient controller.

A receiving inspection body refers to a company that, by agreement with the importer, carries out receiving inspections of plants, plant material or other goods that must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate.

Once you have submitted the form, you are registered as an importer or receiving inspection body of plants and plant material with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority. You will then have access to the form "Import of plants and plant material, etc.", which you must use to report imports.

If you want to change information about the import business, you can do so in the form "Change information about importer of plants and plant material, etc."

Access the Norwegian Food Safety Authority's form service (Norwegian)

National Regulations for Fertilising products

Norway has national regulations for fertilising products sold on the Norwegian market, including provisions on quality, labelling, internal control, marketing, and use.

The Regulation on the production, sale, and import of fertilising products of organic origin and certain inorganic fertilising products (fertiliser regulation) ensures the quality of fertilising products and takes environmental considerations into account while facilitating the circular use of raw materials.

The regulation on the storage and use of fertilising products, etc. (Fertiliser use regulation) allows fertilising products to be stored and used while preventing pollution, health, and hygiene disadvantages. The regulation on the trade of fertilising products and liming agents, etc ensures the quality and proper use of mineral fertilisers, liming agents, and other mineral products used as fertilising products.

Mutual recognition of products from other EEA Countries

Fertilising products marketed in accordance with national regulations in another EEA country can use the principle of mutual recognition when marketed in Norway.

Read about mutual recognition (regjeringen.no). However, be aware that plant health and alien species are not part of the EEA Agreement, and mutual recognition cannot be used in these areas. Companies that import, produce, or sell fertilising products using mutual recognition must register with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority in the same way as other companies. A prerequisite for using mutual recognition when marketing fertilising products in Norway is that the product is produced according to requirements that provide the same protection for health and the environment as Norwegian regulations.

The Norwegian Food Safety Authority does not have an exhaustive overview of what we consider sufficient to protect health and the environment, but we assess that:

  • Heavy metal content in organic fertilising products should be below the limit value in the EU Fertiliser Regulation (EC) 2019/1009.
  • The Norwegian regulations have use restrictions determined by the heavy metal content in the products. We therefore recommend that the products be labelled with heavy metal content or heavy metal class as specified in the Fertiliser regulation (§21). If the user does not receive information about the heavy metal content, they must assume that the product is in the heavy metal class with the highest heavy metal content.
  • Cadmium content in phosphorus-containing mineral fertilising products should be below 100 mg/kg phosphorus.
  • Organic fertilising products should not be able to transmit diseases to humans, animals, or plants. The products should not contain Salmonella bacteria, the content of Escherichia coli (E. coli) should be less than 1000 colony-forming units per gram of wet weight, and there should be less than two viable seeds or other plant parts that can give rise to new plants per litre of finished product. For animal by-products other hygiene requirement, than plant health,  are given in that regulation.
  • We recommend labelling nutrient content in elemental form (not oxide form), as Norwegian users are used to receiving information in this form. Labelling should be in Norwegian. Swedish and Danish can be used if words that are not the same in these languages are translated into Norwegian.
  • For professional users, the phosphorus content should be labelled with availability as specified in the national regulation. This is to ensure correct dosing.
  • The labelling must provide contact information, either to a Norwegian business responsible for marketing in Norway or to a business responsible in the EEA country whose regulations the product follows.

EU-fertilising products (CE-marketed products)

Both organic and inorganic fertilising products can be marketed as EU fertilising products if they meet the requirements of the EU Fertiliser Regulation.

Marketing a fertiliser as an EU fertiliser can provide easier access to the EEA market. If you import organic fertilising products as EU fertilising products, you should ensure that a third-party control by a notified body (europa.eu) has been carried out where required.

For EU fertilising products marketed in Norway, the cadmium content in phosphorus-containing mineral fertilising products and organic-mineral fertilising products must be below 100 mg Cd/kg phosphorus. The labelling must be in Norwegian. Nutrients should preferably be stated in elemental form. It is recommended to label products of organic origin with heavy metal content to make it easier for users to follow the provisions in the fertiliser use regulation.

Fertilising products with effects as plant protection products

Fertilising products containing certain active substances need approval as plant protection products.

Fertilising products containing active substances listed in Regulation (EU) 540/2011 (EURLEX (eur-lex.europa.eu)) will usually be plant protection products and therefore need approval as plant protection products.

If you market an active substance as a fertiliser or use it as an ingredient in a fertiliser without approving the product as a plant protection product, you must be prepared to document that the active substance does not have a plant protection effect at the recommended dosage of the product. Fertilising products cannot be marketed with direct or preventive effects against plant pests without being approved as plant protection products.

Other regulations may also apply

For example, the import of most alien organisms in fertilising products requires a permit under the Regulation of 19 June 2015 No. 716 on alien organisms.

Mycorrhiza is an example of an organisms that need approval. The regulation is administered by the Norwegian Environment Agency.

For questions related to ammonium nitrate and detonation tests contact the Directorate for Civil Protection (dsb.no).

For questions related to alien species, waste status, REACH, and CLP contact the Norwegian Environment Agency (miljodirektoratet.no).