Licence to conduct real estate brokerage in return for remuneration

The following documentation must be enclosed with the application:

• Certificate of incorporation.
• The company's business plan:
  - Monthly budgets for first year of operations.
  - Number of employees upon start-up and number of planned hires in the first year of operations.
  -Information on the types of properties the company plans to trade in.
• Declaration from specialist adviser that the person in question assumes responsibility for the enterprise.
• Auditor-confirmed (ISRE2410) interim accounts no older than two months. The accounts must be submitted in accordance with the principles in the Accounting Act and generally accepted accounting principles, where income and costs must be accrued (including taxes and duties). For newly established companies (date of incorporation less than two months prior), it is sufficient that the certificate of incorporation states that the share capital has been fully paid-in.
• Confirmation from the company's board that the equity is considered adequate. Grounds must be provided for the assessment.
• Confirmation from the company's board that written routines have been stipulated for how the estate agency activities shall be conducted, cf. Section 3-3 of the Estate Agency Act.
• Information about the members of the board who have estate agent qualifications, cf. Section 2-9, subsection 1 of the Estate Agency Act.
• Information about owners.
• Declaration of intent from specialist adviser.

Other requirements for the application:

• The company must have issued a guarantee for the enterprise. Notice of the guarantee must be sent directly by the guarantor to the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway.
• The specialist adviser, general manager and board members (including deputy board members) must submit a police certificate of conduct (that is no older than three months) and aptitude assessment form, cf. Circular 14/2015.

Norwegian Act No 73 of 29 June 2007 relating to estate agencies Section 2-3, cf. Section 2-1.

Criteria/conditions:

The licence is conditional on prior registration in the Register of Business Enterprises.

The enterprise's board members and general manager shall have relevant qualifications and professional experience. The responsible broker must hold a real estate broker licence, practising lawyer's certificate or special lawyer's licence.

The enterprise is required to have a permanent office location in Norway, but the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway can grant exemption from this requirement by individual decision.

The Estate Agency Act Sections 2-4 to 2-9 set requirements as to form of enterprise; equity and furnishing of security. Furthermore, requirements are set for acceptance of the decisions of an appeal board as well as suitability of significant owners, board members, the general manager and the responsible broker.

Enterprises engaged in real estate brokerage may only engage in activities that are naturally related to real estate brokerage and that are not capable of undermining people's confidence in the enterprise's integrity and independence.

Employees and persons with a similar relationship with the enterprise engaged in real estate brokerage, as well as owners and employee representatives in such enterprises who usually participate in day-to-day operations, may not:

- sell real estate through the enterprise in question;
- engage in direct or indirect trading in real estate;
- engage in other activities that are capable of undermining people’s confidence in the enterprise's integrity and independence.

Further information about the scheme is available on the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway's website.

Fee:

The Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway does not charge any fee for this application.

Case processing deadlines:

In accordance with the Estate Agency Act § 2-3 fourth paragraph, specific processing rules for applications for permission to conduct real estate brokerage have been established. The processing deadline for applications is set at three months. The Service Act rules stating that permission is deemed granted when the processing deadline has expired do not apply to applications for permission to conduct real estate brokerage.

Right of appeal:

The decision can be appealed within three weeks after it has been received. The appeal should be sendt to the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway. The appeals authority is the Ministry of Finance. A party has the right to familiarise themselves with the case documents within the framework of the Administrative Procedures Act §§ 18 to 19.