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Etablererprøven in English: the restaurant manager test

A plain-English guide to etablererprøven, the test you must pass to be daglig leder (general manager) of a restaurant, café or other place that serves food in Norway. Facts checked 22 October 2026 against Bergen kommune's and Bærum kommune's pages for the test. Rules and fees are set locally, so check with your own kommune. Prøvetolk is independent practice material, not an official source.

Who needs etablererprøven?

Every serveringssted (a place that serves food or drink to be eaten on the premises) must have a daglig leder, and the daglig leder must have passed etablererprøven. Bergen kommune also says the daglig leder must be at least 18. Anyone can take the test, with no age limit for sitting it, so you can pass it before you apply for the licence (serveringsbevilling).

If the place will also serve alcohol, it needs a skjenkebevilling too, and its styrer and stedfortreder must pass a different test: kunnskapsprøven for skjenkebevilling. Many restaurant managers need both. Ask your kommune which test each person on your application needs.

Can you take etablererprøven in English?

No. The test is only in Norwegian ("Prøven finnes kun på norsk språk", Bærum). You may not bring an interpreter or use a dictionary (Bergen, Bærum). That is stricter than kunnskapsprøven, where Bergen allows a dictionary. If Norwegian is not your first language, the practical answer is to learn the key Norwegian terms in advance and practise reading questions in Norwegian.

You may use a lovsamling (a printed collection of the laws) or printouts of the relevant laws during the test. Bergen lends out a lovsamling; Bærum names serveringsloven, arbeidsmiljøloven, røykeloven and alkoholloven as examples.

Format

• 50 multiple-choice questions, one correct answer each.
• 90 minutes.
• Pass mark: 40 correct (80%).
• Extra time (up to 30 minutes) can be arranged for example for dyslexia, with a doctor's note (Bergen).
• Bring valid photo ID. Phones are locked away during the test (Bærum).

Booking and fee

You book with a kommune, not a national body, and you can take the test in a kommune other than the one you live in (Bergen). Both Bergen and Bærum charge 400 NOK per attempt and use online booking. Search for "etablererprøven" plus your kommune's name to find the booking page.

When you pass, you get a prøvebevis (certificate). Bergen says it is valid indefinitely ("gyldig på ubestemt tid").

What the test covers

Bergen describes it as a test of "financial management and the laws that matter for running a serveringssted". The areas:

• Serveringsloven: the act on serving businesses: the licence, the daglig leder, the owners' and manager's duties.
• Tax and VAT law (skatte- og avgiftslovgivningen): for example merverdiavgift (MVA, Norwegian VAT).
• Accounting law (regnskapslovgivningen): keeping books and records.
• Bankruptcy law (konkurslovgivningen).
• Working environment law (arbeidsmiljølovgivningen): employees, working hours, safety.
• Alkoholloven: the alcohol act.

Bærum recommends the book Etablererprøven for serveringsvirksomhet (VINN) for preparation.

Key Norwegian words

Practise with Prøvetolk

Prøvetolk does not have etablererprøven questions yet. It covers kunnskapsprøven, the alcohol test that styrer and stedfortreder at a restaurant with a skjenkebevilling must pass: questions in Norwegian like the exam, with English help and the paragraph each answer comes from. The free test needs no sign-up; full access costs 299 NOK for 60 days, with a 14-day refund.

This guide was written with help from AI and checked against the kommune pages named above.

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