Inspection by Skatteetaten – how to be prepared
The Norwegian Tax Administration checks that shops use their cash register system correctly. Here is what an inspection may cover, what you should have ready, and where to find it in Cmerce.
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Back office
Last updated 09.10.2026
The Norwegian Tax Administration (Skatteetaten) inspects both suppliers and users of cash register systems. For you as a shop owner, an inspection is about one thing: that all cash sales are registered in a declared cash register system, and that your documentation is in order. With Cmerce most of this is ready in advance. This article shows what you should have in place and where to find it.
What may Skatteetaten look for?
Typical questions in an inspection of the cash register system are:
- Does the shop use a declared cash register system?
- Do customers get a sales receipt?
- Are all cash sales registered in the till?
- Is a Z-report run for each register every day, and is the cash counted and reconciled?
- Does the cash in the drawer match what the till shows?
- Can the shop present the system description, Z-reports, terminal reports and a SAF-T file?
What you should have ready – and where it is
| You may be asked for | Where to find it |
|---|---|
| Product declaration and system description | Ask Cmerce for them in advance, and keep them stored. See Product declaration. |
| Z-reports | «Kasse (POS)» → «Z-rapporter (dagsoppgjør)», can be downloaded as PDF |
| An X-report for the till right now | At the till, via «X-rapport». See X-report. |
| SAF-T Cash Register file | «Kasse (POS)» → «SAF-T eksport». See SAF-T Cash Register. |
| Electronic journal | «System» → «Logging» → «Elektronisk journal» |
| Grand total log | «System» → «Logging» → «GTL-logg» |
| Who changed settings and prices | «System» → «Logging» → «Kontrollspor» (Audit trail) and «Prishistorikk» (Price history) |
| Daily settlement with cash count and reconciliation | Your own papers or files, together with the Z-report and terminal report |
| Day reports from the payment terminal | From the terminal or the payment provider |
| Documentation of cash withdrawals | In the cash drawer (bokføringsforskriften § 5-3-8) |
How Cmerce helps you
- Everything is locked. Sales, the journal and Z-reports cannot be changed or deleted. What you present is what was actually registered.
- Integrity can be shown. The electronic journal page shows whether the signature chain is intact, and the GTL log shows for each register whether the counters have no gaps and have only increased.
- Signatures can be checked without Cmerce. The SAF-T file contains the signature on every sale, and Skatteetaten can check it with its own tool.
- All figures are on the reports. The Z-report shows all mandatory specifications, including zeros.
- No day without a Z-report. Cmerce makes sure every shift is closed and gets its Z-report.
- Data is stored in Norway for at least five years.
Checklist – do this now, not when the inspection comes
- Ask Cmerce for the product declaration and the system description, and store them.
- Check that the company name and organisation number on the receipt are correct.
- Check that every register that accepts cash is set up with an integrated cash drawer.
- Make sure every employee has their own user or till PIN.
- Set fixed routines for the daily settlement: Z-report, cash count, reconciliation against the terminal, explanation of differences, and who did it.
- Keep the terminal reports together with the Z-report for the same day.
- Do a test SAF-T export so you know how it is done.
- Make sure at least one person besides you – your accountant, for example – has access to Z-reports and the SAF-T export.
During an inspection
- Show what you are asked for. Everything held in Cmerce you can retrieve yourself from the admin panel.
- Deliver the SAF-T file for the period the inspector asks for.
- If Skatteetaten needs technical information about the system itself, you can refer them to Cmerce as the supplier.
In short
- An inspection is about all cash sales being registered in a declared system, and the daily settlement and documentation being in order.
- Cmerce keeps and locks the till data, and makes it easy to retrieve.
- You must have the product declaration, system description, cash counts, terminal reports and withdrawal documentation ready yourself.
- Go through the checklist now, and you will be prepared.