Signature Rights in a Norwegian Company: Signaturrett, Prokura, and Who Can Sign

Who can legally bind a Norwegian company is recorded as signaturrett and prokura in Brønnøysundregistrene — how to read and resolve signing authority at brreg.no.

Who can legally bind a Norwegian company is recorded as signaturrett and prokura in Brønnøysundregistrene and is viewable at brreg.no.

The manual process today

Resolving who may sign means pulling the company extract, reading two separate authority fields, mapping them to the board, and interpreting the joint-signing rules by hand — then redoing it whenever roles change.

Step	Manual action
1	Order or open the Brønnøysund extract (firmaattest)
2	Read the signaturrett holders
3	Read the prokura holders
4	Match names to board roles
5	Interpret joint-signing combinations by hand
6	Repeat on every onboarding — roles change

Step 1 — Order or open the Brønnøysund extract (firmaattest)

Order or open the company's Brønnøysund extract (firmaattest), the document that records its signing authority.

Step 2 — Read the signaturrett holders

Read the signaturrett holders — the people authorised to bind the company generally.

Step 3 — Read the prokura holders

Read the prokura holders — the people with the narrower day-to-day signing authority.

Step 4 — Match names to board roles

Match each name back to its board role (daglig leder, styreleder, board member) so you know whose authority you are relying on.

Step 5 — Interpret joint-signing combinations by hand

Interpret the joint-signing combinations — "the board jointly", "two members together", "the chair alone" — and work out which signatures you actually need.

Step 6 — Repeat on every onboarding

Repeat the whole resolution on every onboarding, because board changes and authority changes are not pushed to you.

Frequently asked questions

How do I register signature rights (signaturrett)?

Registered via a "Samordnet registermelding" through Altinn; who holds it is decided by the board per the articles of association. (brreg.no)

Where do I find who has signature rights?

A free search by name or org number on brreg.no, or by ordering a firmaattest. (brreg.no)

What is the difference between prokura and signaturrett?

Signaturrett binds the company generally; prokura is a narrower authority for day-to-day business and cannot sell or mortgage the company's real property without special authority. (brreg.no)

Who has signature rights in an association (forening)?

Set by the association's bylaws or annual meeting; if unspecified, the board holds it jointly. (brreg.no)

Can a foreigner register a company in Norway?

Yes. Requirements vary by company form and role — without a Norwegian personal number you may first need a D-number, and for an AS the managing director (if the company has one) and at least half of the board must be resident in Norway or in another EEA state; the Ministry may grant an individual exemption from this requirement. (lovdata.no)